Fontaines D.C. bring pro-Palestine group on stage at Roskilde festival in Denmark

By David Mouriquand

Irish rockers Fontaines D.C. invited a pro-Palestine group on stage at their festival slot at Roskilde, Denmark – one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries.The band brought out the activist group mid-performance to show their solidarity with the people of Gaza and led chants in both English and Arabic. Check out the footage below.This comes as both Kneecap and Bob Vylan are under investigation by the police for their pro-Palestine comments at Glastonbury 2025. Fontaines D.C. also praised British punk rap duo Bob Vylan for voicing their support for Palestine during their gig on the West Holts stage last weekend. Bob Vylan projected a message reading “Free Palestine – United Nations have called it a genocide – the BBC calls it a ‘conflict’” onto the screen behind them, and also led chants of both “free, free Palestine” and “death, death to the IDF” (Israel Defence Forces). Glastonbury organisers issued a statement saying they were “appalled” by the chants, and UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said that the BBC’s decision to broadcast the performance shows “a problem of leadership.” Nandy also said in Parliament that “chanting death to the IDF is equivalent to calling for the death of every single Israeli Jew” – a comment that was criticised online.In a statement on Tuesday, Bob Vylan said they were “not for the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people,” rather, they were for the “dismantling of a violent military machine”. They added they were a “distraction from the story” in Gaza and that whatever “sanctions” they received would also be a distraction. Regarding the police investigation, the Avon and Somerset Police released the following statement: “This has been recorded as a public order incident at this time while our enquiries are at an early stage. The investigation will be evidence-led and will closely consider all appropriate legislation, including relating to hate crimes.” “There is absolutely no place in society for hate. Neighbourhood policing teams are speaking with people in their local communities and key stakeholders to make sure anyone who needs us knows that we are here for them.” Following Bob Vylan’s controversial Glastonbury set, the US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau described the actions as a “hateful tirade” and confirmed that the band have had their US visas revoked.Additionally, the Radar Festival, which takes place at the O2 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester, wrote yesterday: “Bob Vylan will not be appearing at Radar Festival this weekend.” The festival has not explained why the duo will no longer appear on Saturday night. In response, the group shared the festival’s statement on their Instagram story, adding the caption: “Silence is not an option. We will be fine, the people of Palestine are hurting. Manchester we will be back.” The latest development in this ongoing story is that the BBC has said it will no longer live broadcast “high risk” performances. The British broadcaster said it was “clear that errors were made” before and during the Glastonbury performance. Fontaines D.C. have frequently use their platform to speak out. In August last year, the band cancelled a concert in Istanbul in solidarity with Palestine, and earlier this year, they used their set at Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Spain, to accuse Israel of genocide.The band has also teamed up with Dublin’s Bohemians FC and designed a football shirt to raise funds for the people of Palestine.The shirt made headlines last month when activist Greta Thunberg was pictured wearing it on the ‘Freedom Flotilla’ trip.Fontaines D.C. are currently touring Europe, with upcoming dates in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, UK, Germany and the Netherlands. Their latest album, ‘Romance’, was one of our favourite releases of 2024. In our Best Albums of 2024 list, we wrote: “While there was the looming worry that Irish post-punkers Fontaines D.C. had peaked with their stellar third album (2022’s ‘Skinty Fia’), they’ve confidently confirmed that they are not to be underestimated. More than that, their new album cemented that they’re one of the most consistently exciting modern bands around. Every one of their releases has marked leaps and bounds in terms of songwriting and sound evolution, and ‘Romance’ feels like a consecration.”

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