The United Islands of Prague international music festival is drawing nearer. The 12th edition of the event will be held during 18 to 20 June 2015, once again in Kinsky Garden. Despite this year’s absence of crowdfunding support, admission to all concerts will be free. Seven festival stages and a selection of Prague’s clubs will host over 150 concerts featuring diverse genres of music. As usual, the list of performers will include up-and-coming musicians, music stars from 17 countries, and a remarkable selection of Czech bands. Apart from music, the festival zone will offer a program of many extras for the whole family, including events for culinary connoisseurs.

The hottest foreign acts who will attend this year’s Islands include the British multi-instrumentalist East India Youth, the Dutch psychedelic rock band Birth of Joy, and the Alo Wala group featuring the highly charismatic rapper Shivani Ahluwalia. There will also be performances by the melancholically inclined singer-songwriter Fismoll and by a trio led by the Luxembourg-based jazz pianist Michel Reis. The roster of Czech bands includes Monkey Business, the mainstay of the local funk scene that will provide music accompaniment for the afternoon party, the up-and-coming Mydy Rabycad, PSH Live Band, Lenka Dusilová and Baromantika, and the band Zrní whose performance will be enhanced by a string quartet and a wind section. The festival’s lineup will also include the DVA duo and such ensembles as Monikino Kino, Tvrdý/Havelka, Mucha, Lanugo, and Kapitán Demo.

“Considering that the domestic music scene has made a huge leap forward in the last 25 years, we’ve decided to reserve a large part of this year’s edition to Czech and Slovak bands. And it just so happens that the prominent Czech record label Indies Records is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, so we’ve included a number of its performers in the program. The Slovak scene will be represented by bands signed with Slnko Records. Their lineup is headed by the band Longital, which owns the label and which will use its appearance at the festival to christen its new album with the assistance of Milan Cais from the band Tatabojs,” says Program Director Barbora Šubrtová in explaining her vision of the festival’s program.

This year’s Islands will be highly diverse, as music will sound on seven open-air stages and in dozens of music clubs. Festivalgoers are sure to be pleased by the fact that the organizers have once again succeeded in erecting the main stage in the unique setting of the Kinsky Garden. As in the previous years, Střelecký Island will host the Czech Radio Jazz Stage and, for the first time, the Czech Radio Wave Stage. This way, the audience will be able to choose between jazz and the young alternative scene.

Kampa is sure to be visited by fans of world music, which will be played on the ČT Art World Stage, as well as by people eager to see musicians discovered by the Radio 1 Stage scene. For the first time, urban music will be played on Children’s Island, where the rhythms of hip-hop and dance music will attract aficionados to the Excelent Urban Stage.

One of the centers of the extras program will be the Janáček Embankment, where the space alongside Vltava will be transformed into a marketplace including an Open Mike stage, where over 20 performers will present their music on Saturday and where amateurs will have the opportunity to sing their songs to the audience. “We’re happy to have been able to create a compact zone that will include all the festival stages and will provide ample room for the program of extras, including a diversified assortment of quality refreshments. The festival’s territory will span essentially from the Legion Bridge to the islands, the Janáček Embankment, and Petřínská Street as far as the Kinsky Garden,” explains one of the festival’s organizers Martin Voňka.

Because the United Islands of Prague festival has been one of the most important cultural events in the Czech capital for the past 12 years, the City of Prague has joined the ranks of its main partners. “During the 12 years of its existence, United Islands of Prague has established itself as an integral part of Prague’s cultural life. I’m confident that this year’s edition will once again bring together not only Prague’s islands, but also all people who visit the festival. We cannot but appreciate the space that has been given to Czech and Slovak musicians this year, as this opportunity will certainly provide them with a momentous incentive in the pursuit of their art careers,” says Prague City Councilor Jan Wolf who is responsible for culture, exhibitions, tourism, and heritage protection.

This year’s general partner to the festival is the Czech Television, which will have its own scene on Kampa Island on Saturday. “The main viewpoints the CT Art culture channel and the United Islands of Prague festival share are tolerance toward varied music genres and the notion that music uplifts the spirit, entertains, and brings together people from all walks of life. That’s why I’m glad that one of the festival venues, Kampa Island, will feature the CT Art World Stage,” reveals Tomáš Motl, Executive Director of the CT Art channel.

United Islands of Prague brings together not only Prague’s islands, on which a festival complex unparalleled in Europe is set up, but also, and more importantly, visitors who are given a unique chance to experience an unforgettable weekend – all together in the center of the Czech capital. This year, admission to all festival venues will be free of charge. Music production on individual stages will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Friday 19 June 2015 and will end in the evening on Saturday 20 June 2015. Also planned are afterparties in music clubs that will last until the small hours of the morning. As is the case every year, the festival will be preceded by a club night that will begin in the evening on Thursday 18 June 2015.

The music program and the program of extras are available at www.unitedislands.cz.

Program subject to change.

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