Primavera 2018

[Gnarler]

So how many people who went this year are considering the early bird tomorrow?

I did press this year and was lucky to be able to get into the VIP areas. Jesus Christ, it's like being a celebrity. Casa Primavera is a lavish yacht club full of acts hanging around the pool, the access at the main stages was sooo handy for getting a good spot for the National and happy hour beer blew my mind to pieces (Free beer from 18:30 to 19:30)

cheaper drinks and more food options (BACOA mmmmm) made it a really fun experience.

It's expensive but if you're up for spending the money, VIP is a lot of fun.

That being said, as mentioned I'm press, can't afford that life.

 

Also would prefer there was no priority to access to stages. Sore feet are the currency I am richest in when it comes to a gig and I feel like paying for a good view is when we start approaching the darker sides of festivals. 

I understand it makes loads of sense to a lot of people and for those who don't want to be squished it's a welcome break, I'm just not sure how I feel about it.

[showerr]

This is my first primavera, I traveled from Asia to get here. Since some artists didn't tour Asia that often, finally got a chance to see Lift to Experience, Breeders and Dead Cross. Also Nick Cave's set is fucking incredible.

It's a shame that I have to give up James Holden and Shellac due to clashes, but that is how festivals works. The real pain in the ass is Ray-Ben stage's sound. I can hardly hear Thundercat's bass during the whole set. The sound quality is unbelievably bad for a festival in this scale. 

Beside this, the beautiful seaside view and great food are huge plus. Also want to shout out for all the kind helps and tips in this thread. Gracias!

[ThisIsHappening]

How much did early bird run last year for VIP and did they already send out emails with details? Primavera is one of the few festivals I’d risk a blind buy for. 

[puckno]

58 minutes ago, ThisIsHappening said:

How much did early bird run last year for VIP

2018: 250€ + 5€ fee
2017: 200€ + 5€ fee
2016: 175€ + 5€ fee

Edited June 5, 2018 by puckno

[Hip Priest]

2019 prices the same as this year:

- 150 €: From 6th June at 10:00 AM and only for 48 hours

- 180 €: From 8th June at 10:00 AM 

 

VIP

- 250 €: From 6th June at 10:00 (CEST) and only for 48 hours at Redtkt. Limited to VIP Primavera Sound 2018 ticket holders

- 300 €: From 6th June at 10:00 (CEST) and only for 48 hours

- 400 €: From 8th June at 10:00 (CEST)

[ThisIsHappening]

Thank you both! Do I need an access code for ticket preorders? I haven’t received anything by email. 

[puckno]

I have not received any mail. There is some info on the presale on the webpage, however not on that. I guess this will be properly explained later on.

https://primaverasound.com/noticiaSingle?origen=ps&id=1624

[Albinoss]

1 hour ago, puckno said:

I have not received any mail. There is some info on the presale on the webpage, however not on that. I guess this will be properly explained later on.

https://primaverasound.com/noticiaSingle?origen=ps&id=1624

It's interesting that the site states that: "This year for the first time it will be possible to receive the wristband at your home before the festival (shipping costs not included)"

It's a great improvement (at an extra cost tho) because it will cut the queues at the entrance for the wristbands exchange.

[brucas]

12 hours ago, Gnarler said:

So how many people who went this year are considering the early bird tomorrow?

I did press this year and was lucky to be able to get into the VIP areas. Jesus Christ, it's like being a celebrity. Casa Primavera is a lavish yacht club full of acts hanging around the pool, the access at the main stages was sooo handy for getting a good spot for the National and happy hour beer blew my mind to pieces (Free beer from 18:30 to 19:30)

cheaper drinks and more food options (BACOA mmmmm) made it a really fun experience.

It's expensive but if you're up for spending the money, VIP is a lot of fun.

That being said, as mentioned I'm press, can't afford that life.

 

Also would prefer there was no priority to access to stages. Sore feet are the currency I am richest in when it comes to a gig and I feel like paying for a good view is when we start approaching the darker sides of festivals. 

