Standing on the edge of the pits of (rock) hell: fans attending the Jarocin rock festival in Poland back in 1987, as captured by Przemek Wierzchowski.
Various Polish musicians and bands, mostly punk, heavy metal, rock and reggae acts, were included each August on the bill of a 3-day festival held near the small town of Jarocin. It attracted thousands of fans (e.g. in 1986 there were more than 30,000 of them, actually more than the town population), who put up tents and brought tape recorders to listen to or record music which was otherwise hardly or never played on radio or TV.
Though it has been suggested by some that it was actually designed by state authorities as a safety valve to quell the youth frustration, no one can deny the fact that it was regarded as an escape from the harsh reality of the '80s communist Poland.
(via)
