On Thursday night, Oct. 16, Australian electronic rock band Pendulum rocked the house at Forum Karlín in Prague. The show had sold out months before the event, and enthusiastic anticipation buzzed through the venue even before the opening set. The group was joined by British rock duo ALT BLK ERA.
ALT BLK ERA, made up of sisters Nyrobi and Chaya Beckett-Messam, played to an already packed venue. Their energetic sound and in-your-face melodies got the crowd sufficiently excited for the party that was still to come.
By the time Pendulum took the stage, the dance floor and the two balcony sections were all overflowing with excited fans. The group finally exploded onto the stage, opening with crowd favorite “Napalm” from their newest album Inertia, just released in August. The bass was deafening but you could still hear the crowd screaming along. They played another song from the new album before taking us back almost 20 years with “Propane Nightmares” from their 2008 album In Silico.
The middle of the set was a good mix of new hits and old favorites, paying homage to Pendulum’s legendary legacy while also forging their path forward — and the crowd was absolutely there for it. Highlights of the first half of the set included their mix of “Voodoo People” by The Prodigy, “Crush,” and “Encoder.” We use the term “highlights” lightly, though — the start of each new song seemed to set the crowd on fire, the energy never dimming even for a second.
Around the halfway point of the set, vocalist Rob Swire announced that it was bassist Gareth McGrillen’s birthday. The band launched into an electronic version of “Happy Birthday” before bringing out a cake for McGrillen, a fun and heartfelt moment that the band shared specifically with their fans in Prague.
After this quick break from the chaos, the band launched right back in. The second half of the set was dominated by new bangers from Inertia and classic favorites from their 2010 album Immersion, much to fans’ delight. The crowd went particularly wild for “Witchcraft” — the song started with almost every fan’s phone in the air trying to capture the moment. Then, the floor exploded with people dancing as hard as they could to the music.
Pendulum closed with “Watercolour,” but the audience knew they’d be back for more. And sure enough, the band returned for one more song: their 2007 hit “Tarantula.” The floor exploded once again, with beer cups flying through the air and fans giving everything they had before the night had to come to an end.
When Pendulum left the stage for the final time after almost two hours of constant motion, fans slowly made their way to the exits drenched in sweat and smiling ear to ear.
Pendulum’s performance in Prague proved exactly why the band is so legendary. Their energy is contagious and boundless, their music and vocal performances precise and incredibly impressive. The songs themselves are catchy and heavy, and their drum-and-bass-meets-hard-rock style keeps the crowd moving like we’ve never seen before. The stage lights were also perfectly synchronized with the music, elevating the atmosphere and amping up the energy even more. All these elements served to make this show feel more like a party, which is exactly what Prague fans came for on Thursday night.
Pendulum delivered an unforgettable performance that we still can’t stop reliving in our heads. The band still has a few tour dates throughout Europe and the UK coming up, and this is a show you won’t want to miss. Tickets to remaining dates are available here.
Pendulum EU/UK Tour Dates:
Oct. 19 – Milan, IT
Oct. 21 – Winterthur, CH
Oct. 23 – Cologne, DE
Oct. 24 – Offenbach, DE
Oct. 25 – Stuttgart, DE
Oct. 27 – Luxembourg*
Oct. 28 – Tilburg, NL*
Oct. 30 – Paris, FR*
Nov. 01 – Edinburgh, UK
Nov. 03 – Bristol, UK
Nov. 04 – Wolverhampton, UK
Nov. 06 – London, UK*
Nov. 07 – London, UK
Nov. 09 – Manchester, UK
*Indicates sold-out show
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