I understand it makes loads of sense to a lot of people and for those who don't want to be squished it's a welcome break, I'm just not sure how I feel about it.

Free beer? Where was it? The main stage VIP area?

btw, it was my fifth Primavera Sound and third VIP experience. I do think it was worth it for someone coming all the way from China for the festival. I especially loved Primavera stage VIP area with the great view to the stage and relaxing atmosphere. 

[Ecco]

It was my 6th Primavera in a row, my 4th in a row as VIP hlder. It was a great experience, once again and time just flew away. Speaking of queues, I did not had that experience, except for wine, of course, I think the organizers should multiple the wine spots as people love wine too. And except for Wednesday during Belle and Sebastian on the vip area, which was very crowded.

My Highlights: The war on drugs(sunset gig), Fever Ray(sensual, entertaining and electric)), Nick Cave(entertaining and intense), Slowdive (that sound, that gig, awesome), The National (magnificient), Mike D (so much fun), Spiritualized (blown away by the show, the orchestra, the sound, awesome), Ty Segall (prove rock is not dead) Lorde (surprisingly good) and of course Jon Hopkins Live (mindblowing set, incredible)

My disappointments: Arctic Monkeys, not especially due to their performance, which was more than ok, but firstly due the demolition of the vip area, as vip holder you are supposed to have a front area spot, which was deleted due to the big crowd. As consequence, the front area was so dense and overcrowded, that people were so nervous and aggressive as nobody was comfortable, I left around 00H30 to see a bit Deerhunter and to have good spot for Jon Hopkins and to avoid this heavy traffic on the bridge, like before Mike D, Primavera has to find a solution for this issue.

Second disappointment, Ariel Pink, very phlegmatic show, bad sound, strange setlist, just very unpleasant to see and to watch, I should have watched Jane Birkin integral, as I left in the middle just for Ariel Pink.

Overall an excellent edition, and I am looking forward for next year, best festival ever.

Edited June 6, 2018 by Ecco

[Gnarler]

3 hours ago, brucas said:

Free beer? Where was it? The main stage VIP area?

btw, it was my fifth Primavera Sound and third VIP experience. I do think it was worth it for someone coming all the way from China for the festival. I especially loved Primavera stage VIP area with the great view to the stage and relaxing atmosphere. 

It was in the VIP bit by the bridge. I made the mistake of thinking I could walk out with as many beers as I'd like.

I was with 6 more people who didn't have VIP so I tried to walk out with 7 beers only to be told you can only leave with one.

Cue me staring down the security guard and trying to sink 6 beers without crying.

[brucas]

35 minutes ago, Gnarler said:

It was in the VIP bit by the bridge. I made the mistake of thinking I could walk out with as many beers as I'd like.

I was with 6 more people who didn't have VIP so I tried to walk out with 7 beers only to be told you can only leave with one.

Cue me staring down the security guard and trying to sink 6 beers without crying.

Haha, that is a funny one!

[duckula]

Did anyone see Carpenter Brut? That was my personal highlight of the week, amazing visuals and sound and just an all round fun time.

[StephenF]

For me... the highlights!

Belle and Seb...yes; over subscribed! but what a joy!

IDLES...Life affirming, chaotic, joyous and a gig I think people will be talking about 10years from now.

Bjork: Visually arresting and genuinely moving.

Sylvan Esso...Fun fun fun.

Oblivians: Great fun *thanks to my wife to steering me here from AM

El Ultimo Vecino: Great show, fantastic to see them graduate to a bigger stage and own it completely

Security...I smuggled sooo much booze in. Thanks xxx

Low points

 

Ariel pink..at the apolo especially...pish.

Mogwai..I love them..but I found the set utter paint.

The bars... Not great this year.

Rude toilet queue etiquette (women's toilets..not my complaint)

The apolo shows ...not up to scratch this year.

 

Loves it though..see you all next year xxxx

 

[slowdive]

Just purchased tickets for the 2019 edition. Will be my 5th year in a row. Best festival ever. Period.

[portobelloroad]

Was our 2nd PS and some thoughts...

