An Experience for Heart, Mind, Body and Soul: Sziget Festival 2026

At the press center I was immediately greeted by a horde of other photographers, most of whom had already been to Sziget before and who showed me the Main stage and Revolut stage, where I would be spending most of my time over the next five days. They all seemed super nice and I was excited to work alongside so many talented people. After checking out the area a little bit and being surprised by the sheer size of this festival, I headed over to the main stage to photograph my first band of the day: Bad Nerves, a fast-paced punk-rock band from the UK, whose sounds reminded me of the Ramones and whose frontman made me think of Austrian artist Salamirecorder. They played songs like "Radio Punk" and "You Should Know By Now", but the crowd really started going off once the band launched into "The Kids Will Never Have Their Say".

The next act I watched on the main stage was Wolf Alice, the British alternative-rock band best known for songs like "Don’t Delete The Kisses". Frontwoman Ellie Rowsell had a beautifully designed glittery stage backdrop with a big silver star in the middle, looking over her, which perfectly matched her light outfit and bright blue eyeshadow. Alongside her band, consisting of a guitarist, a keyboard player, a drummer and a bassist, she managed to really touch the hearts of her fans in the crowd. Some of them even wearing her merch, a black T-Shirt with a white horse print on them, referencing to her song "White Horses", which was released last year. With the dreamy sound of their music and the sparkling stage surrounding them, the almost ethereal performance offered a beautiful change of pace after the high-energy punk-rock I had just witnessed.

Pop-Icon Zara Larsson also performed on the main stage, attracting a huge crowd of people of all ages. Her biggest fans however, seemed to be younger women that fully leaned into her "Lush Life" aesthetic with colourful summery outfits that perfectly matched the bright and playful energy of her performance. Zara matched their energy on stage, delivering one pop anthem after another accompanied by her dancers' energetic choreography.

Playing on the Revolut Stage, I decided to go see the Lambrini Girls after a while. This UK rock-band offered a totally different vibe to Zaras light-hearted performance on the main stage. With songs like "Cuntology 101" and "Big Dick Energy", their performance was a lot more raw and confrontational, displaying political messages on the screen behind them. Their unapologetic stage presence only added to this, creating a loud and chaotic performance.

After, sombr was playing on the main stage, which I only joined to grab a quick picture from the crowd, before coming back to Revolut stage to experience Kim Dracula's performance. I had never heard of this alternative band before, but their songs and overall aesthetic reminded me of My Chemical Romance a little bit. I was pleasantly surprised by their performance and loved seeing their fans enjoying their performance to the absolute fullest.

My last artist of the night was Dijon, again, on Revolut stage. His slower R&B performance was a perfect end to the evening, as the day had already been long and I was excited to get back to the hostel to recharge for the next days to come. Him and his band played a mix of alternative R&B and soul, carried by Dijon's raw and emotional vocals and his expressive way of performing live. Best known for songs like "The Dress" or his collaboration with Justin Bieber on "DEVOTION", his music has a very intimate quality to it. This translated particularly well to the live setting, giving the crowd the opportunity to slow down a little after a festival day full of loud music, busy crowds, energetic performances and seemingly endless things to see. All in all, I was very happy with my first day at Sziget Festival and couldn't wait to go to bed to do it all over again the next few days. Since it was very dusty, though, I told myself to bring a bandana for the next couple of days.

Wednesday already started out great, because Giant Rooks got to open the Main Stage that day. The English-singing indie-pop band from Hamm, Germany, made a name for themselves with songs like "Wild Stare" or the cover of "Tom's Diner", which they recorded together with fellow German band AnnenMayKantereit and which unexpectedly became a viral hit years later. I had seen Giant Rooks a couple of times before and their shows are some of my favourite live-performances of all time. However, this time I was especially blown away by frontman Fred Rabe's vocal control and sheer power in his voice. Even though they were the first act on the Main Stage that day, it did not feel like a typical early-afternoon opening slot, with both the band and the crowd bringing an energy that could have easily belonged to a much later set.

Next up was Hungarian band Carson Coma, whom I had also never heard of before, but are known for songs like "Immunissá válunk" (We are becoming immune). Despite not being able to understand what they were singing or saying, I could feel the energy that was being transported on that stage. I also enjoyed looking at their fans that were watching the show excitedly, singing and screaming along throughout the entire set.

Since Twenty One Pilots, one of my all-time favourite bands, was playing that day and we didn't get to take any pictures from the pit, I decided to go into the crowd before their set, so I would have a good view while they were performing. This led to me having a relatively good spot for Biffy Clyro, who was on stage before. The people next to me in the crowd were really feeling the music, even creating a small mosh pit right next to me.

Long before their set officially started, their fans started waiting in front of the Main Stage, creating a sea of red and black and yellow and green outfits, representing the different eras of the two musicians. Painting their neck and hands black just like frontman Tyler Joseph always does and holding up self-made signs and plushies that are relevant to the band's lore, the fans made their dedication to the two guys from Columbus impossible to miss.

On the Buzz Stage delivered by DHL, German rapper Ikkimel was performing a little after eleven, drawing a much bigger crowd than I originally anticipated. Since all of her songs are in German, I expected there to be a predominantly German fanbase, but I was surprised by the amount of Non-Germans in the crowd, willing to watch her perform despite not knowing the language. Provocative as usual, Ikkimel fully embraced her controversial persona.

