Entertainment

Romanian Music Festival Demands Fans Pay in Blood

This may be the most bizarrely intelligent attempt to capitalize on the vampire trend yet.

Summer music festivals typically bring to mind Urban Outfitters crop tops, not Nosferatu, but Romania has a different way of doing business. The country that gave us Vlad the Impaler is now giving us the world’s first Vampiric music festival, and the best way to get in is to give blood. It’s an insane gimmick but also kind of brilliant.

The Untold Festival, which takes place in Cluj-Napoca from July 30 to August 2, is offering free or discounted tickets to people who pay with blood rather than money, because of course. In a partnership with the National Blood Transfusion Institute, its “pay with blood” incentive is supposed to encourage blood donation, as Romania ranks — somewhat ironically — second to lowest in blood donation for European countries.

The festival will feature over 150 artists, including Avicii and David Guetta, so this isn’t some minor event. What the festival represents is an attempt to get blood for the Romanian people that need it. It’s an unexpectedly smart way to do something charitable while guaranteeing that your first beer will give you a very real kick.

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