We stayed central slightly nearer than before around Urquinona.

Seemed a great location, loved walking around the city, Raval, easy for beach and getting to forum.

Stuff we loved this time..

Wednesday got to one of the sets at Scala (?) club which was cool via a nice craft beer place (Olgud?).

Broke out of the main stages this time saw most of the site.

Art Ensemble of Chicago- first time in AuditorI, incredible venue

Zephyr Bones- loved their energy and style

Björk was mesmerising never seen anything like it felt more theatre/opera but would have loved some off debut too!  

Sat down for first time for Father John Misty it was great for a change of pace and different vantage point, lovely set, sea glistening in background etc.

  Rolling Coastal Blackout Fever- busy, tight, felt on the cusp and fresh, professional Aussies letting their presence known, loved that he’d been there as a fan, FUN!

National - class from the buzz of the footage of them backstage all the way, we got reasonably close too

Monkeys- my girlfriend’s favourite all time band, perfect for her, again got reasonably close despite getting there late without having to push too much

Ride - fab, only saw a few songs but real connection between band and audience 

Breeders - dancing to Lastsplash, loved their laidback vibe, so chilled and happy to be there

Grizzly Bear - beautiful 

Walking the city, Raval, vintage shops, Barceloneta beach, Bacoa burger joint all great!

Stuff that irked ...

Missing Nick Cave - just too tired ?

Chatting - never really noticed before, but during War on Drugs some people facing away from the stage and chatting really irritatingly, plus dancing with cigarettes flailing ( saw a Spanish guy get burnt)

Some bar queues- not ridiculous but occasionally annoying, defo picking up tips on where is quieter helps here

The slow meander to Deerhunter, wished I’d seen more as crowds too manic trying to get away from Monkeys, in fairness though it was good natured, seen worse pushing and shoving in UK.

We found accessing the main area from the right hand side past the food village seemed to be quicker too, not sure if this is generally the case?

Sorry to hear people got caught on the bridge, we only made that journey once and it was early evening, would have sucked to have got stuck.

We want to go again, we’re mulling over VIP it does seem way more money but I’ve read good things.

Thanks to everyone who posted about various bands which helped curate my PS - one of the things I love is that for me it’s rekindled my love of music, learning about new music, the reveal, even the secret stage announcements hyped the excitement.

We met more people last year which was a shame, I met some nice people in the airport though a nice guy with the yellow Father John Misty t-shirt, If that’s you I was the dude with The War On Drugs Sweatshirt!

On another note anyone got tickets to see The The at Troxy tomorrow?  If you do and fancy a pint let me know!

 

 

 

 

 

[puckno]

Got my tickets for 2019. Will be my 10th consecutive year. It is about time to namedrop candidates for next years lineup, right? Or ok - I'll wait one more week...

[OneLittleFish]

Loved my time at my first Primavera - stayed out in the Horta district which meant it was an hour to get back on the 5am metro but still a nice place to stay.

 

Thought the festival had waaaay too much advertising which annoyed me a little but the stalls selling prints of gigs posters were very cool. 

 

Going to rate the acts I saw (probably missed a few but so be it).

 

Starcrawler - 6/10. Found them a bit try hard for my liking.

Spiritualized - 9/10. Fantastic gig and loved the venue.

Belle & Sebastian - 8.5/10.

 

Hinds - 8/10

The Twilight Sad - 9/10. Difficult to watch in places, James Graham is clearly still struggling with the passing of his friend but it was a set with a lot of beauty in it too, in particular the Frightened Rabbit cover.

The War on Drugs - 8.5/10

Bjork - 9.5/10. Thought she was absolutely brilliant, that version of 'Human Behaviour' is awesome.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - 8/10. Thought I'd enjoy it more but think I was a bit fatigued from Bjork's set which wasn't the easiest in the world to get into.

Nils Frahm - 8/10

 

Waxahatchee - 7.5/10

The Breeders - 6.5/10. I love the Breeders but they're always a bit shambolic live somehow.

Father John Misty - 9/10

Mogwai - 8.5/10

Ibeyi - 9/10. My real discovery of the festival, they were great.

