Two giants of British music are heading to Slovakia next summer, with MASSIVE ATTACK and THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS announced as the first major headliners for Pohoda Festival 2027. The Bristol trip-hop pioneers will open the festival’s headline programme on Thursday 8th July, before the legendary electronic duo bring the main stage to a close late on Saturday night, 10th July.
Taking place at Trenčín Airport from 8th to 10th July, the 31st edition of Pohoda is already shaping up to be a major gathering for fans of electronic music and alternative sounds. Both acts have spent decades pushing musical boundaries, but they approach the dancefloor from very different directions.
For MASSIVE ATTACK, the announcement also represents a long-awaited return. The band were scheduled to perform at Pohoda in 2025 but were forced to cancel shortly before the festival because of health issues. Their place was taken by Damon Albarn’s Africa Express project, which even performed a special cover of MASSIVE ATTACK’s iconic TEARDROP.
Now, two years later, the festival and the band are preparing to fulfil that original promise. For fans who missed out in 2025, the 2027 performance will be a particularly welcome moment.
MASSIVE ATTACK BRING THEIR UNMISTAKABLE DARKNESS
Formed in Bristol in 1988, MASSIVE ATTACK helped shape the sound of trip-hop, blending hip-hop rhythms, dub, soul and electronic production into music that was atmospheric, unsettling and emotionally rich.
Their landmark debut album, Blue Lines, arrived in 1991 and featured UNFINISHED SYMPATHY, a track that remains one of the defining recordings of British electronic music. They followed it with Protection before reaching another creative peak with 1998’s Mezzanine, an album featuring enduring classics including TEARDROP, ANGEL and INERTIA CREEPS.
Led by Robert Del Naja, known as 3D, and Grant Marshall, known as Daddy G, the group have always treated their live shows as more than conventional concerts. Their performances combine hypnotic beats and brooding soundscapes with striking visual projections, often exploring political events, human rights and the climate crisis.
That combination of music and uncompromising imagery has made MASSIVE ATTACK one of the most distinctive live acts around. Their Thursday appearance at Pohoda promises a powerful opening to the festival’s headline programme.
THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS RETURN AFTER NINE YEARS
Saturday night belongs to THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS, who will return to Pohoda nine years after their previous appearance in 2018. The British duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons will close the programme on the Zlatý Bažant Stage, with a 90-minute live performance scheduled to begin at midnight.
Few electronic acts have done more to bring dance music into the world of live performance. Since emerging during the 1990s, the pair have built a reputation for combining heavyweight beats, psychedelic visuals and immersive production into shows that feel as much like audiovisual spectacles as traditional concerts.
Their catalogue is packed with dancefloor landmarks. HEY BOY HEY GIRL, GALVANIZE, BLOCK ROCKIN’ BEATS, STAR GUITAR and GO have helped define their sound across generations, while albums such as Dig Your Own Hole, Surrender and Push the Button established their place among electronic music’s most influential artists.
Their return is especially fitting for Pohoda, where their previous performance in 2018 left a lasting impression. The promised 90-minute set will bring the festival’s Saturday programme to a suitably high-energy conclusion.
A STRONG START FOR POHODA 2027
The two announcements give Pohoda a compelling early identity for 2027. MASSIVE ATTACK offer a dark, immersive journey through trip-hop and politically charged sound, while THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS promise a spectacular late-night electronic performance.
The festival returns to Trenčín Airport from 8th to 10th July 2027. With two influential British acts already confirmed, anticipation is building for the next wave of announcements and the wider programme.
For Pohoda, securing MASSIVE ATTACK also means making good on a promise to festivalgoers after their cancelled 2025 appearance. Add the return of THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS after nearly a decade away, and the first names for 2027 give fans plenty of reasons to start planning a trip to Slovakia next summer.
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