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Primavera Sound (commonly referred to as Primavera) is an annual music festival held at the Parc del Fòrum in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, during late May and early June. It was founded in 2001 by Pablo Soler as "a showcase for Spanish
noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...
bands", originally held at the
Poble Espanyol The (literally, ''Spanish town'') is an open-air architectural museum in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, approximately away from the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc, Fountains of Montjuïc. Built for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition, the mu ...
before moving to the Parc del Fòrum, a much larger site on the seafront, in 2005. It is one of the largest and most-attended music festivals in Europe and the biggest in the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...
. The festival's image was originally oriented around
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
, but in recent years has seen a larger presence of genres such as
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
,
electronic dance music Electronic dance music (EDM), also referred to as dance music or club music, is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and List of electronic dance music festivals, festivals. It is generally ...
and
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
. In contrast to most other European festivals, traditionally the first bands go on at 4:00 pm, the headliners begin at midnight, and the latest acts play until 6:00 a.m. Beginning in 2019, Primavera Sound became the world's first major music festival to achieve gender-equal lineups under the tagline "The New Normal". It was also the first to use exclusively mobile tickets. Originally a one-day event, a second day was added beginning in 2002, and the 2004 edition became the first to feature a three-day lineup. In 2008, the festival began hosting free shows for ticketholders in local venues across Barcelona, beginning a tradition now known as Primavera a la Ciutat. No festival was held in 2020 and 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. It returned in 2022 with a two-week format for the first time, combining most bookings from the missed years, before reverting to a one-week event in 2023. The success of the festival led to an international expansion to
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
in 2012 at the Parque da Cidade, which takes place a week after the main edition. In 2022 and 2023, the festival also held editions in North and South America. In 2023, a nearly identical lineup was also featured in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
. The artists who have headlined the main Primavera Sound edition in Barcelona multiple times are
Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit * Pulp (band), an English rock band Engineering * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture ...
,
Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...
,
Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...
,
Pixies Pixies may refer to: * Plural of Pixie * Pixies (band) The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim ...
,
PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
,
the Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...
,
Belle and Sebastian Belle and Sebastian are a Scottish indie pop band formed in Glasgow in 1996. Led by Stuart Murdoch, the band has released twelve studio albums. They are often compared with acts such as the Smiths and Nick Drake. The band took their name from ...
, My Bloody Valentine, the National,
Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...
,
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
,
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
, Pavement,
Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker (musician), Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring a ...
,
the Strokes The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...
,
Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting, and has been referred to ...
, Phoenix, Blur, New Order,
Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, becoming the first music ...
,
Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...
,
Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
, and
Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...
. Each Primavera Sound between 2009 and 2022 set new attendance records, growing from its small origins of just 7,700 tickets sold in 2001. The 2022 festival was visited by 460,500 people, the fourth-most attended music festival in the world that year, while generating €349 million in revenue for the city of Barcelona. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' noted in 2014 that "the festival is sometimes called the
Coachella Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music festival, music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valle ...
of Europe", but without the "celebrity spotting" and "fashion and marketing trends" that the American festival is known for.


