Primavera Sound presents the best lineup in its history for its extended edition of 2022
The lineup for Primavera Sound 2022 Barcelona – Sant Adrià is not only the best in their history. It is also the biggest, the most eclectic, the most impressive, the most stellar. The most Primavera. The one that needs the most time to unleash all its uniqueness. As revealed today through a majestic ad by Cupra, on June 2nd, 2022 an edition will start that will be absolutely historic because it will be something never seen before: an 11-day urban festival with an exceptional line-up in which the whole city will be involved with six days in the Parc del Fòrum plus a party on the beach of Sant Adrià de Besòs and four days in the venues of Barcelona. An extraordinary edition that is explained by the combination of the two years without a festival that we have had to face and the desire to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Primavera Sound as it deserves to be celebrated.
There is time, more than a year, to savour the lineup (pay attention, it is colour-coded), as for the moment it is made up of 413 artists who will offer over 500 performances throughout the festival. Most of them will perform only once, but some will perform twice (and even more), shared over the two weekends and Primavera a la Ciutat. We must clarify that the lineup is not yet complete and more artists will be added soon. Once again, the lineup for Primavera Sound 2022 Barcelona – Sant Adrià will be gender-equal in line with the festival’s public commitment and will of course reflect the entire colour palette of contemporary music, uniting legends of music with sensations of the moment, extreme metal with reggaeton, references with disciples, electronic experimentation with signature songs, intergenerational artists with voices that capture their time. A festival that is, in fact, several festivals in one… or infinite, thanks to all the existing variables that the attendees can choose from to suit them.
Such an incredible event would not have been possible, nor will it be, without the fans. They will be able to enjoy this unprecedented festival, be it one day, two, one weekend, the other weekend, a concert at Primavera a la Ciutat… or everything. The effort of the festival organization to implement this proposal, which also aims to act as a catalyst for the live music sector, is underpinned thanks to the presence of the festival’s strategic partners, Cupra and Pull&Bear, as well as Seat MÓ as a partner and the institutional collaboration of the City Councils of Barcelona and Sant Adrià de Besòs and the Generalitat de Catalunya, as well as the CCCB where the 13th edition of Primavera Pro will be held between 7 and 9th June.
WEEKEND 1
June 2nd-4th
In search of lost time
We have not had Primavera Sound for two years. The organization and the fans and artists. So the first weekend of the festival, which will open between 2nd and 4th June in the Parc del Fòrum, will take us back to those editions that could not be. That is why we will continue to have, as in the 2021 lineup, the legendary The Strokes, the rebellious Tyler, The Creator, the exclusive comeback of Pavement, the collective catharsis of Tame Impala, the eternal innovators Massive Attack, the style fusion of Gorillaz, the familiarity of The National, R&B star Jorja Smith and the winner Beck. Joining all of them is Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, who come to complete a stellar and intergenerational list of headliners who will finally pay off an outstanding debt with the fans who were so eager to see them.
But this is only the tip of the iceberg, of course. The zoom in already begins with most of the names from the 2021 lineup that confirm their presence along with some surprises: from the return of Bauhaus to the 2020 queen Charli XCX, from the overpowering electronic music by Disclosure to the Mallorca legend Maria del Mar Bonet, from C. Tangana now El Madrileño to the punk resistance of Idles, from the patron of Argentine trap Duki to the k-pop band Dreamcatcher, from a new meeting with Beach House to the first time with the hyperpop of 100 gecs, from the digital diva Caroline Polachek to the crooner from hell King Krule, from the pandemonium of Einstürzende Neubauten to Kacey Musgraves’ golden hour country, from the Queen Bad Gyal to Jawbox’s hardcore claws, from Jamie xx’s coloured beats to Bikini Kill’s riot proclamations, from the lysergic folk of Sharon Van Etten to the icon Kim Gordon. Hip hop? No collective is more on form than Brockhampton and no soloist as exuberant as Little Simz. Soul? Lay down at the feet of Mavis Staples. Guitars? You will be able to catch King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard for their first performance of many at the festival, and also Fontaines D.C., Dinosaur Jr. and Parquet Courts. And watch out for Slowthai because he can no longer be pigeonholed as rap. In the same way that girl in red can no longer be pigeonholed as bedroom pop. More electronic? The mould breaker DJ Shadow, the pioneers Autechre, or of course Caribou because can’t do without him. Urban pop? The Chilean phenomenon Paloma Mami. Local stars? The prodigious Amaia and Manel’s hit factory. Party? We left Pabllo Vittar in charge of that with her colossal queer pop.
