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Barcelona, the capital of the proud and autonomous Catalonia. And more importantly for those obsessive festival-heads out there, the city of Primavera Sound 2015.
A scintillating festival at the Parc Del Forum which is set to kick off this summer festival season with an almighty bang, and dissolve the ice road of depression and memories of the cold here in the UK once and for all – because there is no better jaunt than a European outdoor festival in the sunshine.
Of course, Barca is one of the most uniquely stylised cities in the world. If you don’t trust my beer stained memory trust Google maps.
Look around the Gothic facades, the neuralgic centre full of tanned skaters in their flat soled shoes and aggressively themed Tees, the tapas bars, the night-time circus in the coctelerías and whiskerias – and all around Las Rambas, where tourists flock to the patter of excited street performers crying out for attention.
Is there a better place for your festival fix than this? In the city of Messi, Picasso and Gaudi – the supreme artists of their chosen disciplines, who have helped inform the narrative and attitude of this cosmopolitan city of 2 million souls, and become its adopted sons.
Throughout the history of this Iberian fairytale land, it has never been a place to follow trends; it prefers to create them.
Primavera Sound is built on that ethos, and is constantly pushing the boundaries with its multi-discipline output. It has the pulling power of a bigger festival, full of minimusica activities and concerts for all ages and tastes. Yet it still has the charm of a secret boutique festival, like a Dimensions or Unknown Festival.
Gaudi particularly came to symbolise this place in a way few other mortals can, in a complete revolution of the architecture and its look, starting a movement that would sweep the globe like wildfire.
There is no better example of his lifelong affair with the city than the Basilica Sagrada Familia, his unfinished master piece, which is a lasting monument to his ethos that beauty could save the world.
Maybe it still can. But if you ask the youth and the countless travelers who descend on the city, and the backpackers who populate the beaches each summer, ask them where the living, breathing Barcelona is, they have only one answer. Primavera Sound.
The self-proclaimed festival of eclecticism, and risk taking.
The beaches are always attractive around here, giving off heat like humid saunas in the months of May and June. And Primavera Sound is situated in the Sant Marti region of the city, not far from the coastline – so it benefits from the heat and also the sea breezes, keeping you cool when the cocktails are flowing and the sun is beating down on your neck.
Tip 1. Bring sun cream. Lots of sun cream.
This super-city’s history stretches back 2000 years, but it’s also forward thinking, a futurist city with a strong desire for self-improvement. Primavera has become the reference point for youth culture since its inception in 2001. Since then promoters have been attracting some of the finest array of talent from all quarters of the music industry, with specific focus on dance, alternative and indie.
Past performers include Pixies, Aphex Twin, Neil Young, Sonic Youth, Portishead, Pet Shop Boys, Pavement, Echo & The Bunnymen, Lou Reed, My Bloody Valentine, El-P, Pulp, Arcade Fire, Cat Power, Public Enemy, Grinderman, Franz Ferdinand, Television, and many more.
This year promises to be an exceptional event full of surprises, with even more stellar stages such as the hidden Heineken Stage. Expect a cornucopia of special concerts, with bands like Battles, The Vaselines and Mercromina, bringing down the roof while supping this Dutch mead.
Tip 2. Bring a replacement set of ears.
You’ll need them after you visit the Bowers & Wilkins sound system tent. Because thanks to these loudspeaker and audio innovators, the site will have a colossal sound system that will bring true studio quality sound to the live festival experience.
A 135,000 watt, 4 way active speaker system which will create the perfect storm of detail, pitch and volume. There’s going to be thrills and spills aplenty, especially as dance music heavy weights Resident Advisor and Red Bull Music Academy are enlisted to take over the dials on a number of special collaborations.
There is simply too much ear candy. Take the line-up, for example, it could get out of hand this year with the likes of Black Keys, The Strokes, Caribou, Chet Faker, Richie Hawtin, Damien Rice, DJ COCO, OMD, RATATAT and many more taking to the stage.
The festival commences May 28th to May 30th, so with one month to go before lift off, make sure you get your tickets before they sell out. Check out the official site for more info:
https://www.primaverasound.com/
Also check out the cool video besides this piece which announces the line-up in the style of an old 2 bit video game.