English Info about the Gothica festival.

The Gothica festival is organized by the Hammer Concerts Agency, which is a department of the Suly Ltd / Hammer Music, just like the HammerWorld magazine (formerly known as Metal Hammer), Hammer / Edge / Nail Records (labels for the hungaian metal @ rock bands), a Hammer Music Productions (distribution of over 40 metal and hard rock record companies).

The Gothica festival was estabilished in 2000, and the goal of the festival was to represent the hungarian gothic, dark, black, death metal, female fronted and folk metal scene on a yearly well organized, well promoted festival.

History:

Gothica I.
(date: 2000-april-15, venue: Viking Club (capacity of 600), Budapest, stages: 1, bands: 8)
Bands played on: Black Leaves, Ideas, Vale Of Tears, Dying Wish, Land Of Charon, Art Of Dethronement, Without Face, Árnyak
The first festival was a really underground band meeting, with many techinical difficulties, with suprisingly many fans, and really good feeling.
There was a free compilation-MC attached to all the tickets of the festival with the bands who played on the stage.

Gothica II.
(date: 2002-mai-19, venue: Freeport Rock Club (capacity of 1000), Budapest, stages: 1, bands: 13)
Bands played on: Dying Fields, Autumn Twilight, Garden Of Eden, Holt Költők Társasága, Ideas, Agregator, Bocs Hogy Élünk, Without Face, De Facto, Sunseth Sphere, Árnyak, Dying Wish, Nevergreen)
For the second festival we found a more professional venue, we invited the leading gothic metal band of our country Nevergreen and the festival made a big step forward.
There was a free compilation-MC attached again to all the tickets of the festival with the bands who played on the stage.

Gothica III.
(date: 2003-mai-2, venue: Petofi Hall (capacity of 2500 indoor + 500 outdoor), Budapest, stages: 2, bands: 16)
Bands played on: open air stage: Cothurnus, Relikvia, Garden Of Eden, De Facto, Vale Of Tears, Holt Költők Társasága, Symphony main stage: Ideas, Sunseth Sphere, Árnyak, Dying Wish, Nevergreen, Mandragora Scream, Mortiis, Sear Bliss, Christian Epidemic
For the 3rd festival we made really big changes. We switched to one of the most professional venues Budapest, Petofi Hall, where also bands like Nightwish, Therion, Kiss, Toto and many more used to play. We did 2 stages, on inside the hall, it was the mainstage, and an other smaller one on the open air area of the venue. This was the first festival with international artists (Mortiis and Mandragora Scream), the headline show was done by Nevergreen again with a live recording for their doulbe live CD and live DVD.
To all tickets there was a CD attached with a compilation of rare Nevergreen tracks.

Gothica IV.
(date: 2004-mai-1, venue: Petofi Hall (capacity of 2500 indoor + 300 club), Budapest, stages: 2, bands: 22)
Bands played on: club stage: Synoverflow, Autumn Twilight, Sin Of Kain, Agregator, Age of Agony, Relikvia, the Dethroners, Holt Költők Társasága, Ideas, Black Leaves, Autumn main stage: De Facto, Casket Garden, Tesstimony, Christian Epidemic, Dying Wish, Beyond Surface, Árnyak, Mortal Love, Nevergreen, Moonsorrow
The 4th edition was the most succesfull festival so far, we orgianzed the fist ever concert for Moonsorrow from Finland, and Mortal Love from Norway and also invited the gthic metal winner of Young Metal Gods Contest from Germany Beyond Surface. The hungarian headline was Nevergreen again with their 10th year anniversary show with all the old bandmembers. As the Moonsorrow guys were huge fans of the hungarian metal legend Pokolgep, we invited the leadsinger of the classic line-up Jozsef Kalapacs and they played one song together which was a moment of history.
The festival had also a warm up gig in a club the day before the show with 3 more bands. 
To all tickets there was a CD atteched with the best songs of Árnyak rerecorded.

Gothica V.
(date: 2005-november-26, venue: Petofi Hall (capacity of 2500 indoor + 300 club), Budapest, stages: 2, bands: 31 )
Bands played on: main stage Ideas, Vale Of Tears, Garden Of Eden, Coronatus (GER), Wall Of Sleep, De Facto, Green Division, Amok, Dying Wish, Christian Epidemic, Árnyak, Haggard (GER, Moonsorrow (FIN), Sin Of Kain club stage: Trollheimen, Synoverflow, Sense Of Silence, Gyöngyvér, Killing Art, Astrodust, Agregator, Reason, Autumn, HKT, Relikvia, Neochrome, Bornholm, Dethroners, Black Leaves, Autumn Twilight, Black Fever
The 5th edtion was with the most bands ever there were over 30 bands on two different stages. Moonsorrow remain the international co headline as want to keep them for all our festivals in the future, Haggard played a really special gig, Arnyak had their farewell show, and as Nevergreen was on their long time pause the two projects of the two main man of the band played short sets and one classical Nevegreen together as a suprise to the fans.
A warm up gig happend again before the festival.

Gothica VI.
(date: 2007-april-30, venue: Petofi Hall (capacity of 2500 indoor + 300 club +1000 up to 6000 open air mainstage, Budapest, stages: planed 3, bands: around 40)