Of course, zooming in even more is where you will find the greatest delicacies and the most interesting contrasts of this first week. Be it the extreme proposals by Napalm Death, Lightning Bolt, The Armed, black midi, Evian Christ and The Caretaker, the pop explosions of Rina Sawayama and Hannah Diamond, the revisited vision of tradition by Les Amazones d’Afrique, Za! & La Transmegacobla and Rodrigo Cuevas with his show Barbián, Big Freedia’s iconoclastic bounce and Otoboke Beaver’s punk from Japan. And yes, you don’t have to zoom in further to see that Shellac, whatever happens, will still be there. For a long time, we hope.
WEEKEND 2
June 9th-11th
Time regained
But we wanted more. Because the world has not stopped turning despite the fact that it has slowed down and that we have spent a few months at home. If something has helped us to cope with this whole situation, it has been culture, music, and that is why we could not celebrate an edition of Primavera Sound in 2022 without counting on those artists who have accompanied us in recent months or whom we have been waiting for years. Like Dua Lipa, who published her highly celebrated Future Nostalgia in full lockdown and made us dance round the living room; or Lorde, who will emerge from her retirement after her unforgettable visit in 2018; and Megan Thee Stallion, who is right now the cornerstone that explains American rap thanks to her album Good News; and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Interpol, who will act as representatives of that venerated New York scene of the early 2000s. To make the celebration complete, some headliners from the first weekend will also act during this one, offering an alternative so that no one will miss their performances. The Strokes, Tyler, The Creator, Tame Impala, Gorillaz, Massive Attack and Jorja Smith are also in for Weekend 2.
Charli XCX, C. Tangana, Bad Gyal and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard will also repeat performances, among others, but most of the lineup for the second weekend will be new and will respond to what has happened in the world of music during the last months. So, in addition to the announced comeback of Antònia Font and the return of La Mafia del Amor (one of the cult names of the Spanish urban music scene), Big Thief will come back to the festival to offer us their emotional rawness, Run The Jewels will thrash out their revolutionary hip hop, star outsider M.I.A. will set the stage on fire, Jessie Ware will make us dance spontaneously, Slowdive and Mogwai will relive their love affair with the festival, Playboi Carti will reveal his infectious rap, Cazzu, Khea and Nicki Nicole will act as envoys of the effervescent Argentinian trap scene, Sen Senra will culminate his ascent to the olympus of pop in Spanish, Perfume will dazzle with their high energy j-pop, Burna Boy will demonstrate why pop has been watching Nigeria for some time, the legend Gilles Peterson will delight diggers, Courtney Barnett will convince us that rock is still exciting, Clairo will justify her being considered the voice of her generation and Brittany Howard will give us goosebumps with her unrivalled stage power.