La Banda Trapera Del Rio - 8/10. A bit of a punk throwback but a lot of fun :-)

Charlotte Gainsbourg - 7/10

Idles - 10/10. One of the very best things I've seen live with a raucous crowd. 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' was a laugh out loud moment.

Ty Segall - 8/10

The Black Madonna - 8.5/10

 

Car Seat Headrest - 9/10

Ariel Pink - 3/10. Absolute bollocks of the highest order.

Slowdive - 8/10

Lorde - 6/10. A bit flat

Arctic Monkeys - 9.5/10. Once the people expecting the first album in full had left it was perfect, Alex Turner has become a brilliantly charismatic frontman and the new material is great.

Public Service Broadcasting - 8/10.

[badsandwich]

fairly sure i'm not going next year (been 3 years in a row now and am hoping for glastonbury tix instead) but i'm glad i left with positive memories after a bumpy start. spent a lot of time sitting on the bleachers in mordor/grass at primavera stage but didn't feel like i was missing out on the ~experience. mental note for future to always bring handgel as well as tissues!! rookie mistake.

highlights: 

nick cave (even just watching from the bleachers you could get the atmosphere); catching the end of mike d's set (closest i'll ever get to seeing the beasties live); the 2eur coffee that got me through saturday night; chromeo/chvrches/lorde; pokebowl stand (underrated imo, a girl cannot exist on croquettes and pastries alone); skepta (despite me inhaling a litre of concrete dust by the end); dj coco (as always)

i thought arctic monkeys were pap but i get that they've moved on from their first two albums and it's just not my thing anymore, ah well.

[Lars Vader]

Loved every second of this great Festival. Where else can we see Jane Birkin with an orchester and Dead Cross within some hours?

My highlights where Nick Cave, Grizzly Bear, Warpaint, Mike D., Mogwai, Björk, Idles, Jane Birkin and Belle & Sebastian.

I also enjoyed acts like Liminal Soundbath and Art Ensemble of Chicago, where I wasn't that sure if this is still music or already crap.

Ticket for next year is already ordered.

[jackarmy]

Cracking festival fair play.

I must have been lucky in all honesty because there were hardly any low points for me, maybe the rain on Sunday (?)

Nick Cave was truly spellbinding, so nearly managed to get on stage but the security stopped us. Car Seat Headrest, The War on Drugs, Confidence Man, Seth Troxler, Black Madonna, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, and Warpaint. 

Thought Arctic Monkeys' set was a really good mix of new and old, the new stuff sounds a lot heavier than on record and they seemed to go down really well with the crowd. I would say that's probably the most "into it" crowd I've seen from my 2 years at the festival.

Pretty much a Primavera convert now, but I think I'll still wait for the lineup before committing. Friends of mine flew out this year late in the day and managed to pick up cheap day tickets really easily and cheaply outside Parc Del Forum.

+1 for the security too, managed to sneak in loads of miniature bottles of booze every day!

[livenstu]

Missed the last 2 years but purchased tickets for the 2019 edition today.  Had previously been going consecutively between 2010 to 2016, so very excited to get back! 

Nice to see such a buzz on this forum too, was never this popular back in the day, you would need to translate all the Spanish conversations on the official forums!

Anyway, very early I know, BUT some wish list acts are Stevie Wonder (please!!), Anderson.Paak, Ween, The Drones, FKA Twigs, The Orielles, Anna Meredith...

[When Jokers Attack]

Had a total blast.

Highlights were: Spiritualized, Nick Cave, Grizzly Bear, Deerhunter, Panda Bear, The National, Slowdive, Car Seat Headrest, Bjork, The War On Drugs, Ty Segall. Everyone I enjoyed but some more than others.

I didn't experience many problems with queuing, except at Grizzly Bear like a poster above already said. I was at front of bar and waited 20 minutes and ditched it. Ended up deciding against seeing Arctic Monkeys, went for food then a few drinks and got front barrier for Deerhunter, Got a copy of the setlist but it was soaked from beer on stage and is now in half

I only made the trip over the bridge once, for Panda Bear, seemed liked a lovely area, which i went back over that way. Wasn't that busy going over but I guess it was quieter time.

