Rock Castle, Day 1: From New Discoveries to Pirate Madness

Summer is slowly coming to an end, but there are still plenty of events in the area, including outdoor ones, and last weekend (from Thursday, August 13, to Saturday, August 15, 2026) was no exception. The castle park in Moravský Krumlov hosted another year of the Rock Castle festival, and once again this year, the lineup featured some big names.

Promising bands kicked off the festival in grand style

The event kicked off on Thursday at noon with the Swiss symphonic band Deep Sun. The band isn’t very well-known here yet, but it definitely deserves attention. It was a somewhat slow start, but a solid one nonetheless.
The next band to take the stage picked up the pace significantly—it was the German power metal band Victorius. Again, not a big name yet, especially on the Czech scene, but I believe that will change quickly. Anyone who knows me should already know that they’re one of my absolute favorite bands. I think they also made a decent impression at this Czech festival and hopefully gained a number of new fans. Their performances are full of energy, ninjas, and, of course, dinosaurs, which also appeared in the audience.
Rock music fans were surely also delighted by the all-female band Thundermother from Sweden.
The German-Swiss goth band Hell Boulevard also made their debut at a Czech festival. Their sound and style are somewhat reminiscent of their better-known compatriots, Lord of the Lost. Despite minor technical difficulties, they certainly enjoyed their performance, and hopefully we’ll see them again sometime.

From Festival's curiosities to established stars

But we weren’t done with the debuts yet; the next band to perform was the German—let’s call them a rock band—Brunhilde. For some, they were a surprise; for others, more of a curiosity, but they were definitely a refreshing change that no one expected.
Kanonenfieber is already a well-known and, in recent years, very popular band here that tells interesting war stories. Without knowing German, you won’t understand much of the lyrics, but the music, combined with the costumes, is still quite a experience.
After that, it was time for some tried-and-true acts to take the stage. First up were undoubtedly the Swedish band Dynazty, who enjoy enormous popularity—and not just among the female part of the audience. They aren’t among my personal favorites, though, and honestly, their live performances bore me more and more. They didn’t get much time on stage, but even so, they managed to squeeze an instrumental track and a drum solo into their set and stretch out the final song, “Heartless Madness,” to over 15 minutes.

Emotions, rubber ducks, and metal covers

Sonata Arctica arrived with a setlist celebrating 30 years on the scene, and they certainly surprised not only me. I’m not the type of person who reads the setlist in advance to prepare myself. That made me appreciate even more how many older and rarely played songs were included. I was most moved by the ballad section in the middle of the set, especially the song “Shy,” which instantly took me back in time. Popular songs like “I Have a Right,” “Full Moon,” and “Victoria’s Secret” weren’t missing either. It was simply a perfect journey through their entire discography.
This was followed by a pirate party with Alestorm full of inflatable ducks. We’re already used to seeing three big rubber ducks right on stage, but right from the start of the show, another one appeared above the crowd, and by the end, there were even eight of them floating through the crowd at once. The long setlist didn’t differ much from last year’s, but why change something that’s already proven to work for the crowd? They played everything from “Keelhauled” through “Mexico” and “The Storm” to “P.A.R.T.Y.,” and the finale, as usual, featured the songs “Drink,” “Uzbekistan,” and “Fucked With an Anchor.”
The midnight finale of the day belonged to YouTube star and exceptional musician Leo Moracchiolivi and his band Frog Leap. He became famous mainly thanks to his metal covers of songs from various genres, which he also performed live. Who wouldn’t know songs like “Ghostbusters,” “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles),” “Zombie,” or “Eye of the Tiger” and wouldn’t want to hear them in a high-quality metal version? It was a very energizing show, even at such a late hour.

The very first day was packed with a variety of genres and stars. More is coming soon, so don't forget to follow us! More photos and videos are available on our social media accounts and on the festival's profile (Facebook).

Report by Kerry Lynx
Photos by Prague concert