Austria’s Nuke Festival gears up for 2025 comeback

Austria’s Nuke Festival is making a surprise comeback after a decade away as organisers prepare to mark its 25th anniversary.

The event, which was co-founded by Tigger Entertainment’s Norbert Bauer, last took place in 2015 when it sold out, welcoming 27,000 visitors to performances by Seeed, Cro, Wanda and Bilderbuch, among others.

Past acts have included Coldplay, Lenny Kravitz, The Strokes, Pixies, The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy, Lauryn Hill, Jamiroquai and Beastie Boys. However, a 2016 edition, set to feature acts such as The 1975, Philipp Poisel and Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls was pulled at short notice as a result of “production challenges”.

Now, Bauer and business partner Florian Stiglitz, who are also behind Austria’s largest indoor festival Beatpatrol, plan to re-establish Nuke as an annual event, having booked its return for Graz Exhibition Centre on Saturday 30 August.

They promise a “top-class festival with international flair, a sustainable concept and a unique atmosphere”, with confirmed acts so far including Paul Kalkbrenner, Klangkarussell and Alexander Eder. Tickets start at €102.40.

“We want to play on Friday before Saturday, but whether it will be a one-off show or a full-day programme is not yet clear”

Bauer tells Kleine Zeitung the target audience is people aged around 35, while plans are afoot to add a second day.

“We want to play on Friday before Saturday, but whether it will be a one-off show or a full-day programme is not yet clear,” he explains.

Nuke is not the only Austrian festival to be revived in 2025 –  Barracuda Music previously announced it is resurrecting “the mother of all festivals” Forestglade for the event’s 30th anniversary.

Held at Esterházy Palace Park in Eisenstadt, Forestglade will feature the likes of Cypress Hill, The Sisters of Mercy, Therapy?, H-BlockX , K’s Choice , Dog Eat Dog and The Godfathers.

An in-depth report on the Austrian live music market features in the latest issue of IQ Magazine.

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