Lost In The Music: Our FM4 Frequency 2026 Review

Every year at the end of August, St. Pölten in Austria transforms into a festival city. The fields next to VAZ St. Pölten are covered with tents, the area of VAZ is transformed into Green Park, and the Traisen (the river floating through St. Pölten) surely only sees so many visitors during the three-day FM4 Frequency festival every year – this year between August 20 and 22.

DAY ONE

The heat was already intense as I made my way through the doors of this year’s FM4 Frequency, while the sun continued to heat up the festival grounds. The weather forecast predicted rain later this evening, but at this point, there was hardly a cloud in sight. I made my way through the empty area, arriving a little early to get settled into the press area and check out the festival grounds.  

The Festival Grounds

The festival has two main stages: Space Stage (the main stage) and Green Stage, as well as smaller stages such as Infinity Live Stage (which transforms into Infinity Nightstage at night) and a Silent Disco at Green Stage. [Disclaimer: On all three days, there was an Infinity Night Stage, where DJs such as Disorder, Levex, and Kanine partied with the crowd. However, as I had to go home to Vienna, I always left after the last “normal” act of the evening, which is why these shows are not mentioned in this review.]
Next to the Space Stage was a big food court with a great variety of food, also for vegans and vegetarians. My recommendation? The Planted Food Truck was so good, as well as the Mini-Pancakes with Nutella! Also, what is a good festival without a Ferris wheel, right? Frequency’s is located across from Space Stage, with festivalgoers being able to look at the whole area once up there. Across from Green Stage, a flunky-ball playground as well as a rollerblade disco made sure no one felt bored in between acts. At the nearest camping ground, you were even able to get yourself a piercing (don’t worry, Mom, I didn’t get one).

Day One's Acts

The Austrian band Lovehead was kicking off this year’s Space Stage. At 1:25 pm, I was surprised to see so many people in front of the stage as it was really packed. The crowd had such a good energy, as Lovehead were setting a great vibe too, with mosh pits and throwing merch in the form of underwear from the stage. If your name were Marie, you would even have their song “Marie” dedicated to you! Oh, and the first 200 beers ordered starting from 1 pm were on the band.

DJ Antoine was next on Space Stage. The crowd was dancing to “Ma Chérie”, “Sarà perché ti amo,” and many more songs you just couldn’t stand still for! The German DJ simply knows how to make a party – even when it’s daylight.

American singer-songwriter Ravyn Lenae was set to take Space Stage next, and from her incredible voice to the colors of her stage design, everything was on point. Before her most well-known song “Love Me Not”, with which she closed her set, she performed “Sticky”, “Dream Girl”, “Love Is Blind” and a couple more, attracting a huge crowd!

My friends told me I needed to go to SDP’s (Stonedeafproduction) set. The German Hip-Hop/Pop duo performed well-known songs such as “Mama hat gesagt” [Mom said], “Ich will nur dass du weißt” [I just want you to know], and “Ne Leiche” [A Body]. Normally, it’s not my type of music, but the guys and their band had a blast on stage, and it really came through to the crowd. From floating animals (including unicorns and parrots) to going into the crowd, they simply knew how to make a show and capture their audience.

After SDP, I originally wanted to make my way more towards the front to see Zara Larsson. However, it started to rain, so I fled into the press area for a bit to wait it out. However, during Zara’s entire set, it was pouring rain, but she nonetheless delivered an amazing performance with incredible vocals, still drawing a huge crowd (including me, of course) who danced and sang their lungs out. Her iconic “Lush Life” dance was with a guy called Felipe from Argentina, who loved every second of it and seemed so fun to be around (and he absolutely smashed the dance, might I add!). During the second time of playing “Midnight Sun”, the clouds even started to part, and a little sun came through. That’s the power Zara Larsson has! And her incredible band and dancers, of course.

While our photographer Betti made her way to Symba, I waited for Fontaines D.C to perform. Symba celebrated his return to the festival after two years. The crowd did not disappoint, opening one mosh pit after another and enjoying his music, adding to the incredible energy.

One of my most anticipated acts this weekend was Fontaines D.C. The Irish rock band knew how to rock with songs such as “Here’s The Thing”, “Jackie Down The Line”, “I Love You”, and one of my favorite songs of theirs, “Roman Holiday”. I loved their mystic vibe and enjoyed their music a lot, but sadly, I found they did not interact with their audience as much as they could have. This might be only my personal preference, though. The crowd was still great, but I was a little surprised of their size. While it stopped raining, compared to Zara, it was significantly smaller. This was probably due to the fact that due to rain and wind, some tents landed in the Traisen, and many might have changed their clothes and weren’t able to make it back in time. Overall, I really enjoyed their set and will definitely go see them again sometime!

The last act of the day on the Infinity Live Stage was James Marriott. His show truly is something unique, but therefore very enjoyable. The band and he delivered an amazing performance, capturing the crowd with ease. He played an unreleased song called “Burn Down The Disco” as well as tracks such as “Grapes”, “Car Lights” and many more!

