I've been to the festival grounds and I want to bring up a few important points that are not emphasized enough in the official invitation. Please read them and explain them to everyone who's attending the event.

The territory on which the festival takes place is a private property. The owner is a very nice American guy who let 300 Russians use his land. He will be with us at the festival, trying to enjoy our music and company. So please be respectful; many rules and restrictions that were mentioned are actually his requirement so we MUST follow them. If, at any time, you are asked to do something (or NOT to do something) by our security team (Mikhail Stelmah's group), please comply. As I said, the owner is a nice guy, let him stay nice. Don't make him call the police and have us removed from the premises.

This land is a former farm but hasn't been used for several years. Even if there were roads in this huge meadow they are no longer distinguishable, it all looks like a field of tall grass. The land under it is flat, but if you drive a small car, its roof is barely visible above the grass. Be prepared. If you have SUV or a big truck, use it. Don't bring any low clearance sport cars; you'll be calling towing service in no time.

Again, this is a large field of tall grass. This grass is wet. I walked a few yards through the grass and my pants were soaked. I walked a few hundred yards and my boots were completely wet. Be prepared, bring extra set of clothes and boots! Let's hope that it'll all become dry by the time of the festival, but if not, you'll need it.

This is not a campground. There will be no picnic tables, chairs, showers, tap water, flush toilets, electricity, etc. Your car will be half a kilometer away. There will be land, grass, trees, mountains, elks, fresh air, and hopefully no rain. All the rest you should bring along. Don't forget water. Yes, there will be one water tap for 300 people 500 meters away across the tall grass field, so don't count on it. There will be one garbage container. There will be "Honey Buckets" in appropriate quantities, Kirsanov claims he heard the feedback and got it right this time.

And of course we will be THE great company. We will enjoy the songs, rain or shine. We will have fun. We will make friends with the help of vodka and without. And since it inevitably came up, please remember that this is not an evening-drinking-morning-vomiting outing, this is a cultural event. I have no delusions; Russians always bring yearly supply of a liquor store to such events, but please, know your limits. Enjoy the music, enjoy the company and enjoy your time at the festival.

Dmitry Vasilevsky
Sound engineer of the festival