Garáž once again brings together a selection of emerging music projects from across Slovakia that are worth following before you start seeing them on bigger stages. The platform, created under the umbrella of Trenčín 2026 – European Capital of Culture in collaboration with the Pohoda Festival, gives space to a new generation of artists building their own sound, live experience, and audience.
This year, Garáž once again becomes a meeting point for different genres, approaches, and music communities — from concerts and live sessions to workshops and discussions about the independent scene. These are the names that stood out in the Garáž 2026 selection process and that you should already start tuning your ears to!
MonoPlastic
MonoPlastic is a Slovak duo moving somewhere between electro-rock, post-punk, and club electronics. Their music combines hard synths, heavy basslines, robotic vocals, guitar riffs, and drum machines into an intense sound balancing between a concert and a rave. They describe their own style as “plutonium electro-rock.”
Their live performances are not just about music — visuals, expressive performance, and theatrical energy are all essential parts of the experience, making MonoPlastic feel like a project created specifically for night stages and club spaces. Futuristic aesthetics, dance rhythms, and post-punk rawness come together in a form that feels distinctive and confident within the Slovak music scene. Their concert is an exciting experience — and if you’ve never heard a punk version of Meky’s song Do člna, that’s another great reason to stop by.
Kapela MonoPlastic was selected by the Pohoda Festival from among the ten winners of Garáž to perform on one of its stages, thereby enriching the festival’s 30th edition.
“Choosing from the finalists was a pleasure this year – not only was there a strong pool of artists to choose from, but we also reached a consensus very quickly. When selecting acts for the festival programme, we always have to consider not only artistic quality but also context. The first thing is having a clear idea, or at least confidence, that the band can deliver a strong live performance, and then determining which stage and time slot would suit them best. We are therefore looking not only for what we like, but also for what fits. Besides MonoPlastic, we will certainly continue to follow other bands from the Garáž selection in the future.”
This is how Garáž jury member Barbora Bodnárová from the Pohoda Festival explained the selection.
Haney
She describes herself more as a composer and producer than a singer. Her music exists on the edge of alternative pop, hip hop, hyperpop, dream pop, vaporwave, and delicate electronics.
In her work, intimate vocals blend with atmospheric textures, dance beats, and carefully crafted production that feels remarkably mature. Her music is fragile yet deeply thought-out — as if capturing moments happening somewhere between words and silence. Haney is gradually building her own sonic universe where songwriting meets experimentation and a refined sense for production and detail. Her music feels contemporary while also carrying an eclectic tendency and a love for retro sounds.
mela
Coming from Bratislava, this band mixes melancholy with a darker gothic atmosphere supported by a hazy shoegaze sound that erupts into noisy passages under pressure. They sound like a dense yet romantic soundtrack to a vampire movie or an Edgar Allan Poe novel.
Their music brings together melancholy and energy, noise and atmosphere, naturally placing them within the aesthetics of contemporary alternative rock and shoegaze. mela are steadily building a strong presence on the local scene.
pulverize!
MOSAYQRA
MOSAYQRA is a composer, producer, live arranger, and dramaturg active in the alternative, electronic, and experimental music scene. His work is defined by sonic sensitivity, cinematic atmosphere, and dramaturgical precision. Although he has been involved in music for many years and has collaborated with well-known artists, he released his first single only recently. In his music, you can experience both ambient compositions and bursts of pure dopamine.
It is wild, raw energy searching for escape through music — punk fused with experimentation, musical humor, endless inventiveness, and imagination. This is roughly what Frank Zappa might have sounded like if he had been booked at CBGB.
st. vertigo
st. vertigo is an all-female trio from Nitra carrying the modernity of alternative and contemporary rock while also working with classic and blues-inspired narratives, all meeting in a clean, modern studio sound.
Their music is built on emotional melodies, layered guitars, and careful atmosphere-building where mood and expression matter more than straightforward structure. Live, they promise a performance full of feminine energy dressed in a rock aesthetic.
Julia Vranuch
Julia Vranuch is a songwriter, guitarist, and singer moving through the world of delicate ballads with a folk sensibility. Her work recalls the old-school songwriting tradition where the focus lies on voice, lyrics, and simple yet effective guitar lines, naturally referencing iconic folk energy in the spirit of Joan Baez.
Live, Julia Vranuch brings a gentle and intimate atmosphere with a romantic touch rooted in honesty, silence, and closeness between performer and audience.
Noise fleur
With their single Rabbit Hole, Noise fleur invites us down the rabbit hole. The project emerged from the previous group Milk and Cookies.
Musically, they take listeners on an eclectic journey back to the 1990s, when genres like trip hop and mellow electronic chillout dominated alternative festivals. Their sound evokes the atmosphere of the cult Czech film Samotáři as well as artists such as Ecstasy of Saint Theresa, Hooverphonic, Ohm Square, and Jan P. Muchow. All of this can nostalgically resurface during what is guaranteed to be a wonderfully pleasant Noise fleur concert.
Adam Traumer
A slam poetry performer who picked up an acoustic guitar to present the folk-inspired songs from his debut album The Narcissist and the Black Bull. His English lyrics and expression recall bards such as Nick Drake and Bob Dylan, or in a more contemporary form, Devendra Banhart.
His music strongly evokes the nostalgia of summer evenings, wind in your hair, the smell of smoke, crickets, and bittersweet sunsets that no one can take away from you — an intimate atmosphere naturally intertwined with poetry, talent, and storytelling.
Lull Devours
A Slovak band based in Prague whose most compelling aspect is their creative approach — for them, fitting in matters less than standing out through authenticity. In their process, searching itself becomes both the goal and the final form from which their music emerges.
Although melancholic, their music still expresses joy in the moment where beauty is revealed like a naked sculpture. Garáž offers the perfect opportunity to experience the originality and sonic artistry of Lull Devours.
If you want to hear what contemporary Slovak music sounds like across its full spectrum — from delicacy to ecstatic noise-driven chaos — Garáž 2026 is the place where you should park yourself. No navigation needed, just open ears.
Besides music, a rich accompanying program awaits you. The lineup will also feature The Wilderness and the French band Blue Katrice, along with engaging discussions, workshops, and opportunities to win festival tickets.
See you at Garáž on July 3–4, 2026.