History


2001–2004: Beginnings at Poble Espanyol

The name "Primavera Sound" was first used for a series of concerts held at the Sala KGB venue in Barcelona in 1994, the first on 9 April. It continued to promote local
indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...
and
noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...
shows in Spain throughout the 1990s, but founder Pablo Soler was able to take the name back for a festival that he began planning in 2000. The first edition was held on 28 April 2001 at the
Poble Espanyol The (literally, ''Spanish town'') is an open-air architectural museum in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, approximately away from the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc, Fountains of Montjuïc. Built for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition, the mu ...
, an open-air architectural museum on top of the
Montjuïc Montjuïc () is a hill in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Montjuïc or Montjuich, meaning "Jewish Mountain" in medieval Latin and Catalan, is a broad, shallow hill in Barcelona with a rich history. It was the birthplace of the city, and its st ...
hill. It featured four stages and 19 acts including Armand van Helden,
Carl Craig Carl Craig (born May 22, 1969) is an American electronic music producer, DJ, and founder of the record label Planet E Communications. He is known as a leading figure and pioneer in the second wave of Detroit techno artists during the late 1980 ...
,
Los Planetas Los Planetas (''The Planets'') is a Spanish indie rock group from the city of Granada which started out in the mid 1990s and continue now through the 2020s. The group's first hit was "Qué puedo hacer" (''What can I do?'') from their album "Supe ...
,
Unkle Unkle (often stylised as U.N.K.L.E. or UNKLE, occasionally known as UNKLE Sounds) is a British musical outfit founded in 1992 by James Lavelle. Originally categorised as trip hop, the group once included producer DJ Shadow and have employed a ...
and
Yasuharu Konishi is a Japanese musician, composer and DJ. He was a founding member of Pizzicato Five and the only such to stay with the group until its breakup in 2001. Konishi's current activities are through his company readymade entertainment and his record ...
, the former frontman of Japanese band
Pizzicato Five Pizzicato Five (formerly typeset as Pizzicato V and sometimes abbreviated to P5)Yang Jeff, Dina Can, Terry Hong, (1997) ''Eastern Standard Time'' pg 277 New York: Mariner Books was a Japanese pop band formed in Tokyo in 1984 by multi-instrum ...
. Soler said he wanted to start the festival "as a showcase for Spanish
noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...
bands." The festival differed from most of its other European counterparts like
Glastonbury Glastonbury ( , ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury is less than across the River ...
by being held within a city rather than in a large camping site. A ticket cost 5,000 peseta (€30).Primavera Sound expanded to a second day in 2002, which took place on 17 and 18 May. Friday's headliners were
Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit * Pulp (band), an English rock band Engineering * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture ...
and
Spiritualized Spiritualized (stylised as Spiritualized®) are an English rock band formed in 1990 in Rugby, Warwickshire, by Jason Pierce (often known as J. Spaceman), formerly of Spacemen 3. After several line up-changes, in 1999, the band centred on Pie ...
, while Saturday was headlined by
Echo & the Bunnymen Echo & the Bunnymen are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch (singer), Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bassist Les Pattinson. By 1980, Pete de Freita ...
and
Tindersticks Tindersticks are an English alternative rock band formed in Nottingham in 1991. They released six albums before singer Stuart A. Staples embarked on a solo career. The band reunited briefly in 2006 and more permanently the following year. The ...
. Other prominent performers included
Aphex Twin Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), known professionally as Aphex Twin, is a British musician, composer and DJ active in electronic music since 1988. His idiosyncratic work has drawn on many styles, including techno, ambient music, ambi ...
,
Camera Obscura A camera obscura (; ) is the natural phenomenon in which the rays of light passing through a aperture, small hole into a dark space form an image where they strike a surface, resulting in an inverted (upside down) and reversed (left to right) ...
,
Cat Power Charlyn Marie "Chan" Marshall ( ; born January 21, 1972), better known by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer-songwriter. Cat Power was originally the name of her first band, but has become her stage name as a solo artist. Born in ...
,
J Mascis Joseph Donald Mascis Jr. (born December 10, 1965), better known as J Mascis, is an American musician who is the singer, guitarist and main songwriter for the alternative rock band Dinosaur Jr. He has also released several albums as a solo artist a ...
and
The Moldy Peaches The Moldy Peaches are an American independent music, indie group founded by Adam Green (musician), Adam Green and Kimya Dawson. Leading proponents of the anti-folk scene, the band had been on Recess (break), hiatus since 2004, but in 2023 announ ...
, whose set was their only concert in Spain for the next 21 years.
Lift to Experience Lift to Experience is an American indie rock band from Denton, Texas, that formed in 1996 with vocalist and guitarist Josh T. Pearson, drummer Andy "The Boy" Young, and bassist Josh "The Bear" Browning. The band has thus far released only on ...
cancelled their appearance because a member's wife suddenly died. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., an hour before the first sets started, the Primavera Sound Film Festival was also held. ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead headlined a launch party on the eve of the festival, held at Sala Apolo for €9. In 2003, the festival was officially named Estrella Damm Primavera Sound in partnership with the Barcelona-based beer brand
Estrella Damm Estrella Damm (, ) is a lager beer brewed in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It has existed since 1876, when August Küntzmann Damm founded his brewery in Barcelona, and is the flagship beer of S.A. Damm, a prominent brewery in the city. The brand ...
. The headliners were
Belle and Sebastian Belle and Sebastian are a Scottish indie pop band formed in Glasgow in 1996. Led by Stuart Murdoch, the band has released twelve studio albums. They are often compared with acts such as the Smiths and Nick Drake. The band took their name from ...
on 23 May and
Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...
on 24 May. There were now five stages, while the film festival and record label fair took place at the Mercat de les Flors. Bands such as
Arab Strap Arab Strap are a Scottish indie rock band whose core members are Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton. The band were signed to independent record label Chemikal Underground, split in 2006 and reformed in 2016. The band signed to Rock Action Reco ...
,
Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (Spanish language, Spanish for "I've got it"; also abbreviated as YLT) is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley ...
,
Teenage Fanclub Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake (Scottish musician), Norman Blake (vocals, guitar), Raymond McGinley (vocals, lead guitar) and Gerard Love (vocals, bass), al ...
,
Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
,
Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogwa ...
and
The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American Rock music, rock duo formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (guitar, keyboards, piano, vocals) and Meg White (drums, percussion, vocals). They were a leading group of 2000s indi ...
played on the main Nitsa-Apolo stage.
The Go-Betweens The Go-Betweens were an Australian indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1977. The band was co-founded and led by singer-songwriters and guitarists Robert Forster (musician), Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who were its only co ...
,
Julian Cope Julian David Cope (born 21 October 1957) is an English musician and author. He was the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band the Teardrop Explodes and has followed a solo career since 1983 in addition to working on musical side proj ...
,
LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American Dance-punk#Contemporary dance-punk, dance-punk revival band from Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy (electronic musician), James Murphy, of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals ...
,
The Kills The Kills are an English-American rock music, rock duo formed by American singer Alison Mosshart, Alison "VV" Mosshart and English guitarist Jamie Hince, Jamie "Hotel" Hince. They are signed to Domino Recording Company, Domino Records. Their fi ...
and
Wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...
were also on the lineup. On the eve of the festival, there was a presentation party led by
Godspeed You! Black Emperor Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock collective that originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation Records (Canada), Constellation, an in ...
at the Poble Espanyol and
The Streets The Streets is an English musical project led by vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Mike Skinner (musician), Mike Skinner. The project was founded in the early 90s, while Skinner was still a teenager; however, no music would formally eventuat ...
in Sala Apolo. The 2004 festival was the first to take place over three days. It was headlined by the reunited
Pixies Pixies may refer to: * Plural of Pixie * Pixies (band) The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim ...
(their first European show in 12 years),
PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
,
Primal Scream Primal Scream are a Scottish rock music, rock band originally formed in 1982 in Glasgow by Bobby Gillespie (vocals) and Jim Beattie (musician), Jim Beattie (guitar). The band's current lineup consists of Gillespie, Andrew Innes (guitar), Simon ...
and
Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...
(making their European debut). The main Nitsa-Apolo stage was also played by Franz Ferdinand,
Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, on January 1, 1988, following the demise of Green River (band), Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner (guitari ...
, Liars and
Elbow The elbow is the region between the upper arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and t ...
. Elsewhere, artists like
The Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' (, ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of the greatest wor ...
,
Dizzee Rascal Dylan Kwabena Mills (born 18 September 1984), known professionally as Dizzee Rascal, is a British rapper and MC. He is often credited as a pioneer of British hip hop and grime music and was ranked by ''Complex'' as one of the greatest British ...
,
Lloyd Cole Lloyd Cole (born 31 January 1961) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He was lead vocalist of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions from 1984 to 1989 and subsequently worked solo. Early life Cole was born in Buxton, Derbyshire, England. He ...
,
Smog Smog, or smoke fog, is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a portmanteau of the words ''smoke'' and ''fog'' to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odour. The word was then inte ...
,
Sun Kil Moon Sun Kil Moon is an American folk rock act from San Francisco, California, founded in 2002. Initially a continuation of the defunct indie rock band Red House Painters, Sun Kil Moon is now the primary recording moniker of vocalist and guitarist M ...
,
Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters are an American pop rock band formed in 2000. The band's current line-up consists of Jake Shears (vocals), Babydaddy (various instruments), Del Marquis (guitar, bass) and Randy Real (drums). Former members include vocalist A ...
and
Michael Gira Michael Rolfe Gira (; born February 19, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, author and artist. Now based in New Mexico, he founded the band Swans, in which he sings and plays guitar, in New York City in the 1980s at the height of ...
were seen.


