Primavera Sound Tour Overview
Primavera Sound (commonly referred to as simply Primavera) is an annual music festival held in Parc del Fòrum in Barcelona, Spain that takes place between the end of May and beginning of June. The first edition took place in 2001 in Poble Espanyol and moved to the Parc del Fòrum, a much larger site on the seafront, in 2005. The nature of the festival (urban and an integrated part of the city) and the wide range of bands represented have made Primavera Sound a meeting point for artists and spectators from all generations. Primavera Sound is one of the largest and most-attended music festivals in Europe and the biggest in the Mediterranean.
The success of the festival led to an expansion to Porto in 2012. This one takes place at the Parque da Cidade a week after the main edition. In 2022, the festival hosted its first editions in Los Angeles, Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires and São Paulo. The 2023 edition will be the first to feature a nearly identical lineup in Madrid. A much smaller version of the festival, Primavera Weekender, has been taking place in Benidorm each November since 2019.
The festival's image was originally oriented around indie rock, but in recent years has seen a larger presence of genres such as hip hop, electronic dance music and pop. 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.
About Primavera Sound
Although Primavera Sound had existed in a small format in Barcelona since the 1990s, 2001 saw the first bigger event take place at the Poble Espanyol with more than one stage and attracted around 7,700 people. This venue is an open air architectural museum up the Montjuïc hill. It recreates the best and most famous venues and cultures within Spain.The bill included the likes of Armand Van Helden, Le Hammond Inferno, former main man of Pizzicato 5, Yasuharu Konishi, Faze Action, Bent, Los Planetas, Manta Ray, Sr. Chinarro, Samuel L. Session, Unkle, Carl Craig, DJ Godfather; and many other bands and DJs like Gentle People Djs, Leila, Zip and Gus Gus Djs.
In 2002 Primavera Sound took place on 17 and 18 May. The main change was the addition of a second day to the festival. Sixty local and international bands and DJs played on five different stages that year, including Pulp, Tindersticks, Spiritualized, Echo & The Bunnymen, J Mascis, Aphex Twin, Luke Slater, Giant Sand, The Delgados, Dave Clarke, Bis, Ian Pooley, Andrew Weatherall, Le Tigre, Gonzales, The Moldy Peaches, Chicks On Speed, Clem Snide, La Buena Vida, Green Velvet, Cinerama, Lo-Fidelity Allstars and The Zephyrs. 2002 was also the first year to include non-musical performances.
Primavera Sound Facts
- In 2012, Primavera Sound launched a sister festival in Porto, Portugal.
- Each year, this edition takes place one week after the main Barcelona edition and features a smaller selection of artists that play Barcelona.
- The first Los Angeles edition occurred from September 16–18, 2022 and was headlined by Lorde, Arctic Monkeys and Nine Inch Nails.
- Primavera Sound takes place in the Parc del Fòrum, located in the southeast part of the Poblenou neighbourhood, between Barcelona and Sant Adrià de Besòs. It is accessible through public transport.