If the fine print on the Primavera Sound lineup always serves as a compass for the months to come, the one on the second weekend is the oracle to stick to for the coming year. New pop voices such as Griff, Erika de Casier, Priya Ragu and Holly Humbertsone, artistic breakthroughs such as those by the Ghanaian-American Amaarae, big guitars with a post-punk soul by Squid and Dry Cleaning, the viral trap of Cuban Doll, Tarta Relena, Renaldo & Clara and Rigoberta Bandini as representatives of the vibrant Catalan scene, the new wizard of melancholic electronic music Fred Again.., the minimal dance by the Colombian Ela Minus or the Indonesian happyhardcorets Gabber Modus Operandi. Accompanying them, gems that are worth combing the lineup for, such as the sound earthquakes A.G. Cook and Danny L Harle from the PC Music factory, the pelted freshness of Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, the absolute disruption of La Zowi, DJ Pastis in the most unexpected return of the makina scene of the 90s, the techno suture of the Polish artist VTSS and Japanese Breakfast who are on the verge of being crowned as the leaders of new indie rock.
PRIMAVERA A LA CIUTAT
5th-8th June
A new dimension
If you’ve made it this far, you deserve a reward. How about 150 more concerts, spread over more than 10 venues in Barcelona from 5th to 8th June, that is in the middle of the two Primavera Sound 2022 weekends? Primavera a la Ciutat will be a festival within itself that is included in any of the tickets for the first or second weekend. With the participation confirmed for the moment of the two rooms at the Apolo, Razzmatazz 1 and 2, Sidecar, Luz de Gas, RED58, Jamboree, La Nau, LAUT, Bóveda and VOL, the audience will have the opportunity to refill the concert venues to see both artists who are performing at one of the two weekends as well as a good number of new names that will only play here.
With even more programme still to be revealed, for now Primavera a la Ciutat will feature weekday performances by Beck, Jamie xx, Disclosure dj set, Interpol, Jorja Smith, Megan Thee Stallion, Charli XCX, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard performing once a day (yes, yes), 100 gecs, Slowdive, Jawbox, Jehnny Beth and Les Savy Fav, in addition to novelties outside the weekend lineups such as The Magnetic Fields, Chet Faker, Sons of Kemet, Bad Gyal’s Gogo Club show, Iceage, Kero Kero Bonito and Kamaal Williams. Some of these concerts will be part of themed party showcases such as those by the labels PC Music (with Charli XCX, Hannah Diamond, A.G. Cook, EASYFUN and HYD), Year0001 Rift (with Yung Lean, Chariot, Lokey, Torus, Femi, Darkø and Drain Gang (Bladee, Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital)), 4AD (with Dry Cleaning, Erika de Casier and Maria Somerville), Secretly (with Fenne Lily, Alex Cameron and Jamila Woods), City Slang (with Noga Erez, Los Bitchos, King Hannah, Viktor and Marie Montexier), Brownswood Records (with Gilles Peterson, Secret Night Gang and STR4T4) or Hivern Discs (with John Talabot, Afrikan Sciences, Cucina Povera and Sabla), the Ugandan collective Nyege Nyege (with MC Yallah & Debmaster, Duma and Jokkoo), El Punto by Yung Beef, Cønjuntø Vacíø, Awesome Tapes From Africa, Maricas and the Harlecore show that will bring Danny L Harle and DJ Pastis together.
Access to the Primavera a la Ciutat concerts is included in both the tickets for one weekend and the tickets for the two weekends. All concerts will have 15% of the capacity reserved for individual tickets that will be sold aside. Attendance at the shows will be limited to the capacity of the venues.
BRUNCH -ON THE BEACH
June 12th
The end of the party
One last note: an 11-day festival cannot say goodbye just like that, so the date will be with Brunch -On The Beach on Sunday June 12th on the beach of Sant Adrià de Besòs. A daytime party with views of the sea that will be led by three of the most brilliant stars of current electronic music scene Nina Kraviz, Amelie Lens and Peggy Gou, accompanied on this occasion by the DJ set of Nicola Cruz, Monolink, Anika Kunst, Chaos in the CBD, Héctor Oaks, Joyhauser and Malika. All tickets already purchased for the 2020 and 2021 editions of Brunch -On The Beach will be valid for the 2022 edition, and access to the party is included in any of the full festival tickets for the festival (Weekend 1, Weekend 2 or Weekend 1 + Weekend 2).