2005–2009: Expansion to Parc del Fòrum

In 2005, the festival relocated from the
Poble Espanyol The (literally, ''Spanish town'') is an open-air architectural museum in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, approximately away from the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc, Fountains of Montjuïc. Built for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition, the mu ...
to the Parc del Fòrum by the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
, a site seven times larger. Headliners included New Order,
Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...
’s Stooges live comeback,
Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...
and
Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American country, rock, and folk singer-songwriter. He began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Earle's breakthrough album was his 1986 debut album '' ...
, with
Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes due to th ...
,
Mercury Rev Mercury Rev is an American rock band formed in 1989 in Buffalo, New York,
with The Human League The Human League are an English synth-pop band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic music, electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their t ...
,
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
and
Tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
directly underneath. The Auditori debuted this year, where artists such as
Antony & The Johnsons Anohni and the Johnsons (previously known as Antony and the Johnsons) is a music ensemble originally based in New York City that presents the work of English singer-songwriter Anohni and her collaborators. The band released its self-titled deb ...
,
Vic Chesnutt James Victor Chesnutt (November 12, 1964 – December 25, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter from Athens, Georgia. His first album, Little (album), ''Little'', was released in 1990. His commercial breakthrough came in 1996 with the rele ...
and Tortoise held indoor performances. The new venue allowed the festival to increase from four to seven stages, and co-director Albert Guijarro said that the Fòrum was the "ideal place to be able to grow in the future". 2006's headliners included
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1975 by bassist and lead vocalist Lemmy Kilmister, guitarist Larry Wallis and drummer Lucas Fox. Kilmister was the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band a ...
and
Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (Spanish language, Spanish for "I've got it"; also abbreviated as YLT) is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley ...
on Thursday,
The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...
, Dinosaur Jr. and
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are compleme ...
on Friday, and
Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...
,
Violent Femmes Violent Femmes are an American folk punk band from Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The band consists of founding members Gordon Gano (guitar, lead vocals) and Brian Ritchie (bass, backing vocals), joined by multi-instrumentalist Blaise Garza ( ...
and
Stereolab Stereolab are an English people, Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's sound incorporates repetitive motorik beats with the use of vintage electronic keybo ...
on Saturday. Other performers included
Animal Collective Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore County, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin (Josh Dibb). The band's work is cha ...
,
Babyshambles Babyshambles are an English rock band established in London. The band was formed by Pete Doherty (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) during a hiatus from the Libertines. As of 2014 the band included Mick Whitnall (lead guitar), Drew McConnell (bas ...
,
Big Star Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1971 by Alex Chilton (vocals, guitar), Chris Bell (vocals, guitar), Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). They have been described as the "quintessential American ...
,
Deerhoof Deerhoof is an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. It consists of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singer Satomi Matsuzaki, and guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez. Beginning as an improvised noise punk band ...
,
Drive-By Truckers Drive-By Truckers are an American rock music, rock band based in Athens, Georgia. Two of five current members (Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley (American musician), Mike Cooley) are originally from The Shoals region of northern Alabama and met as ...
,
Killing Joke Killing Joke were an English rock music, rock band formed in Notting Hill, London, in 1979 by Jaz Coleman (vocals, keyboards), Paul Ferguson (drums), Geordie Walker (guitar) and Youth (musician), Youth (bass). Their first album, ''Killing Joke ...
,
Richard Hawley Richard Willis Hawley (born 17 January 1967) is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer. After his first band Treebound Story (formed while he was still at school) broke up, Hawley found success as a member of Britpop band Long ...
,
Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member Janet We ...
and The Drones.
Shellac Shellac () is a resin secreted by the female Kerria lacca, lac bug on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. Chemically, it is mainly composed of aleuritic acid, jalaric acid, shellolic acid, and other natural waxes. It is processed and s ...
performed for the first time; they have performed every year since, aside from 2007. That year, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' dubbed it "the little festival that could", praising the Parc del Fòrum for its "picturesque setting... before an azure Mediterranean backdrop." The 2007 event was headlined by the reunited
The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also simply known as Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. The ...
,
The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American Rock music, rock duo formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (guitar, keyboards, piano, vocals) and Meg White (drums, percussion, vocals). They were a leading group of 2000s indi ...
,
Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...
,
Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...
performing ''
Daydream Nation ''Daydream Nation'' is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth, released on October 18, 1988. The band recorded the album between July and August 1988 at Greene St. Recording in New York City, and it was released by ...
'' in full for the first time,
Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...
,
Slint Slint was an American Rock music, rock band from Louisville, Kentucky, Louisville, Kentucky, formed in 1986 after the dissolution of two local bands, Squirrel Bait and Maurice. It initially consisted of guitarist-vocalist Brian McMahan, guitaris ...
performing ''
Spiderland ''Spiderland'' is the second and final studio album by the American rock band Slint. It was released by Touch and Go Records on March 27, 1991. Slint's lineup at the time of recording comprised Brian McMahan on vocals and guitar, David Pajo ...
'' in full and The Fall. Other prominent acts included
The Good, the Bad & the Queen The Good, the Bad & the Queen were an English art rock supergroup composed of singer Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz, bassist Paul Simonon of the Clash, guitarist Simon Tong of the Verve, and drummer Tony Allen of Fela Kuti's band Africa ...
,
Maxïmo Park Maxïmo Park are an English alternative rock band formed in 2000 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band currently consists of Paul Smith (English singer), Paul Smith (lead vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals), and Tom Engli ...
,
Los Planetas Los Planetas (''The Planets'') is a Spanish indie rock group from the city of Granada which started out in the mid 1990s and continue now through the 2020s. The group's first hit was "Qué puedo hacer" (''What can I do?'') from their album "Supe ...
,
Spiritualized Spiritualized (stylised as Spiritualized®) are an English rock band formed in 1990 in Rugby, Warwickshire, by Jason Pierce (often known as J. Spaceman), formerly of Spacemen 3. After several line up-changes, in 1999, the band centred on Pie ...
,
Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock music, rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members were lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock (musician), Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green and ba ...
,
Buzzcocks Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band that singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto formed in Manchester in 1976. During their career, the band combined elements of punk rock, power pop, and pop punk. The ...
,
The Durutti Column The Durutti Column are an English post-punk band formed in 1978 in Manchester, England.Strong, Martin C. (1999) "The Great Alternative & Indie Discography", Canongate, The band is the project of guitarist and occasional pianist Vini Reilly, o ...
