This year's lineup will feature the American band Garbage, the biggest act yet to perform during the festival's 11-year history. Other international bands include the Finnish Leningrad Cowboys, Germany's Die Toten Hosen and the New York band Sick of It All. As always, there will also be a diverse selection of Czech bands to provide local flavor. Divokej Bill, Kryštof, Eggnoise, Tři sestry, Medved 009 and Roe Deer are just a few of the names that Czech pop and rock music fans will recognize. Also on the bill this year will be last year's winner of the television music talent search Česko hledá SuperStar, Aneta Langerová.

The relaxed, anything-goes atmosphere has made the festival in Český Brod popular not only with audiences but among performers as well. "It's probably the only festival where we like to stay for the whole time, so we can just hang out and watch other bands perform," says Ondřej Galuška from Eggnoise, which has played at the festival many times in the past. "Really, it's the most festival-like festival in the Czech Republic."

Richard Krajčo, frontman for the popular pop-rock band Kryštof, concurs: "All the bands look forward to this event. It has this almost magical ambiance to it." More than anything else, he says, "It's one big party for the performers as well as the audience."

Along with the relaxed vibe, Rock for People has gained many fans thanks to its longstanding tradition of having a diverse lineup. This year, for instance, festival visitors will hear sounds as varied as the punk of Tři sestry, the pop of Kryštof and the electronica of Roe Deer, with the virtually unclassifiable jazz-rock polyphonic sound of Eggnoise thrown in for good measure.

Eggnoise's Galuška is happy with the way his band fits in — or rather, doesn't fit in. "Our band diversifies the program a bit," he says. "I think that the audience welcomes a change. Besides, at heart we're still a rock group in the tradition of bands like Tři sestry."

The festival's multigenre lineup means that even SuperStar winner Aneta Langerová won't feel like the odd woman out. She already had a small taste of the festival last year, when she sang as a guest of the band Divokej Bill. "When I performed, I was afraid of how people would respond to me," she says, adding that she was well aware that many people didn't necessarily come to see her. But she didn't need to worry. "I was overwhelmed by the positive response," she says.

Krajčo has similarly fond memories of supportive, friendly audiences. "I'll never forget the first time we performed at Rock for People, and there were punks in the audience who started dancing to our music," he recalls. "They later came up to me after the show to say how much they loved our songs."

To partake in the general good vibe and party atmosphere, buy your tickets early and be sure to bring plenty of sunscreen. And don't forget your (heavy-duty) dancing shoes.