There's no shortage of music festivals in Europe, but Hungarian Sziget festival in Budapest is nothing like the rest. It's long: seven days of dancing, drinking, camping and whatever kids are doing at the festivals these days. It's ambitious: this year's line-up included Sia, Rihanna, Muse and David Guetta to name a few. It's diverse: from the most commercial pop music to opera. And most importantly it has this elusive atmosphere of joy and unity — no wonder Sziget's nicknames are "Island of Freedom" and "European Burning Man."

Picking just eight moments from this festival was rather hard: not just because there were too many to count, but also because it's hard to remember things when you're mixing wine with sparkling water (they call it fröccs here and it totally beats your Mimosas).

(All photos shot by Rockstar Photographers)

Sum 41

We are "still waiting for this world to stop hating," but we don't have to wait for these Canadian rockstars to return anymore.

It's been five long years since Sum 41 released their Screaming Bloody Murder record. The reason is that frontman Deryck Whibley had very rough times and had some major health issues, which put the band's future in jeopardy. So seeing them in top shape delivering all of their classics as well as the new single (appropriately titled "Fake My Own Death") was almost a cathartic experience for the thankful crowd. The band later posted: "It was one of the best and funnest shows we've ever played in our whole career." 

Rihanna

Ri-Ri's show was obvious bait for a lot of Sziget visitors this year, and the singer commented from the stage that 90,000 people came to see her work, work, work, work, work. The stage production was pretty minimal and some of the songs were cut in half, but the power of Rinanna's catalogue couldn't be denied — even if you're not totally into ANTI era, you'd still jump up and down to "We Found Love", "Rude Boy" and "Umbrella."

She also literally tried her hands at vogueing and finished the set surrounded by mountains of soap bubbles. Our only complaint: Where the hell was "Pon de Replay"?! Gotta respect your roots, lady!

Die Antwoord

We think they're freaky and we do like them a lot. South African rapping rave superheroes showered the crowd with everything you'd expect from a Die Antwoord show: crazy outfits, nuclear energy, boiling stream of hits and atmosphere of pure unfiltered festival madness. Yolandi and Ninja must possess some supernatural powers as the downpour stopped right before their show and never resumed. 

Tinie Tempah

Tinie Tempah reserves a special spot on the pop scene, as he manages to combine urban-flavored and club-inspired records, making his show a perfect festival gig. All-around entertainer with some impeccable style played several new tracks off his forthcoming record Youth and made everyone go crazy to his EDM collaborations "Drinking from the Bottle" and "Miami 2 Ibiza". And yes, he brought confetti. 

Sia

To be honest, Sia's not-showing-my-face-but-there's-a-little-dancer-girl schtick already felt tired halfway through the promotion of her previous album, but she decided to pass the theme onto her new record as well. Though we're sick of it, as long as she's bringing the hits of "Cheap Thrills" and "Unstoppable" calibre, we can manage.

The decision to show only pre-recorded star-studded music videos on the big screens instead of actual live stream of the concert was questionable, but we have to trust Sia here. She wants us to pay attention solely to her voice and the songs. And when both components are this good, we have to obey. Cue in crying during the piano rendition of "Titanium."

Hungarian Bands

Sziget is a great place to immerse in Hugarian culture, most notably it's colorful music scene. From folk to drum'n'bass, there's a lot to be discovered at the shows of local celebrities. One of the best shows we saw this year was from renowned drum'n'bass/rock/dancehall band Brains, which was a great reason to flee from David Guetta's shockingly uninspired gig.

Concert of eight-piece indie band Mary Popkids put a huge smile on our face, while the front lady of Anna and the Barbies took our breath away with her enormous stage presence and a collection of elaborate stage costumes that could give Lady Gaga a run for her money.

Circus 

The greatest thing about Sziget is that unlike most festivals, you don't have to focus on the music. Instead you may let it simply soundtrack your adventures and get exposed to a whole new world of entertainment. One of the biggest standouts is circus. There are multiple circus tents; an open air circus shows and even a LGBTQ-themed variety show that had some of the most unbelievable circus performers we've ever seen. And a couple of dildo jokes, too.

EDM Gigs

When you have so many vacationing Dutch and Scandinavian guys around, you know that another stomping EDM show is just around the corner. Sziget always brings the finest dance acts to light up the nights with fireworks, confetti and lazer lights and this year was no exception. From Nicky Romero to Hardwell, from David Guetta to Zedd, it was impossible to keep your feet on the ground and your fists not pumping the air. The only downside: We really need new shoes now. And maybe a week-long foot massage session.