,
Jonathan Richman Jonathan Michael Richman (born May 16, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 1970, he founded the Modern Lovers, an influential proto-punk band. Since the mid-1970s, Richman has worked either solo or with low-key acoustic an ...
,
Built to Spill Built to Spill is an American indie rock band that formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1992. Centered on lead vocalist and guitarist Doug Martsch, the only permanent member, Built to Spill has released nine albums since its inception. Martsch originall ...
,
Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic th ...
,
Melvins Melvins (sometimes the Melvins) are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Primarily a trio, they have also performed as a quartet, with eith ...
performing ''Houdini'',
Low Low or LOW or lows, may refer to: People * Low (surname), listing people surnamed Low Places * Low, Quebec, Canada * Low, Utah, United States * Lo Wu station (MTR code LOW), Hong Kong; a rail station * Salzburg Airport (ICAO airport code: LO ...
,
Blonde Redhead Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino (vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar) and identical twin brothers Simone (drums, keyboards) and Amedeo Pace (lead guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals) that formed in New York ...
and
Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...
. It was the first year that DJ Coco (booker Abel Suárez) performed his festival-closing set of pop hits, which became a yearly tradition, ending with Journey's "
Don't Stop Believin' "Don't Stop Believin" is a song by American rock band Journey. It was released in October 1981 as the second single from the group's seventh studio album, '' Escape'' (1981), released through Columbia Records. "Don't Stop Believin shares writi ...
". The 2008 edition was headlined by Portishead,
Public Enemy Public Enemy is an American Hip-hop, hip hop group formed in Roosevelt, New York, in 1985 by Chuck D and Flavor Flav. The group rose to prominence for their political messages including subjects such as Racism in the United States, American r ...
performing ''
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ''It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back'' is the second studio album by American Hip hop music, hip hop group Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was recorded from 1987 to 1988 in sessio ...
'',
Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical opera ...
and
Cat Power Charlyn Marie "Chan" Marshall ( ; born January 21, 1972), better known by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer-songwriter. Cat Power was originally the name of her first band, but has become her stage name as a solo artist. Born in ...
. Other performers included
Tindersticks Tindersticks are an English alternative rock band formed in Nottingham in 1991. They released six albums before singer Stuart A. Staples embarked on a solo career. The band reunited briefly in 2006 and more permanently the following year. The ...
,
The Sonics The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on Punk rock, punk and Garage rock, garage music worldwide, and they have been named inspir ...
,
Sebadoh Sebadoh () is an American indie rock band formed in 1986 in Northampton, Massachusetts, by Eric Gaffney and Lou Barlow, with multi-instrumentalist Jason Loewenstein completing the line-up in 1989. Barlow co-created Sebadoh as an outlet for his ...
,
De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...
,
Young Marble Giants Young Marble Giants were a Welsh post-punk band formed in Cardiff, Wales, in 1978. Their music was based around the vocals of Alison Statton along with the minimalist instrumentation of brothers Philip and Stuart Moxham. Their early sound was ...
,
Mission of Burma Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. The group formed in 1979 with Roger Miller (rock musician), Roger Miller on guitar, Clint Conley on bass guitar, bass, Peter Prescott (musician), Peter Prescott on drum k ...
,
Throbbing Gristle Throbbing Gristle were an English music and visual arts group formed in Kingston upon Hull by Genesis P-Orridge and Cosey Fanni Tutti, later joined by Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson and Chris Carter. They are widely regarded as pioneers of in ...
, Model 500,
Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in Pub rock (United Kingdom), pub rock, power pop and New wave music, new wave,Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chr ...
,
MGMT MGMT () is an American rock band formed in 2002 in Middletown, Connecticut. It was founded by singers and multi-instrumentalists Andrew VanWyngarden and Benjamin Goldwasser, Ben Goldwasser. Originally signed to Cantora Records by the nascent ...
and
Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon (vocals, guit ...
. It marked the first time that artists performed in club venues across Barcelona in the days leading up to the festival, beginning a tradition which would become known as Primavera a la Ciutat. Portishead played two sets, one at the outdoor Rockdelux Stage, where
Chuck D Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), known professionally as Chuck D, is an American rapper, best known as the leader and frontman of the hip hop group Public Enemy, which he co-founded in 1985 with Flavor Flav. Chuck D is also a me ...
joined for " Machine Gun", and one at the indoor Auditori the following day. By this year, 45% of festivalgoers came from other countries. Amidst the financial crisis in Spain, the 2009 event continued to break attendance records, aided by the cancellation of the competing Summercase festival. It was headlined by
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
, My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth.
Aphex Twin Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), known professionally as Aphex Twin, is a British musician, composer and DJ active in electronic music since 1988. His idiosyncratic work has drawn on many styles, including techno, ambient music, ambi ...
,
Bloc Party Bloc Party are an English Rock music, rock band that was formed in London, England, London in 1999 by co-founders Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, sampler) and Russell Lissack (lead guitar). Their first four albums all featur ...
,
Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp (band), Pulp, he became a reluctant figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Cocker h ...
,
Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (Spanish language, Spanish for "I've got it"; also abbreviated as YLT) is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley ...
,
The Jayhawks The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and country rock band that emerged from the Twin Cities music scene in the mid-1980s. Led by vocalists/guitarists/songwriters Gary Louris and Mark Olson, their country rock sound was influentia ...
,
Spiritualized Spiritualized (stylised as Spiritualized®) are an English rock band formed in 1990 in Rugby, Warwickshire, by Jason Pierce (often known as J. Spaceman), formerly of Spacemen 3. After several line up-changes, in 1999, the band centred on Pie ...
,
Throwing Muses Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects. The group was original ...
, Saint Etienne and
The Jesus Lizard The Jesus Lizard is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas by vocalist David Yow, guitarist Duane Denison and bassist David Wm. Sims. They relocated to Chicago, Illinois, in 1989, where they found kindred spirits in ...
were also given prominent billing. It was Young's first Barcelona concert in 22 years, and he became the festival's most expensive headliner booked to date, ending a four-year pursuit to secure him. My Bloody Valentine also performed one outdoor and one indoor set. Performances in city venues began on the Monday of festival week, while more sets at the Parque Joan Miró extended the music to Sunday. The band
Wavves Wavves is an American rock band based in San Diego, California. Formed in 2008 by singer-songwriter Nathan Williams (born June 12, 1986), the band also features Alex Gates (guitar, backing vocals), Stephen Pope (bass guitar, backing vocals) an ...
had an infamous meltdown on the Pitchfork stage. ''Clash'' commented that Primavera Sound was the "younger brother" of
Sónar Sónar is a festival dedicated to music, creativity and technology, founded in Barcelona in 1994 by Ricard Robles, Enric Palau, and Sergi Caballero. The festival has been divided into two parts since its inception: Sónar by Day and Sónar b ...
, Barcelona's longer-running music festival, drawing praise for its "holier than thou indieness" despite the latter's international reputation. Festival booker Abel Suárez noted six years later that booking Young "was a turning point in terms of growth" because Primavera Sound "started to be known as one of the most important festivals in Europe from that point on."


