Czech Republic

This was the hotel I ended up at, the Hotel Excalibur. Moravska Trebova has no connection, as far as I know, to King Arthur, so the theme of the hotel is only a gimmick (as far as I know). I ended up here only after spending the night with one of the most famous punk rockers of all time. I can't prove I met him, as I have no photos, so I won't name him. Embarrassingly, I didn't recognize him, which he probably didn't like at all. However, we ended up talking for hours at one of the Herna bars in town, and playing fussball with the locals. He convinced me to come to the show anyway, and the hotel offered to provide a car in the morning.

Death by Stereo were only one of the many bands at Pod Parou, but they were one of the few hardcore bands. They were also one of the American bands who made it. Most of the bands who played were unknown Czech punk bands who were barely worthy of the label.

Yes, this was really a Misfits show. In spite of the boring Czech bands who made up the majority of those who played, the foreign bands were a who's-who of the most famous punk bands of all time. The Sex Pistols, the Damned, and the X weren't there, and of course the Clash and the Ramones weren't still around, but the Misfits, the Dead Kennedys, and the Exploited were all there. As a bonus, as many punk fans are also Ska fans, the Skatalites (the oldest ska band in the world) also played.

The Dead Kennedys (minus Jello Biafra) were probably the most famous punk band at the festival, although obviously the Misfits and the Exploited are very close, so who knows, really? Punk bands are famous by accident, if they're famous at all. This was a great show, obviously, and was immediately after the Misfits. It was predictably very crowded (and dirty, as there was too little rain, too much heat, and too much dust, even at night), but worth it.

After the Dead Kennedys set, it was after midnight (if memory serves), and I was exhausted. I assumed the festival was over for the night, or at least that the remaining bands would be the local Czech bands. I was wrong, as I walked into the Skatalites' set as I was walking to my tent.

Hannibal Lector were one of the heavier Czech hardcore bands at the festival, but I took this photo more to illustrate the tremendous amount of dust at the festival. This was maybe the most unpleasant thing about the festival, even if it looks cool in a photo. The food was also limited, as only one tent was serving vegetarian food, only one tent had water (if memory serves), and many of the (fake punk, BMW-driving) fans taunted anyone going to them. Of course, walking was difficult, as so many people were unconscious on the ground that I had to zig zag at all hours of the day and night.

In my opinion, Czech ska bands are usually better than Czech punk bands, hardcore bands excepted. This was Ska N' Dal.

The Exploited were the last big name to play at the festival, and I made a point of going to bed afterward, leaving the next day. It was a great set, but very hard to get close to. The crowd was probably the largest of the festival.

I got lucky on this shot, at least getting Wattie Buchan's Mohawk. To be fair, he's a 56-year-old (then 55-year-old) punk rocker so it isn't as cheesy a haircut if he has one. :-)

This is one of the throats to Breclav yard, on the Czech-Austrian border. In the old days, our passports would have been checked here, but not anymore.

Here's a shot closer in, with a view of the engine house.

I'm not sure what that factory is, but that freight train is obviously loaded with new automobiles.

There's the platform destination board in Breclav, with our train number, EC173.

This was on the Czech border, coming into Breclav, the former border checkpoint pre-Schengen. That locomotive is a Class 731 diesel switcher of Ceske Drahy, #731001-4.

Here we are getting closer to Nadrazi Breclav.

Here are another anti-fascist punk band who have a fascist-sounding name: Hounds of Hate.

I don't remember the Hounds of Hate set very well, but I thought the resulting cameraphone shots were dramatic enough.

I DO remember Microvomit's set, as it's the only show I've ever gone to straight from my bed in the wee hours of the morning. It was so loud that it may have been the reason I had some hearing loss when I got home a couple of days later, in spite of having worn plugs for most of the festival. Actually, Microvomit's loudness was probably the reason they were allowed to play the festival, as they don't fit neatly into a punk rock mold. They're more like an incredibly loud fusion band who will happily jam for an hour straight.