The last artist of the night for me was the US-musician Ashnikko, who I knew because of her songs "Slumber Party" and "Daisy". She really made an entrance by entering the stage through what seems like the entrance of a dollhouse, wearing a creative, colourful outfit. She and her dancers delivered a show that was just as eccentric as her appearance, combining energetic choreography with theatrical elements and an unapologetically provocative stage presence. The day ended with me leaving the premises hearing her song "STUPID (feat. Yung Baby Tate)", while trying to ignore the pain in my feet from being up all day long. Day two really was my highlight of this festival as most of my favourite artists performed that day, so it couldn't really get any better. Still buzzing from the energy that day and grateful for this opportunity, I tried not going to bed too late to be well rested for the next few days to come.

The fourth day of Sziget Festival started off with Brazilian singer Karen Dió and her band, whose music combines alternative rock with a strong punk influence. Despite being the first act I saw that day, her raw vocals immediately woke me up and got me ready for another long festival day. Her fans seemed really eager for her performance as well and I loved when she used the middle part of the stage to walk out into the crowd a little bit.

Next up on Revolut Stage was Nation of Language, an indie-pop band from the US, most known for their songs "On Division St" and "Weak In Your Light". Their cozy atmosphere contrasted beautifully with the powerful performance of Karen Dió, earlier on the main stage. Inspired by the chill vibes and already feeling a little better compared to the day before, I decided to explore the island for a bit, as I hadn't really seen much of it before.

After my little break from music shows, I went back to the Buzz Stage to see Croatian band Baby Lasagna perform. After their performance at the Eurovision Song Contest, they quickly took off, gaining fans from all around the world. Their performance at Sziget Festival was a powerful one with lots of pyro, energetic choreography and an infectious stage presence. After their set, I still had their song "Rim Tim Tagi Dim" stuck in my head for hours.

What I was most excited for, however, was the Berlin rapper Ski Aggu, whose song "mietfrei" has been among my top songs on Spotify for three years in a row now. His signature ski goggles rarely leaving his face, Aggu gained mainstream recognition with his interpretation of Otto Waalke's "Friesenjung", which he created alongside fellow artist Joost Klein. What surprised me, just like with Ikkimel's performance, was that he drew such a big crowd despite the language barrier. What makes Ski Aggu such a special performer is his way of motivating the crowd to party with him, so even though there were lots of German and Dutch festivalgoers singing and jumping along to his songs, they weren't the only ones. Aggu played a perfect mix of his newer songs like "Spring" or "Verschwommen" and classics like "Party Sahne", as well as songs for his OG Fans like "Broker". The crowd went especially wild during the last song, sitting on each others shoulders and jumping and dancing along to the music.

For Bring Me The Horizon, I stayed more towards the back because the area in front of the main stage was incredibly full and I didn't want to get into any fan's way. Having seen them live before, I knew what to expect, but was surprised by the energy of their show regardless. During their most famous song "Can You Feel My Heart" pink heart-shaped confetti was shot into the crowd, creating a surprisingly visual contrast to the heaviness of their performance.

The night ended for me with German DJ BUNT., whom I had only ever heard of before, but never actually experienced live. Despite not staying for super long, I loved how he seemed to really enjoy what he was doing, constantly smiling while doing his thing. His joy radiated through the entire room, getting the already tired crowd to move as if the night had just started and I went back to the hostel with a smile on my face as well.

Already sad about this being the last day of Sziget Festival, I put on my bandana one last time and made my way back to the festival grounds once more to see Sisi, a Hungarian rapper and songwriter performing on the Main Stage. She was wearing a really cool outfit, revealing her tattoo-covered arms and legs and even painted her teeth black, which gave her a very special look. She also had some very talented background dancers with her on stage, making her entire performance even more special. At one point, she pulled out a shirt with "Palestine" written on it and threw it to her fans in the crowd. A little after this, she actually got off the stage, climbing over the barricade to join her fans in the crowd. She seemed surprised by all of the attention she was getting from the press but didn't let this hold her back from rocking her show.

My unexpected highlight of the last day, however, was bbno$'s performance on the main stage. I knew of him, but had never really listened much to his music before, but I knew I really wanted to see it live and was incredibly surprised by how much fun I had at his show. The music was fun and he was just so effortlessly cool that it was hard not to have a good time. Letting the crowd read to him how cool he is or twerking along to the guitar, bbno$ just doesn't take himself too seriously. He actually also took the time to give the youth choir a chance to perform on stage with him, supporting smaller artists, which I really admired. Apparently it is also a kind of tradition for him to give out a free cookbook to the person who goes the hardest at his show, which he also did here at Sziget. At some point, Baby Lasagna got on stage with him, performing a song. My favourite songs by far were "two" and "gigolo".

Performing on the Revolut Stage, the German band Zimmer90, most known for their song "What Love Is", also got to play on the last day of Sziget Festival. They provided a more slow and chill vibe in the tent, compared to the other two artists on the Main Stage that had been performing before them. This slower show served as a small break, preparing you for the high intensity that was going to happen at Main Stage very soon after.

As the final artist of Sziget Festival in Budapest, US-American DJ and producer Skrillex got to give the crowd one last chance to party hard at the main stage, before heading back home again or letting the festival come to a more gradual end by moving on to one of the smaller DJ sets around the island. With heavy bass and flashing lights, his set felt like one final release after five full days of festival experience.