2010–2018: International recognition

The festival officially took the name San Miguel Primavera Sound beginning in 2010, after
San Miguel Beer San Miguel Beer refers to San Miguel Pale Pilsen, a Filipino pale lager and flagship beer of the San Miguel Brewery. The original San Miguel Brewery, Inc. was founded in San Miguel, Manila, as La Fábrica de Cerveza San Miguel in 1890 by Enri ...
. Attendance was over 100,000 for the first time, and it saw the first edition of Primavera Pro, featuring networking talks from professionals involved with the music industry. The headliners were
Pixies Pixies may refer to: * Plural of Pixie * Pixies (band) The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim ...
, Pavement (in their first tour since 1999),
Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...
,
Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...
and Orbital. They were joined by The Charlatans performing '' Some Friendly'', The Fall,
Sunny Day Real Estate Sunny Day Real Estate is an American emo band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1992. The band currently consists of founding members Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar), Dan Hoerner (guitar) and William Goldsmith (drums), alongside Greg Suran ...
,
Superchunk Superchunk is an American indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer-guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Laura King. Formed in 1989, they were one of the bands that hel ...
,
Grizzly Bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horr ...
,
Panda Bear The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear or simply panda, is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its white coat with black patches around the eyes, ears, legs and shoulders. Its body is ...
,
The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), ...
,
Broken Social Scene Broken Social Scene is a Canadian indie rock band and musical collective including as few as six and as many as nineteen members, formed by Kevin Drew (vocals, guitar) and Brendan Canning (vocals, bass) in 1999. Alongside Drew and Canning, the ...
,
Tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
,
Wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...
,
Built to Spill Built to Spill is an American indie rock band that formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1992. Centered on lead vocalist and guitarist Doug Martsch, the only permanent member, Built to Spill has released nine albums since its inception. Martsch originall ...
,
Gary Numan Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the New wave music, new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two st ...
,
Marc Almond Peter Mark Almond (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist of the synth-pop/ new wave duo Soft Cell. He has a distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. He has had a diverse career as a ...
,
Health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...
,
Van Dyke Parks Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, arranger, record producer, singer, and former Warner Bros. Records executive whose work encompasses orchestral pop, elaborate recording experiments, Ame ...
,
Florence and the Machine Florence and the Machine (stylised as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band formed in London in 2007 by lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, drummer Christopher Lloyd Hayden and harp ...
,
The New Pornographers The New Pornographers are a Canadian indie rock band, formed in 1997 in Vancouver. Presented as a musical collective and supergroup of singer-songwriters and musicians from multiple projects, the band currently consists of Carl Newman (vocals, ...
,
Fuck Buttons Fuck Buttons were a British electronic music duo formed in 2004 in Bristol by Andrew Hung and Benjamin John Power. Their noise-influenced work received wide critical acclaim in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Biography Origins (2004–2008) ...
,
No Age No Age is an American noise rock duo consisting of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Allen Spunt. The band is based in Los Angeles, California, and was signed to Sub Pop records from 2008 to 2013. No Age's fourth studio album, '' ...
and
Atlas Sound Bradford James Cox (born May 15, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band Deerhunter. He also pursues a solo career under the moniker Atlas Sound. Cox formed Deerh ...
among other bands. The festival announced that over 35,000 watched Pixies perform at the San Miguel stage, the largest crowd for a single performance so far in Primavera history. Between Pet Shop Boys, Orbital and Marc Almond, Primavera notably secured three names who had previously headlined
Sónar Sónar is a festival dedicated to music, creativity and technology, founded in Barcelona in 1994 by Ricard Robles, Enric Palau, and Sergi Caballero. The festival has been divided into two parts since its inception: Sónar by Day and Sónar b ...
. In 2011, attendance grew to over 120,000 people. Headliners were
The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...
and
Grinderman Grinderman was an Australian-American rock band that formed in London, England, in 2006. The band included Nick Cave (vocals, guitar, organ, piano), Warren Ellis (tenor guitar, electric mandolin, violin, viola, guitar, backing vocals), Martyn P ...
on Thursday,
Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit * Pulp (band), an English rock band Engineering * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture ...
and
Belle & Sebastian Belle and Sebastian are a Scottish indie pop band formed in Glasgow in 1996. Led by Stuart Murdoch, the band has released twelve studio albums. They are often compared with acts such as the Smiths and Nick Drake. The band took their name from ...
on Friday, and
Animal Collective Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore County, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin (Josh Dibb). The band's work is cha ...
and
PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
on Saturday. Other prominent names were
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
, The National,
Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes are an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band currently consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backin ...
,
Sufjan Stevens Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released ten solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomina ...
,
Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogwa ...
,
John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...
performing ''Paris 1919'',
Mercury Rev Mercury Rev is an American rock band formed in 1989 in Buffalo, New York,
with Deserter's Songs ''Deserter's Songs'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band Mercury Rev, released in late September 1998. British music magazine ''NME'' named ''Deserter's Songs'' album of the year for 1998. Limited edition copies of the album came in ...
'',
M. Ward Matthew Stephen "M." Ward (born October 4, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter, Grammy nominated producer and guitarist from Glendale, California. Ward's solo work is a mixture of folk and blues-inspired Americana analog recordings. He has r ...
and
Low Low or LOW or lows, may refer to: People * Low (surname), listing people surnamed Low Places * Low, Quebec, Canada * Low, Utah, United States * Lo Wu station (MTR code LOW), Hong Kong; a rail station * Salzburg Airport (ICAO airport code: LO ...
. International brands such as
Ray-Ban Ray-Ban is a brand of luxury sunglasses and eyeglasses created in 1936 by Bausch & Lomb. The brand is best known for its Wayfarer and Aviator lines of sunglasses. In 1999, Bausch & Lomb sold the brand to Italian eyewear conglomerate Luxottica ...
and
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
began partnering with the festival. The festival overlapped with the 27 May protest at the
Plaça de Catalunya Plaça de Catalunya (, meaning in English "Catalonia Square"; sometimes referred to as Plaza de Cataluña, its Spanish name) is a large square in central Barcelona that is generally considered to be both its city centre and the place where the ol ...
, where 99 protestors were hospitalised by armed police, inspiring Pulp frontman
Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp (band), Pulp, he became a reluctant figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Cocker h ...
to dedicate "
Common People A commoner, also known as the ''common man'', ''commoners'', the ''common people'' or the ''masses'', was in earlier use an ordinary person in a community or nation who did not have any significant social status, especially a member of neithe ...
" to the protestors with a speech in Catalan during their first announced set since 2002. On Saturday night, large crowds gathered at the video screens set up by the Llevant stage to watch
FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...
defeat
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
in the 2011 Champions League final. The 2012 edition of the festival was headlined by Franz Ferdinand and
Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...
on Thursday,
The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...
on Friday and
Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
on Saturday.
Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...
was supposed to headline Saturday but cancelled three weeks prior because of an inflamed vocal cord nodule. Notably,
The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...
performed his first career European set and Refused, who broke up in 1998, played as part of their Refused Reunion Tour, Reunion Tour.
The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), ...
, Death Cab for Cutie and
Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded eleven studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical opera ...
were also given prominent billing.
Melvins Melvins (sometimes the Melvins) are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Primarily a trio, they have also performed as a quartet, with eith ...
, Sleep (band), Sleep and El-P also dropped out. The Cure's headlining set lasted three hours, with 36 songs and three encores. That year, the first edition of Primavera Sound took place at the :pt:Parque da Cidade do Porto, Parque da Cidade in
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
, Portugal, sponsored by Optimus Comunicações, Optimus.2013's headliners were The Postal Service, Phoenix, Blur, The Jesus and Mary Chain,
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
and My Bloody Valentine. The lineup also featured Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear,
Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker (musician), Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring a ...
, The Knife, James Blake (musician), James Blake, Band of Horses, Wu-Tang Clan and
Los Planetas Los Planetas (''The Planets'') is a Spanish indie rock group from the city of Granada which started out in the mid 1990s and continue now through the 2020s. The group's first hit was "Qué puedo hacer" (''What can I do?'') from their album "Supe ...
, among 260 acts. The festival was also set to host Fiona Apple's only scheduled performance of the year, but she canceled in April. Heineken replaced San Miguel as the festival's beer partner, and the festival dropped partnerships from its official name. The lineup for the 2014 edition was announced via a 26-minute short film. The headliners were
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
, Queens of the Stone Age, The National,
Pixies Pixies may refer to: * Plural of Pixie * Pixies (band) The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim ...
, Slowdive, Nine Inch Nails and
Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, becoming the first music ...
. Slowdive announced their reunion after 19 years of disbandment to play the festival. The main stages were also played by Real Estate (band), Real Estate, Disclosure (band), Disclosure, Midlake, Warpaint (band), Warpaint, X (American band), X, Haim (band), Haim, !!!, Spoon (band), Spoon,
Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
(performing ''Marquee Moon'' in full), Volcano Choir and Foals (band), Foals. The Heineken Hidden Stage debuted this year, offering intimate concerts on a smaller stage which required ticket reservations to enter. In 2015, the festival was headlined by The Black Keys, Antony and the Johnsons, Alt-J,
Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...
performing Horses (album), ''Horses'', The Strokes, Ride (band), Ride,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
and Underworld (band), Underworld performing ''Dubnobasswithmyheadman''. Other performers on the main stages included James Blake, Julian Casablancas & The Voidz, Damien Rice, the reunited
Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member Janet We ...
, Mac DeMarco and Foxygen. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark headlined a free Wednesday show. This year featured many reunions as Ride last performed in 1996, The Replacements disbanded in 1991 and Sleater-Kinney toured for the first time since 2006. The 2016 festival was headlined by Radiohead,
LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American Dance-punk#Contemporary dance-punk, dance-punk revival band from Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy (electronic musician), James Murphy, of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals ...
(who had recently reunited),
PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
and Sigur Rós.
Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker (musician), Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring a ...
, Explosions in the Sky, Air (French band), Air, Beach House, The Last Shadow Puppets, Beirut (band), Beirut, Moderat, Deerhunter, Wild Nothing and Brian Wilson's ''Pet Sounds'' also played on the main stages. Suede (band), Suede headlined the year's free lead-up Wednesday show. It saw the reunion of The Avalanches, who had not performed live since 2007 or DJ'd since 2011. A new beach stage opened across a bridge at the Sant Adrià de Besòs port focusing on electronic music sets from artists including Sophie (musician), Sophie and Todd Terje. The festival sold out earlier than ever, with Radiohead's first festival show in half a decade. Consequence Of Sound, ''Consequence of Sound'' named it the festival of the year. The 2017 headliners were originally
Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon (vocals, guit ...
,
Aphex Twin Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), known professionally as Aphex Twin, is a British musician, composer and DJ active in electronic music since 1988. His idiosyncratic work has drawn on many styles, including techno, ambient music, ambi ...
, Frank Ocean,
The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), ...
,
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
and Van Morrison. However, Ocean canceled his headlining gig four days before his performance due to "production delays beyond his control", replaced by a Jamie xx DJ set. Arcade Fire,
Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogwa ...
and Haim (band), Haim performed secret sets, while Slayer, Miguel (singer), Miguel, Grace Jones, Run the Jewels and Solange Knowles, Solange also played on the main stage. On 31 May, Arcade Fire released their new single "Everything Now (song), Everything Now" exclusively on a 12" vinyl single at the festival's merch table. The song was uploaded to streaming with a music video the next day, where the band debuted it live during their secret set. More than 200,000 people attended as the festival's budget grew to over €12 million. Stereogum acclaimed it as "the best festival in Europe". In 2018, the headliners were
Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...
,
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
, The National, Arctic Monkeys,
Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting, and has been referred to ...
and ASAP Rocky, A$AP Rocky. Planned headliner Migos missed their flight to Barcelona and cancelled hours before their set. Skepta was named as their replacement but airport delays prevented him from landing in Barcelona in time, so
Los Planetas Los Planetas (''The Planets'') is a Spanish indie rock group from the city of Granada which started out in the mid 1990s and continue now through the 2020s. The group's first hit was "Qué puedo hacer" (''What can I do?'') from their album "Supe ...
filled in the timeslot on short notice. Artists from 33 countries were booked for the event. Chvrches, The War on Drugs (band), The War on Drugs, Alex G, Father John Misty, Tyler, the Creator, Lykke Li and Car Seat Headrest were among the names that also played the main stages. The area for the electronic music beach stages were renamed "Primavera Bits" and advertised as a "festival within a festival", featuring sets from artists such as Four Tet, Floating Points, Oneohtrix Point Never, Jon Hopkins,
Panda Bear The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear or simply panda, is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its white coat with black patches around the eyes, ears, legs and shoulders. Its body is ...
and Madlib. Multiple bands paid tribute to the recently deceased Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit. The festival emphasised a new initiative against sexual harassment with the slogan "no callem" (English: "we won’t keep quiet"), as a response to the MeToo movement and reports of widespread sexual harassment at
Coachella Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music festival, music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valle ...
. On 21 June 2018, the American private equity firm Yucaipa Companies, led by billionaire Ronald Burkle, purchased a minority stake in Primavera Sound. The festival stressed that it remained an independent organisation.


