Last month, we posted an article about top Hungarian tribute bands that emulate musicians ranging from the Beatles to Bryan Adams to the Red Hot Chili Peppers – but we didn’t expect to discover huge fan bases for many other Magyar cover artists out there demanding further coverage! Well, we here at We Love Budapest are more than happy to oblige our readers’ desire for reproduced rocking, so here are a dozen more top-quality tribute bands from Hungary, recreating the repertoires of diverse talents like KISS, Korn, and System of a Down.
1/13
Those who want to stage-dive head first into the Hungarian cover-artist scene shouldn’t miss tonight’s Bring The Tribute Bands Home Festival, shaking two stages at Budapest’s Dürer Kert nightclub beginning at 8pm – performers include Volband (Volbeat), Slipchaos (Slipknot), Rammsturm (Rammstein), Science Or Society (System of a Down), Grain (Korn), and many other accomplished copycats. We include all of the aforementioned groups in this article, along with several other significant rock-star replicants that frequently perform in Budapest.
2/13
213
California’s constantly controversial thrash-metal pioneers of Slayer remain active since their debut in 1981, but for Hungarians who want to hear their sonorous songs of Satanism screamed live here at home, Budapest’s own 213 plays hard-driving versions of Slayer hits like “Chemical Warfare”, “Angel of Death”, and “Altar of Sacrifice”. Eardrums will be raining blood at 213’s headlining performance for Fanatics Tribute Night 3 at Légó Club in Pest on June 6th starting at 8pm.
3/13
Cry Free
Since the late ’60s, Britain’s Deep Purple remains a true trailblazer in the realm of heavy metal, and despite the tragic loss of the band’s founding organist and composer Jon Lord in 2012, they’re still space truckin’ well into the 21st century. Here in Hungary, Cry Free is the country’s most popular Deep Purple cover band – enjoy some smoke on the water this weekend when they play at the May Motors Festival in Taksony on May 9th, located about 25 kilometers from Budapest.
4/13
Grain
Although their appearance can seem intimidating, the Bakersfield nu-metal maestros of Korn take listeners on complex emotional journeys that are difficult to recreate, but the Magyar musicians of Grain do a fine job of capturing the audio angst of songs like “A.D.I.D.A.S.”, “Falling Away from Me”, and “Here to Stay”. Grain guitarist Tamás Markó certainly has the same raven dreadlocks of Jonathan Davis, and he doesn’t hold back on flinging them around ferociously at every show.
5/13
Hit Rock
Have a cigar and take a journey to the dark side of the moon with Hit Rock, Hungary’s most magnificent tribute band recreating the transcendent sounds of Pink Floyd. While the Hungarian Pink Floyd Show doesn’t enjoy the same concert budget as Britain’s legendary progressive rockers, the Magyar versions of these extravaganzas still present mind-boggling lighting effects and resounding female vocalists to provide the powerful solos in songs like “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”.
6/13
Hollywood Rose
Named after the group founded by Axl Rose before he reached international superstardom with Guns N’ Roses, Hollywood Rose is one of Hungary’s most beloved cover bands, with a large following eager to hear them faithfully reproduce blasting hits like “Paradise City”, “Welcome to the Jungle”, and “Sweet Child O’ Mine”. In early July, Hollywood Rose will play at this year’s VOLT Festival in Sopron, along with Slash himself – we sure hope that they’ll share the stage at some point.
7/13
KISS Forever
Dominating every arena they grace with wild makeup, costumes, pyrotechnics, and explosive sounds, KISS is regarded as the most provocative hard-rock outfit of all time – and for two decades now, Hungary’s own KISS Forever Band pays proper homage to them with grand-scale concert spectaculars featuring blood-spitting bravado and excellent musicianship. KISS Forever is usually booked abroad, but in October they’ll play a mind-blowing 20th anniversary show at Budapest’s Barba Negra club.
8/13
Nightquest
It takes some refined skills to recreate the soaring symphonic-metal soundscapes of Nightwish – Finland’s most successful international audio export – but Hungary’s Nightquest does a commendable job of playing the fast-paced guitar riffs and singing the passionate soprano solos that continually inspire hordes of black-clad fans. Although Nightquest is based in the southern-Hungary city of Pécs, the band frequently comes to Budapest to present literally fantastic performances.
9/13
Rammstrum
The deliberately down-and-dirty shows of Rammstein secure their reputation as Germany’s industrial-metal masters, with their hard-rocking songs complemented by extraordinary displays of fiery blasts onstage. Known as Rammsturm, Hungary’s version of the group cannot compete with the original for incendiary spectacle, but their hot-blooded performances definitely get audiences fired up with intense renditions of songs like “Sonne”, “Keine Lust”, and “Amerika” – it’s wunderbar!
10/13
Ramones Mania
Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, and Tommy were the music world’s definitive punk-rock pros, and although all four founding members of the Ramones can only blitzkrieg bop in rock ‘n’ roll heaven nowadays, Hungary’s Ramones Mania cover band keeps their legacy alive with leather-clad élan when playing live shows that accurately recreate the loud-and-fast style of the original group’s early CBGB concerts. On May 22nd, hear Ramones Mania and other bands live at Dürer Kert starting at 7:30pm.
11/13
Science Or Society
The otherworldly alternative-metal musicianship of California’s System of a Down attracts fans around the world, and Hungary is no exception. Hailing from the small town of Érd just a few miles away from Budapest, Science Or Society is an increasingly popular SOAD cover band, headlining tonight’s Bring The Tribute Bands Home Festival at Dürer Kert. Catch one of their shows to hear heady versions of songs such as “Mr. Jack”, “War?”, and “Sugar” played with eye-popping panache.
12/13
Slipchaos
Upon first glance at their disturbing masks and over-the-top performances, it’s easy to mistake the musicians of Slipknot (the ever-aggressive heavy-metal crew from Des Moines, Iowa) with a nightmarish team of serial killers… and for better or worse, the Magyar members of Slipchaos mimic the original group quite faithfully with elaborate costumes and energetic playing. Because of this, attending a Slipchaos show is almost as entertaining as being at a genuine Slipknot concert.
