On its 22nd edition in Barcelona, el Parc del Forum hosted Primavera Sound, yet again exceeding attendees’ expectations. The festival showcased world-class acts such as Phoenix, Pulp, and PJ Harvey, and featured a full alternative scenario dedicated to Steve Albini.

Although winter in Barcelona is not even close to the roughest in Europe, we go through it dreaming about getting some music in front of the sea and under the sun, aka the Catalan dream. For some of us, that means attending Primavera Sound, which kickstarts the summer. And what a way to start the summer.

Primavera Sound never disappoints. With more than two decades under its belt, it is a very well-organized festival with more than 10 stages, including a small auditorium and a boiler-room club, five days of astounding acts, a widely inclusive lineup featuring artists from every genre, sexual orientation, race, and continent, drug testing on-site, sustainable initiatives, good vibes, and a very safe environment for every age. This year it attracted around 268,000 attendees.

On the opening night on Wednesday, May 29th, Maria Jaume, a barefoot Tropical Fuck Storm’s Gareth Liddard, the Ratboys post-country swag, and the fictional Christian pop band from La Mesías series, Stella Maris, Albert Pla included, became the perfect entrance hall for the French band that headlined the festival in 2022: Phoenix. Thomas Mars is much more of a frontman than we ever give him credit for: the French allure, the silky voice, his willingness to connect to his audience, and the effortless way the band puts together one hit after the other. Starting a well-rounded show with Lisztomania, Mars and company never disappoint, especially this time, when their friend Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend joined them on the guitar for Tonight, 1901, and Identical (Reprise), the song in which Mars greets, surfs, or embraces the audience, depending on the show’s vibe.

Even if we were faced with tough choices such as Vampire Weekend or Beth Gibbons, Thursday was a dream: Arab Strap, Blonde Redhead, Deftones, Pulp, Freddie Gibbs & Madlib celebrating 10 years of Piñata, and also a very impressive offering for the party animals out there: L’Impératrice, Kim Petras, Peggy Gou, Justice. From my perspective, the highlights were the voice of my generation, Beth Gibbons’ solo show, mostly comprised of Lives Outgrown but crowned by Portishead’s ‘Roads’, which brought the crowd to tears. She does not play much these days, so we’re lucky. Sixteen years after, Vampire Weekend came back to the festival, this time playing a mix of hits such as “A-Punk”, “Oxford Comma” or “Campus” (but not “Horchata”), and the brand new Only God Was Above Us. The highlight? “New Dorp. New York”, showing how amazingly multifaceted Vampire Weekend can be and the musicianship displayed even when Ezra Koenig is not singing. Followed by another long-awaited show: the indisputable king Mr. Jarvis Cocker and co, whose presence onstage eclipses everything and everyone around him, even if that is his band, which happens to be Pulp + several strings. Cocker makes magic, talks about relevant topics (such as Trump being convicted of 34 felony charges, remembering Pulp’s late Steve Mackey and late producer extraordinaire Steve Albini, whose band Shellac was supposed to play at Primavera Sound), bringing the audience to tears, jumping up and down, singing along to classics such as “Like a Friend”, “This is Hardcore” (which actually was), “Common People”, “Disco 2000” and closing the show after a second encore with… you guessed it: “Razzmatazz”! Cocker is the biggest frontman of his generation. Change my mind. After Pulp, a big white cross lit up Primavera, deep bass shaking the festival to the ground, and the big party we waited for so long: Justice. Going back to Steve Albini, Primavera rebaptized one of its more than 10 stages in his honor, and at 18:55, when Shellac was supposed to perform, the speakers played To All Trains, their last album, to nostalgic fans and music enthusiasts.

Friday was generous with our energy and more tender with our hearts, recovering from the night before: I was positively surprised by three acts: Ethel Cain’s heavenly voice wearing a t-shirt that read Palestine. Faye Webster’s dreamy show and the Last Dinner Party rebel-rocky female pleasure. Pure girl power, as refreshing as necessary. One of the most awaited shows of the day was Dogstar’s reunion, with Mr. Keanu Reeves’ bass included! My favorite act of that day was Yo La Tengo, not only because of their impeccable setlist that started with “Ohm” and finished with “Blue Line Swinger”, or their sophisticated emotional music, always relevant, always original, but for the corporality and complicity that comes with the three of them performing together, exchanging roles, giving each other the horizontal configuration to shine without any screen or image behind them. They do not need it. Their music is enough.

Yo La Tengo’s show was unique. It got me into a very reflective state of wonder about life (I am a sober person, in case you were wondering). Then I made the unpopular choice of seeing Jessica Pratt’s oniric universe in el Forum’s Auditori instead of Lana del Rey. It was an exquisite, intimate performance. Another outstanding show of that day was The National, which not only made me realize I am not getting any younger but that adult rock will never die. The dancefloor crowd also got their piece that night with Disclosure’s electro beats and Arca’s breathtaking elegance, one of Primavera Sound’s favorite artists.

I dedicated the last day to seeing only female acts, for no particular reason but Primavera Sound’s powerful bet for female talents this year. More than three decades of female talent, the women who shaped my generation and opened up the way to many after them. The first one is the force of nature Polly Jean under the rain, all dressed in white presenting I Inside the Old Year Dying and some hits. This was my first time seeing PJ Harvey sharing a piece of her poetic cosmos with us mortals. The highlights? Black Hearted Love, which she hadn’t played since 2009, and The Desperate Kingdom of Love, in honor of Steve Albini. Afterward, still under the rain, Kathleen Hanna, Kathi Wilcox, Tobi Vail, and Billy Karren broke our brains and the patriarchy with punk rock hymns and odes to feminism. The energy Bikini Kill transmits is from another universe. The cherry on the pie was the indisputable Queen, the one and only Róisín Murphy, with her fashion statements, her dancefloor iconic hits, her silky voice, and the vitality of a teenager, a perfect way to close Primavera Sound 2024.

Please take into account that this is the chronicle from the perspective of a 38-year-old very jetlagged person who had just arrived from another continent the night before and had no energy to arrive early and discover new, fantastic acts, and to stay until the end to dance the night away with the biggest star of Primavera Sound: DJ Coco, even less so to visit the final act: el brunch, which is reserved only for the brave. To sum up: music is magic, and the people who organize Primavera Sound know how to use their wand.

Words by Daniela Valdez @malvadaniela

Oeder tickets for week 2 of Primavera Sound 2024 HERE