2019–2023: "The New Normal" and double weekend model

With the 2019 lineup, the festival's organisers committed to begin a gender-balanced lineup which Primavera advertised as "The New Normal." Female-fronted acts made up over half of the total performers, up from 35% in 2018. The largely female headliners were Erykah Badu, Future (rapper), Future,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
,
Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker (musician), Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring a ...
, Cardi B, Janelle Monáe, Solange Knowles, Solange, J Balvin and
Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...
. Cardi B cancelled her appearance due to scheduling conflicts and was replaced by Miley Cyrus, who fully premiered her brand new Extended play, EP ''She Is Coming''. The festival noted how it featured a "variety of genres that goes from extreme metal to reggaeton." Big Thief, Courtney Barnett, Carly Rae Jepsen, Robyn and Kali Uchis also played the main stages, this year sponsored by SEAT and Pull&Bear. It was attended by over 220,000 people. The festival also launched the "Nobody is Normal" initiative against homophobia and Violence against women, gender violence. Later that year, Primavera Sound announced it would switch to exclusively mobile tickets for 2020, the first major festival in the world to do so, in order to combat Scalping (trading), scalping and environmental waste. In November 2019, a smaller edition of the festival named Primavera Weekender began at Magic Robin Hood Camp in Benidorm, attended by over 3,500 people. It occurred until 2024. The 2020 edition originally featured Massive Attack, Pavement (in their first performance since their 2010 hiatus), The National, The Strokes, Lana Del Rey, Lana del Rey, Tyler, the Creator, Bad Bunny and Disclosure (band), Disclosure as headliners. In March 2020, the festival was moved to August 2020 because of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, and ultimately cancelled in May. Later that month, the 2021 lineup was announced, featuring similar lineups to the cancelled 2020 edition. However, in March 2021, the festival was cancelled again. Primavera Sound Primavera Sound 2022, returned in 2022 from 1 June to 12 June, featuring a two-weekend model for the first time with a lineup that combined most bookings from the cancelled 2020 and 2021 editions with new names. The first weekend was headlined by Pavement,
Tame Impala Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker (musician), Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring a ...
, Beck, The National, Gorillaz, Jorja Smith, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds and Tyler, the Creator, while the second weekend was headlined by Dua Lipa, Gorillaz,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
, Tyler, the Creator,
Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting, and has been referred to ...
, The Strokes, Jorja Smith, Megan Thee Stallion, Tame Impala, Phoenix and
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are compleme ...
. Scheduled headliner Massive Attack cancelled three months prior to their performance due to a member's health complications. Dreamcatcher (group), Dreamcatcher became the first K-pop artist to play in the festival's history. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard performed five sets without repeating a single song in a setlist. There were a total of 674 shows at the festival. As the 20th anniversary of the festival, it was considered an Event of Exceptional Public Interest by the Government of Spain, Government's Ministry of Culture and Sport (Spain), Ministry of Culture and Sports, the first international music festival in Spain to earn the distinction. It was attended by 460,500 people, including 65% foreigners, and the average attendee spent €1,423 in Barcelona during the festival, generating €349 million ($367 million) to the city. The 2023 festival reverted to the one-week structure in Barcelona but was the first to feature a nearly identical edition in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
's Arganda del Rey neighborhood a week later. Presented under the slogan "I'll Be Your Mirror, I'll be your mirror", the headliners first announced in November 2022 were Blur, Halsey (singer), Halsey,
Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, becoming the first music ...
, Depeche Mode, Rosalía and Calvin Harris, followed by New Order in March. Other prominent performers included Darkside (band), Darkside, Ghost (Swedish band), Ghost, Turnstile (band), Turnstile, Baby Keem, Four Tet, Fred Again, Skrillex, Caroline Polachek, Måneskin and St. Vincent (musician), St. Vincent.
Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...
headlined the free Wednesday show in Parc del Fòrum for Barcelona and Cívitas Metropolitano in Madrid. On Friday, Skrillex's set was disrupted because the stage caught fire as he performed. There were 253,000 recorded attendees on smaller grounds than usual, as capacity was reduced from 95,000 to 75,000 with the removal of the Bits area. Barcelona experienced a decrease in foreign attendees from 70% to 52%, mainly among British visitors, which was attributed to the impact of Brexit and increased costs. Before Madrid's planned opening day on 8 June, the festival canceled all performances on Thursday due to weather concerns. Headliner Blur held a free makeup show at the 2,500-capacity La Riviera club. Attendance in Madrid was lower than Barcelona, with 42,000 on Friday and 48,000 on Saturday, despite the festival grounds' capacity of 85,000. On 22 July, Primavera Sound announced that it would not be returning to Madrid in 2024 because "the city does not have a site able to host an event of this magnitude and format in terms of audience demands, production requirements, and musical show." Complaints were raised about the Ciudad del Rock complex's location 40 km away from Madrid's city center, long lines for shuttle buses to and from the venue, and overall poor logistics.