I'm not sure if I will be back next year as nothing can top Glastonbury for me but it's a great festival that I would highly recommend it, also Barca is a lovely city.

Edited June 6, 2018 by When Jokers Attack

[red90]

Oh boy. I bought the ticket in January following an impulse and had so many doubts afterwards. I feared I might feel lonely/awkward/unsafe going alone, but in the end I enjoyed every freaking second of the whole experience. I've been to Barcelona a few times before, so I felt no need to explore the city, all I did was hanging out at the festival and resting at my hotel in between. I stayed just by La Rambla, a stone's throw from CCCB, Apolo and Placa Catalunya. And it was perfect - Raval is super cool and I never had any problems getting to and back from the Forum.

Yeah, as for the organization - apart from the queues for food and drink and lack of water by the toilets there's really nothing I could complain about. Didn't eat and drink at the Forum a lot anyway, so not a real problem. The shuttle bus service on Thursday and Friday night was great - didn't have to wait at all, got straight in. The staff was very helpful and I loved how I had no problem changing my wristband on Saturday when I accidentally tightened it (ouch). I can't get over how awesome the festival site is. No unnecassary additions, just stages, food and poster/music shops. And the proximity of the sea! I've been to the bits area only twice, taking the SEAT transfer right after Father John Misty and Lorde shows, was surprised how empty the buses were.

I decided to go to Primavera mainly because of the line-up. My all-time favorites, Bjork, Nick Cave and Father John Misty were all fantastic. I was a bit down having to give up the Nick Cave front row spot to see Bjork, especially that I ended up surrounded by chattering and drinking crowd and had a beer poured over me. Yet, when I heard the first notes of Do You Love Me and Loverman I was in heaven. Let Love In is probably my favorite Nick Cave album and the one I asked him to sign for me when he miraculously approached me after getting off the stage ❤️ Bjork was spectacular and I'll never forget hearing Human Behavior live for the first time. Father John Misty show was my fourth of his but the first time I saw him with an orchestra, so really special. I loved most of what I saw during the days at the Forum. Spritualized were magical, Arca's set was a wild party, Jane Birkin's performance was very touching, Lorde was joyful and captivating, and Zeal and Ardor managed to convert me, a metal hater  And hey, why is nobody talking about Superorganism? These kids were awesome, I have no regrets for not staying for The National! Loved the Primavera Stage and watching Beach House and Charlotte Gainsbourg from the back.

I was bummed to miss Fever Ray - I saw her in March and was hoping to repeat the experience, but alas. Shame the clashes didn't allow me to see Nils Frahm, Ty Segall and Slowdive. And that my poor feet didn't feel like staying for DJ Coco. Missed Stranger Things, too, but on Saturday I overslept and on Friday a certain Primavera Pro event turned out more enticing. Love the Pro's last minute decision to admit the non-Pro people for Josh Tillman/Adam Curtis conversation. It was fascinating and the little fangirl in me was delighted to talk to Josh for a minute. The interview was uploaded to YouTube but it's now removed, I'm afraid.

On Sunday I caught up with a few acts I didn't manage to see at the Forum. I absolutely loved the tiny Montero and Jay Som performances at CCCB. In the evening I saw Kero Kero Bonito and Ariel Pink at Apolo - yep, AP was a mess but I had lots of fun watching the crazy band and rowdy audience from the gallery.

That was a bit longish. You can probably tell I had a great time. I've never been to a festival with such an incredible line-up, the number of acts I enjoyed gave me no time to feel weird about going alone. I'll actually recommend the experience to anyone asking about whether it's ok to go solo  

[daveje]

8 hours ago, red90 said:

No unnecassary additions, just stages, food and poster/music shops.

This is perhaps the key point about Primavara - it's all about the music, and nothing else. (Ok, maybe also sex and drugs.)

And in spite of my reservations about lineup trends, bought my tickets for next year, and going VIP.