As I had to catch my train back to Vienna, my last set of Day 1 was Lorde. I had high expectations for this one, as I’ve seen her at another festival a month before Frequency in the daylight, and sadly, it was quite disappointing for me. This is why I was relieved that this time, I absolutely loved it. From the stage design to her band to her performance, you could really feel the heart she put into it. She performed all her well-known songs, opening with “Royals” and performing tracks such as “Team”, “Girl, so confusing”, “Green Light”, and, of course, “Ribs” to close her set. Lorde performing at Frequency Festival also marks her first-ever performance in Austria since she started making music. It definitely was a special performance, and I still have “Supercut” stuck in my head.

My friends stayed for Kraftklub, which they found absolutely amazing. The crowd had such a good time while the band performed tracks such as “Schüsse in die Luft” [Shots in the air], “Songs für Liam” [Songs for Liam], “Marlboro Mann”, and many more! They also went into the crowd and performed a couple of songs there.

DAY TWO

One could only guess by tiny rain puddles that it had rained the day before. The sun was shining, it was quite warm (I actually got a tiny sunburn on my shoulders), and I was so excited for day two.

Day Two's Acts

First up was Radio Free Alice, an Australian indie band. Alongside their guitars, bass, and drums, they brought a saxophone on stage as well, which I really liked. As this set was around 2pm, the front of the stage was not packed, but there were still plenty of people enjoying the music. I have never heard of the five-piece before, but I will definitely give them a listen.

Next on Space Stage was sibling duo Abor & Tynna from Austria. They participated in the Eurovision Song Contest for Germany in 2025 and have not stopped making their unique music in between the genres of pop, hip-hop, and electronic music. They performed songs such as “Rotkäppchen” and “Mona Lisa”. To watch the duo on stage has been quite fun, as they truly acted a lot like siblings on stage. With their incredible energy, they were able to hype up the crowd, and everyone seemed to have a great time.

Natasha Bedingfield is an icon. She truly is. Her vocals were absolutely incredible, and I was so surprised to know so many songs by her. Of course, she performed two of her biggest hits “Pocketful of Sunshine”, and “Unwritten” at the end. While she sang her lyrics "Feel the rain on my skin", it actually started raining, which she commented with a laugh. Her performance was really nostalgic, and I also have “Unwritten” stuck in my head again (but I'm not complaining!).

While I was at Natasha’s set, our photographer Betti went over to photograph Filow, and he and the crowd absolutely delivered. The vibes were amazing, and he performed some of his most well-known songs, such as “Rasenschach” or “Bass ist geil”. Some fans even wore “Bass ist geil” shirts, and we couldn’t agree more! There were a lot of mosh pits, and he brought his friends on stage to perform some songs together.

Another highly anticipated act for this festival weekend was LEAP. Ever since seeing them in Vienna for the first time in 2023, I try to make every show they play in Austria, as they are simply that good. I can vouch for them and say they are incredible on stage and incredibly nice off stage as well, as I had the chance to interview them last year at their show in Salzburg. At Frequency, they performed songs like “Exit Signs”, “Over & Out”, “The Downfall”, and ended their set with “Energies”. The vibes were amazing, the crowd didn’t disappoint, and their set was over way too soon!

Makko was set to perform on the Green Stage, and the crowd did not disappoint either. Also, his stage design was incredible, and he and his band were also amazing, of course. Makko performed songs such as “Nachts wach” [awake at night] and “STREIT” [Fight]. Moreover, he was super attentive and even paused his show to make sure one of his fans was okay after fainting. This even led to a song being scratched from the setlist, but honestly, we loved how he truly cared for his fans and made sure everyone was okay! Makko closed his set by performing his newest song, “Inundauswendig”, which was a perfect end to an amazing set.

At the end of Makko’s performance, it already began to rain, which only got worse, accompanied by strong wind. This sadly led to Tom Odell and Sub Focus being canceled. Many festivalgoers fled into their tents, somewhere more protected, or into the Infinity Live Stage, which I did, too. The promoter said they will give updates on the status of the rest of the festival at SIDO’s stage time.

Going into ClockClock’s set, I thought I would maybe know one or two songs. I was quite surprised by how many I actually knew. The German band was really nice, delivering a great speech about how they were from a small town and started out with no experience whatsoever in music. They also had a nice stage design and went into the crowd for a couple of songs, saying they “want to get to know their fans,” which was really sweet. The venue was packed as well, which definitely was not only because of the weather! ClockClock performed songs such as “Adore Ya”, “Brooklyn”, and “Someone Else”.

Sadly, this was the last set of Frequency day two, as they announced that, for safety reasons, SIDO, SSIO, and Paul Kalkbrenner would be canceled. While some fans were understandably disappointed, it was definitely the right decision, as the wind gusts were strong and posed a safety risk. As an apology, the festival announced that all those with a Friday day pass were allowed entrance on Saturday as well. Moreover, the first 2000 beers ordered on day three were also on the house.