2024–present: Back to basics

Upon the release of the 2024 lineup, with headliners
Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit * Pulp (band), an English rock band Engineering * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture ...
,
Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chr ...
and
Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
on Thursday, Lana Del Rey, The National and Disclosure (band), Disclosure on Friday, and SZA,
PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer-songwriter. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automat ...
, Mitski, FKA Twigs and
Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...
on Saturday, the festival advertised the edition as showing "love for its own history." On 14 May, the festival announced FKA Twigs' set was postponed until 2025. A stage was renamed for Steve Albini, who died suddenly the week before and was scheduled to play with
Shellac Shellac () is a resin secreted by the female Kerria lacca, lac bug on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. Chemically, it is mainly composed of aleuritic acid, jalaric acid, shellolic acid, and other natural waxes. It is processed and s ...
for a 16th edition. Phoenix headlined the free Jornada Inaugural opening day at Parc del Fòrum on 29 May. Del Rey showed up nearly half an hour late to her headline performance on 31 May, which received negative reviews from publications including ''Rolling Stone'' and ''NME''. A heavy rainstorm began during Harvey's headlining set on 1 June, culminating in lightning as Mitski performed hours later. Charli XCX debuted the songs "Everything is Romantic" and "365" days before the release of her sixth album Brat (album), ''Brat''. The 2025 lineup was revealed in October 2024, featuring headliners Chappell Roan, Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter, which Charli labeled the "holy trinity". In December, Charli announced that Troye Sivan would accompany her for the exclusive European date of their joint Sweat (concert tour), Sweat tour. This edition of the traditionally
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
festival was headlined by three pop stars, and all tickets atypically sold out by January.


Location and festival grounds

Primavera Sound takes place in the Parc del Fòrum, located in the southeast part of the El Poblenou, Poblenou neighbourhood, between
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and Sant Adrià de Besòs. It is accessible through El Maresme – Fòrum (Barcelona Metro), public transport via the El Maresme – Fòrum (Barcelona Metro), El Maresme – Fòrum metro station and the Trambesòs tram lines. The festival's stages are named after its sponsors. The two main stages, where the headliners and other popular acts perform, are located on the Plataforma Marina, a large flat terrain that was scheduled to hold a marine zoo but that remained to be a fairground and multipurpose venue after the project seemed non-viable due to the Spanish financial crisis. This area is colloquially referred to as Mordor due to its demanding environment and distance from the festival entrance. It is the furthest point from the rest of the festival's stages. As of 2023, the two main stages are currently sponsored by and named after
Estrella Damm Estrella Damm (, ) is a lager beer brewed in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It has existed since 1876, when August Küntzmann Damm founded his brewery in Barcelona, and is the flagship beer of S.A. Damm, a prominent brewery in the city. The brand ...
and Santander Bank, Santander. Two stages were placed in this area beginning in 2013. From 2014 to 2019, the two stages faced each other. Beginning in 2022, the stages were placed adjacent to oneanother to reduce crowd pressure. Before 2013, the main stage was held at the entrance esplanade as the San Miguel Beer, San Miguel/Estrella Damm stage depending on the sponsor, and the second-largest stage was placed at the Plataforma Marina. As of 2023, the other primary stages of the festival include an open-air amphitheater currently sponsored by Cupra Racing, Cupra (formerly
Ray-Ban Ray-Ban is a brand of luxury sunglasses and eyeglasses created in 1936 by Bausch & Lomb. The brand is best known for its Wayfarer and Aviator lines of sunglasses. In 1999, Bausch & Lomb sold the brand to Italian eyewear conglomerate Luxottica ...
), two outdoor stages near the main entrance of the festival grounds sponsored by Amazon Music and Brugal, Ron Brugal, a seafront stage with an emphasis on critically acclaimed artists currently sponsored by Eni Plenitude, Plenitude (formerly Pitchfork (website), Pitchfork), and another seafront stage with an emphasis on heavy music sponsored by DICE (ticketing company), DICE (formerly Ouigo and
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
). The Auditori Santander Bank, Santander (formerly the Auditori Rockdelux) is an indoor 3,000-capacity auditorium under the triangular-shaped Museum of Natural Sciences of Barcelona building. It is the only seated indoor stage on the festival's grounds. Past editions of the festival required a separate ticket for Auditori shows. There is a strict no food or drink policy for the Auditori, and the most popular shows require queueing outside the building in order to get in. The Auditori is noted for its darkened ambiance and emphasis on acoustics. Stages which focus on electronic music include The Warehouse, which is sponsored by Stone Island (formerly NTS Radio, NTS) located in an underground Multistorey car park, car park, the Boiler Room (music broadcaster), Boiler Room x Cupra, and the Pull&Bear stage (formerly sponsored by DICE and a part of Primavera Bits). From 2016 to 2022, Primavera Bits was home to up to three stages located on a beach in the nearby Sant Adrià de Besòs municipality, which was accessible via a bridge and a waterfront path. In 2023, the area was removed from festival grounds because the festival was barred from using the bridge that connected the main grounds to the beach. The ATP stage was run by London-based festival organisers All Tomorrow's Parties (festival), All Tomorrow's Parties and featured artist lineups that were personally curated by the organisation. After All Tomorrow's Parties went out of business in 2016, the stage was renamed the Primavera stage in 2017. In 2022, this stage was renamed after cryptocurrency exchange Binance. However, the entrance esplanade which housed this stage was remodeled in 2023 to feature two adjacent stages. From 2014 to 2019, the festival was home to the Heineken Hidden Stage, which allowed for artists to be seen in a more intimate environment. The first band to play it was Gilla Band, Girl Band in 2014. In order to gain access to the stage, festivalgoers had to request a maximum of two tickets per each performer at the festival's information desk beginning at 4 p.m. of the respective day. In 2017,
Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit * Pulp (band), an English rock band Engineering * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture ...
's
Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp (band), Pulp, he became a reluctant figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Cocker h ...
and Steve Mackey performed their Dancefloor Meditations project on the Wednesday before the main festival. In 2018, the stage was moved from the underground car park to an outdoor location where
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
had played a secret set the year prior, allowing for the abandonment of the ticket system. The stage was renamed to the Your Heineken Stage in 2019. The concept was revisited in 2023 with "The Vision by Pull&Bear" stage, where artists including Japanese Breakfast, Tomberlin and Del Water Gap played on a floating stage in the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
. In 2013, the festival featured a Ferris wheel overlooking the ATP stage, which Pitchfork (website), ''Pitchfork'' criticised as "now-cliched".


