Sonisphere Lifts Off

The first week of the traveling Sonisphere Festival’s second season looks to have really taken off with co-organiser Stuart Galbraith reporting there were close to 100,000 for the Polish leg June 16.

A couple of days later the event that Galbraith’s AEG-owned Kilimanjaro Live runs with John Jackson’s K2 agency made its Swiss debut in front of a crowd of 55,000. The following day, the first staging of the event in Czech Republic did 35,000.

Galbraith says the numbers give him every reason to believe the 11 Sonispheres being held in Europe this year will pull at least 600,000 punters.

He expected the Bulgarian leg staged in Sofia June 22-23, an event co-promoted with Marcel Avram, to attract 40,000 per day.

“It was the best-selling outdoor show that we’ve ever promoted. I was overwhelmed by the attendance,” said Steve Todd from Live Nation’s Warsaw office, which co-promoted the Polish event on part of what could be a huge site on the private airport situated in the capital’s Bemowo district.

The Czech Sonisphere co-produced by Austrian promoter Nova Music hit a snag when it had to switch site from Mimon Airport to Milovice Airport, which are about 150 miles apart and on opposite sides of Prague.

Galbraith said the local mayor at Mimon wanted a lot more money when he realised so many people were coming.