Day 3

After an incredible but exhausting Day 2, I made my way a little later to the festival just in time for Two Feet. The American singer-songwriter drew quite a large crowd even though his set was still quite early. He performed his most well-known hits, “I Feel Like I’m Drowning”, as well as “Love Is a Bitch” or “Go Fuck Yourself”. It definitely was a vibe!

Betti had the chance to see Frytz on the Infinity Live Stage. Frytz is a German musician and producer. The set got quite emotional as well, as he talked about one of his colleagues passing away, Dominik Hartz, with whom he also made a song called “Hals über Kopf”. Overall, the set was a mix between slower and more party songs, which was really enjoyable, with, of course, mosh pits as well!

Next on my list was Culcha Candela. You can think about them what you want after their scandal (or even before that), but the crowd's energy and their energy on stage was amazing! The vibes were immaculate, and it was packed with everyone dancing and singing. They performed their most iconic hits such as “Berlin City Girl”, “Hamma!” as well as “Monsta”. I really had a great time!

We quickly made our way back to Space Stage, which was already so full we weren’t able to get to the front of the stage. The reason for that was no other than Ikkimel. Even though she had already performed last year at Green Stage, Space Stage was packed this year. It seemed like nearly the entire festival came to see her perform. “Mutter Ikki” [Mother Ikki], as she’s called by her fans, captured her entire audience. It was loud. Everybody had fun, and while it isn’t the type of music I typically listen to, it was such a vibe, and Ikkimel honestly seems like such a sweetheart, using her reach to talk about important topics and reminding people about the importance of boundaries as well. She also brought two fans on stage, incorporated them into her performance, and even had one of her staff members hand out vodka shots to the front row using a water gun. Baran Kok joined her for their song “Eier legen” [Laying Eggs]. It was definitely a memorable and iconic performance.

After Ikkimel, Ski Aggu came on stage and delivered. The crowd went wild, the energy was amazing, and he even had surprise guests such as Ikkimel (performing “DEUTSCHLAND” [Germany] and BBNO$ (crashing Ski Aggu's set for about 20 seconds). I loved the way he made his performance so much fun, too, bringing a fan on stage to decide between Ski Aggu and one of his friends who has better taste in music. Ski Aggu performed songs such as “Spring”, “Friesenjung”, “Party Sahne”, and “mietfrei” [rent-free].

I made my way back into the press area to recharge a bit before wanting to catch Twenty One Pilots, my most anticipated act of the weekend, while Betti made her way to the Infinity Live Stage to catch Ritter Lean’s performance before also watching Twenty One Pilots.

The performance “hat er komplett auseinandergenommen” [German slang meaning someone delivered an overwhelmingly impressive performance]. The crowd formed mosh pits. He spoke a lot about important political topics, which were adapted to the Austrian crowd, and interacted a lot with the audience. Ritter Lean performed songs such as “Outfit Check”, “Kippen + Schlechter Wein”, and “Dua Lipa”. What a perfect way to close Infinity Live Stage for this year’s Frequency.

Whenever I am at a show or festival for THE UNSEEN, I typically take notes during a performance so I will not forget important parts, especially during a festival. However, for Twenty One Pilots, I took none – simply because there wasn’t any time. Once they started, you were mesmerized. I mean, they are well known to give their absolute everything every single show, always switching up places where they sing, interacting a lot with the crowds – from standing on platforms held up by the crowd, to barricade walks, to climbing up on different places where I get dizzy just from watching. It is a show you cannot enjoy. Vocally, Tyler Joseph is immensely talented. The same, of course, goes to Josh Dun, who hardly sings as he’s more comfortable behind his drums. However, when he does it truly takes your breath away. It is this way when both of them sing, to be honest. Both of them also seem so likable as well, from being serious one moment to breaking out in a smile the next. They performed songs such as “The Contract”, “Heathens”, “Tear in My Heart”, “Nico and the Niners”, and their emotional number “Drag Path,” where I have to admit I cried a bit. Moving on with tracks such as “Doubt” and “Ride”, where a fan had the chance to perform a part with them on stage, to their cover of “Seven Nation Army”, originally by The White Stripes, everything was absolutely incredible. They closed their set with “Trees”, one of my favorite songs by them and I got goosebumps when they got onto their small platforms held up by the crowd with their drums and gave it their all. I learned one thing that night: Once you see a Twenty One Pilots performance, you quickly realize that one isn’t enough. I will most definitely go to another one once they are back, and I know for sure, it will be absolutely amazing.

Twenty One Pilots was the perfect end to the three-day FM4 Frequency Festival. After their performance, Frequency treated the festivalgoers to a beautiful fireworks display at Space Stage.

Thank you to FM4 Frequency for having us. We had an absolute blast! Until next year!

CHECK OUT ALL PHOTOS OF THIS YEAR'S FREQUENCY FESTIVAL HERE: