Features

Come early

On Friday, make sure you get to Brakrock early for Cali hardcore punks Seized Up (featuring members of BL’AST!, Good Riddance, The Distillers, and Fast Asleep), skate/horror punks Love Equals Death and Belgian teen idols Rich Widows, whose singer is rumored to arrive onstage on his bicycle following a biking tour that took him all around the North Sea. If you see him grimacing during the show, don’t take it personal. It’s saddle pain.

On Saturday, get there even earlier for Verval. That  is Dutch for ‘decay’ and a pretty apt description of what we will probably feel like on day 2 of Brakrock. Also playing early are melodic pop-punks Sidekick, hardcore punks School Drugs and The Drowns, who at this point deserve to be called the hardest touring band in the world.

Stay late

There simply  is no going home early with headliners like Descendents and Alkaline Trio. And following their sets, you will most likely any notion of the curfew your mom gave you will be thrown completely out the window to party with Zebrahead and Italian ska-punks Talco.

Legends

The Queers, Strung Out, The Dwarves, Mad Caddies, Death By Stereo, Less Than Jake, H20, Ignite, Terror, Smoking Popes and No Fun At All. This is not just a list of bands we grew up listening to. All of them are actually playing at this year’s edition of Brakrock. Yes, ‘holy’ and ‘shit’ are the words that you are trying to think of.

Instaworthy location

Most festivals take place in a field. Boring! Brakrock is in a park. With a pond. And a cute, little hill overlooking a canal. And a castle ruin! We are not sure how you will be able to actually watch any bands play. Not when you have so many photo opps you can then share on Instagram, complete with cliché captions like ‘living life’, ‘summer vibes’ or the bile-inducing ‘today, we are all in tune’.

Eco-friendliest of festivals

Brakrock is an eco-friendly festival. This not only means veggie/vegan food on the festival site and reusable drink cups. No, this year the organization went all the way and will be handing out slipovers for your shoes made out of moss so as to tread even more delicately through the park. Not to mention the stages, which are built almost entirely out of recycled tofu. We are kidding of course. A festival that is actively reducing its carbon footprint is awesome. Go green!

Comeback Kid

Did we just call The Drowns the hardest touring band in the world? Actually, Comeback Kid might be the winner in that category. These road warriors have been destroying stages and waking the dead ever since releasing ‘Turn It Around’ back in 2001. I lost count how many times I have seen them live over the years, but I have yet to see them play a less than awe-inducing show.

Local talent

With so many bands from all over the world playing at Brakrock, it’s easy to forget we have plenty of local talent as well. Which is why it is cool to see a whole bunch of Belgian names on the bill as well. We already mentioned Rich Widows and Verval, but more Belgian goodness comes in the form of Maria Iskariot, F.O.D., The Priceduifkes and the world-renowned Belgian Beer Bar.

Smoking Popes

A journalist at The Los Angeles Times once pondered  what a ‘traditional lounge singer backed up by a punk band,’ would sound like. That’s the Smoking Popes for ya! 30 Years after the release of their debut album, the band is still releasing new music and I will finally be able to experience their unique blend of buzzsaw guitars, caffeinated rhythms and heartfelt crooning vocals live for the first time. Getting to see the Popes is all the reason you need to get your ticket.

Bus to Punk Rock Holiday

Two days of punk rock awesomeness isn’t enough? Seriously, who are you and how do you do it? We want to know! While we will be spending the day after Brakrock on the couch, regretting all of the choices we made over the weekend, there are people who are actually getting on the bus voluntarily to drive to Punk Rock Holiday for five more days of festival goodness. A bus provided by the Brakrock Meanwhile, older Duffelians can be found shuffling back into the park to comfort the ducks.

Driving force behind Brakrock

This last one isn’t so much a reason to go to Brakrock, but a shoutout to Kim Vervoort, the driving force behind Brakrock. Without him, Duffel would be a quiet place the whole year round, the people who live there would not know a Descendent from a Smoking Pope and the ducks - yes, the ducks again - could go through life without ever experiencing any mental health issues. Cheers, Kim!!