Cancelled concerts, audiences sheltering in pavilions… this is how the storm at the Kalorama festival was experienced

When it started to rain heavily, the audience left the esplanade in front of the stages of the macro-concert of terror, which was celebrating its first edition in the capital after two successful years in Lisbon. They all sought shelter and, although the organization apparently took a while to react, they were finally accommodated in annexed pavilions. “After many requests and applause, Kalorama installed a rain pavilion because the storm was getting quite dangerous,” commented one person on social media. “I was coming to Kalorama, not Glastonbury,” said another, referring to the famous British festival, which usually ends with all the ground muddy because of the rain.

The programming was however affected since two artists were unable to perform due to the weather conditions which presented an obvious danger, in particular due to the gusts of wind and the numerous lightning strikes which accompanied the rain.

Once the worst of the storm had passed, the festival was able to get back on its feet by adjusting the schedule, but another musical event with a large Madrid audience such as the Gigante, which has been held for several years in Alcalá de Henares before moving to Guadalajara, was not so lucky because the downpours forced the organizers to cancel the day of performances. At present, the festival is still analyzing the state of the facilities and all the equipment to assess whether or not to continue with the concerts this Saturday. The actions organized in the Plaza Mayor of Guadalajara throughout this morning were able to take place.

A reasonably successful start despite everything

The Kalorama festival had some bad luck in its debut in Madrid, but it managed to overcome the climatic challenge and take its first steps in the capital with reasonable success. The day began with concerts by national bands Tristán!, Judeline and Colectivo da Silva. The furious post-punk guitar riffs of the British Yard Act burst from the stage, while a festive Gossip connected with the audience from the first minute. It was in the middle of Yves Tumor’s performance that the storm hit the venue, forcing the Organization to suspend this concert as well as that of the English artist Raye.

Kalorama resumed normally shortly after with the live performance of Overmono, who released their first recognizable album and renamed Good Lies. The Russell brothers gave way to a performance by The Prodigy, the band led by Brian Howlett who did what they do best, with their good bouquet of electronic anthems from the 90s and 00s. For their part, fans of club electronics were able to enjoy the proposals of La Luz, with the combo formed by Gazzi and Aleksandir, and the mix of styles that defends the Antídoto Club evening.

On the first day, which took place last Thursday, from the early hours of the afternoon, the public was able to enjoy concerts as distinctive as those of the group English Teacher, in charge of opening the festival with their indie-pop with touches of electro. . Then, it was the turn of the elegant electronic pop flavor of Joe Goddard and the brilliant Nation of Language to then give way to the unclassifiable The Kills and two of the main groups of the evening, The Postal Service + Death Cab for Cutie, who are still celebrating their 20th anniversary tour after their remarkable performance in Barcelona recently. Folamour surprised again with its audiovisual format and its warm and joyful house and album. And finally, the famous LCD Soundsystem closed the day in style, demonstrating once again why it is one of the most emblematic names of recent times.

Its climax will take place this Saturday, August 31, during a day in which artists such as Sam Smith, Massive Attack, Peggy Gou, Jungle, Ezra Collective, Olivia Dean, Huda, Monobloc, Carbs (Ketiov, Fernanda Arrau, Glenda Galore & Performers) and Mareo (Akazie & LaFrancessa & 8kitoo) will close this first edition.