Primavera a la Ciutat

Beginning in 2008, Primavera Sound hosts shows held at local Barcelona venues in the days surrounding the festival in a tradition known as Primavera a la Ciutat (English: Primavera in the City). Access to the Ciutat shows is included with the purchase of a festival ticket, but 15% of the capacity is open to the general public. The first Primavera a la Ciutat show on 26 May 2008 was headlined at La [2] de Apolo by Scarlet's Well, the project of The Monochrome Set lead singer Bid. That year also featured Ciutat sets from Matt Elliott (musician), Matt Elliott, The Clientele and The Radio Dept. It was promoted as "Primavera als Clubs". The practice continued in 2009 with sets from David Gedge of The Wedding Present and Dälek. During these years, the Parque Joan Miró was also used as a venue. In 2012, Primavera a la Ciutat performances also took place at the Arc de Triomf. Prior to their headlining performance in 2016,
LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American Dance-punk#Contemporary dance-punk, dance-punk revival band from Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy (electronic musician), James Murphy, of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals ...
played a free secret show at BARTS, a club with a capacity of 900 people. The 2022 edition featured 14 separate venues across Barcelona used for Primavera a la Ciutat. With 460,500 tickets sold that year and entry into each venue on a first-come, first-serve basis, festivalgoers reported queueing over three hours ahead of time to ensure access to gigs such as a Megan Thee Stallion performance in a 2,000-capacity club. The venues currently in use for Primavera a la Ciutat are Razzmatazz (club), Razzmatazz, Sala Apolo, La (2) de Apolo, Paral-lel 62 (formerly known as BARTS), La Nau and LAUT.


Stage gallery

File:Beak, Primavera stage 3.jpg, Main stage by day File:Interpol, Seat stage 4.jpg, Main Stage at night File:Primavera19 -156 (48986306232).jpg, "Created in Barcelona" sign at Main Stage File:Primavera stage crowd.jpg, Primavera Stage File:Barcelona (4665693463).jpg, Primavera Stage File:Clairo, Pitchfork Stage 1.jpg, Pitchfork Stage File:Ray-Ban stage crowd.jpg, Auditorium Stage File:Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, Adidas Originals stage 3.jpg, Adidas Stage File:AJ Tracey, Seat Village stage 4.jpg, Seat Village Stage File:Primavera Sound 2011 - May 27 - Julia Kent (5804790671).jpg, Your/Hidden Stage File:Primavera Sound Lotus stage.jpg, Lotus Stage File:Steffi, Desperados Cube stage 4.jpg, Desperados Cube File:The Beths, Primavera Sound 2019 03.jpg, Sala Apolo during ''Primavera a la Ciutat'' File:Barcelona (4665699275).jpg, Interior tents File:Primavera Sound food court at dawn.jpg, Resting Area File:Wednesday Campanella, Lotus stage 12.jpg, Resting Musical Area File:Primavera Sound Aperol Spritz bar.jpg, Bar Area File:Zona de banys (Diagonal Mar).jpg, Bathing Area File:Primavera Sound VIP area 1.jpg, VIP Area


Festival summary by year


International editions

In 2012, Primavera Sound launched a sister festival in
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
, Portugal, at the :pt:Parque da Cidade do Porto, Parque da Cidade. Each year, this edition takes place one week after the main Barcelona edition and features a smaller selection of artists that play Barcelona. Alberto Guijarro, the festival's director, stated that “after years in Barcelona we organised a first edition in Porto to take advantage of musicians on tour, but it is a different type of event; what we do in Portugal is a Primavera boutique, more well-kept, smaller and with its own personality". From 2012 to 2014, Porto's festival was billed as Optimus Primavera Sound, and from 2015 to 2022, it was billed as NOS Primavera Sound. Upon the conclusion of the 2019 festival in Barcelona, Primavera Sound announced new editions in Los Angeles State Historic Park, Los Angeles Historic Park in the United States, scheduled for September 2020, and London's Drumsheds venue, for June 2020. However, Primavera pulled out of the London plans over time constraints and concerns over permits and licenses. The London edition was scheduled to replace or merge with Field Day (festival), Field Day.The first Los Angeles edition, co-produced by Live Nation Entertainment, Live Nation, occurred from September 16–18, 2022 and was headlined by
Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting, and has been referred to ...
, Arctic Monkeys and Nine Inch Nails. The editions in São Paulo, Buenos Aires and Santiago all took place from October to November 2022, and were all headlined by Arctic Monkeys,
Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...
, Lorde and Travis Scott. It was notably Scott's first festival booking since the Astroworld Festival crowd crush. Other international performers at these editions included Arca (musician), Arca, Beach House,
Cat Power Charlyn Marie "Chan" Marshall ( ; born January 21, 1972), better known by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer-songwriter. Cat Power was originally the name of her first band, but has become her stage name as a solo artist. Born in ...
, Caroline Polachek,
Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...
, Father John Misty, Japanese Breakfast, José González (singer), José González,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
, Mitski, and Phoebe Bridgers. The expansion into Latin America continued in 2023, with a one-day event in Asunción, Paraguay as Primavera Day Asuncion. However, the Los Angeles edition did not continue because of an oversaturated American market and inconvenient scheduling. A first edition was supposed to be held in Bogotá, Colombia, but on 17 October 2023, the festival was cancelled and rebranded as "Road to Primavera" featuring just five of the original 29 listed artists because of low ticket sales and instability in Colombia. There was also a "Road to Primavera" in Lima, Peru.
The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...
were announced as headliners for all South American editions; other headliners included Grimes, Beck,
Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...
, Blur, The Killers and The Hives. Following The Cure's first-ever performance in Uruguay on 27 November 2023, a one-day event was announced for Montevideo on 21 November 2024 as Primavera Day Montevideo. On 30 August 2024, Primavera Sound announced that all Latin American editions that year were cancelled.


Porto


São Paulo


Buenos Aires


Asunción


Defunct editions


Los Angeles


Santiago de Chile


Madrid


Prizes and awards

* Prizes of the Independent Music 2011 (organized by UFI): Better festival * Altaveu 2011 Award * Greener Festival Award 2012: in the category "Highly Commended" * European Festival Awards: Artists' Favourite Festival in 2014 * Reward Waves of the Music 2014: Better musical spectacle * Premi Continuarà-Vespre to La2 of Culture 2015


Notes


References


External links


Official website
{{Primavera Sound Primavera Sound, Music festivals in Catalonia Rock festivals in Spain Tourist attractions in Porto Spring (season) in Spain Music festivals established in 2001