What’s your favourite aspect of summer? Is it the realisation that the long awaited shorts weather has arrived? Is it time to say goodbye to the all-black work day-to-day outfit and time to blow off the dust on your vintage Levi’s and flaunt your brand new luscious bikinis? Or perhaps it’s the stomach clenching thought of an endless celebration of delicious food and mouth-watering cocktails shared with your best friends? For me, it is Sónar Festival! After months of waiting – a time I thought that I would never see – the summer finally comes around, and I feel exhilaration and bliss. Maybe a slight over exaggeration, but my point is, everyone and anyone must go to Sónar Festival at least once in their lives. I met some friends out in Barcelona in 2015, and they have been to the popular festival over six times, and have made the visit a yearly tradition. Now that is dedication. This year’s statistics recorded that 115,000 visitors from 101 different countries attended the like-minded festival. That is absolutely incredible and the organisers should be proud and ecstatic over the victory from such a successful event they manage to preserve year after year. There is a copious amount of culture, age and nationalities with a difference in music taste, but as many festivals manage to do, Sónar brings all these people together in music, and it is certainly fantastic.
We begin with Thursday day all the way through until Sunday night, and there is nothing better than raving under the blazing sun in the Spanish heat, filled with joy and vitality, great music and even better vibes. Sónar is becoming larger and more dynamic each year, and was rated number one festival in Europe by Resident Adviser. It is a fantastic opportunity to discover the sheer beauty of Barcelona, taste the authentic Spanish food and sip on traditional sangria before the madness of Sónar unveils.
On the first day of the festival we are raring to go. Now with a large group of 8, this was a proven challenge. Somebody exclaims “I want to see Jamie Woon!” when someone else utters “But I really wanted to see Lady Leshurr” and then it goes round in circles, over and over again and you can see how it becomes the problem. Or the typical, “Hang on a sec, I’m just going to the toilet and I’ll be right back!” and you pretty much never see them again until the very end. Festival problems. Despite this, the first day was an amazing start. Trailing around from stage to stage, observing the properly thought about decor, put together with major detail of embellishment. Grabbing each other tightly and running towards iconic artists we thought we only had one chance to see.
A few vodka lemonades bought and drank in the highly populated arena we were all set to see our next favourite artist, The amazing and glorious, Black Madonna. It was the perfect evening set to begin our night of wonder. As per usual, The Black Madonna was unbelievable. Her tracks brought a luminous glow into the air whilst we danced non stop into the sunset. The sky darkened into a beautiful deep indigo, a perfect setting as she brought back the feel good sensation. An absolute Queen as she passionately mixed house and disco in unison.
There is nothing better than day gigs. If you have the opportunity to experience your favourite music in the gorgeous sunshine, surrounded with the elegance of culture and high spirit, then grab it and make it yours! As I scattered into the busy crowd, finding Sónar Village, I was desperately trying to find the perfect spot when the sound of percussion and a deep bass guitar fills the whole stage. Congo Natty began their set, producing sounds of harmony and love in the warm Spanish air. Everybody around me was singing along and dancing to such an alluring moment, and when they played a rework of Bob Marley “Is this Love” you could really say, it was love.
Across the long weekend, the night’s blend into one, surrounded by enchantment and a spell binding aura. As we stumble into the venue that held Sónar by Night, the heavy, booming bass penetrates our hearts. The night was ours and this was our chance to run free in the music. We follow the crowds to a hyperactive set at Sónar Lab brought by DJ EZ. A dirty mash up of garage reaches our ears and everybody around us is nonstop skanking. Arms are flying about, fist pumps in sight, our hearts in the air as the garage speaks to our soul. We are on a musical high.
Sónar really delivered this year. Prominent artists from all over the world come together to share their gift with the eager music lovers of Sónar, and they really gift us with the opportunity to appreciate such talent. The one and only Four Tet played a 7 hour set on Friday night in the extraordinary Sónar Car, followed by the infamous Laurent Garnier who played on the Saturday. An accomplished change to the festival this year. As you enter the stage, you are greeted by intergalactic surroundings. Four Tet’s unique sound relinquishes a cosmic techno, flowing in its grace. With the occasional collision in his tracks, the crowd is treated with a beat so heavy it shatters the crowd in wonder taking us away with that pulsating techno.
Looking back, Sónar really was an experience of wonder and liberty. The festival escorts us away from our bland, busy, ordinary lives into a world of culture, fascination and magic. By the time we say our goodbyes to a perfect weekend, we leave different people. We meet friends for life, we are whisked away to music that speaks to our hearts and each and every one of us promise that we will be back again. Sónar imprints a personal memory into our hearts that cannot be relived, but they get better each year, time and time again.
