Primavera Sound 2012

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Photograph by Cory Smith

Looking at the line-up for the Barcelona leg of this year’s Primavera Festival you struggle to recall any bill that’s ever come close, in terms of quality and sheer scale, except perhaps last year’s event. Now with a condensed second offering the following weekend in Porto, what has become the premier cool European festival destination in recent years has excelled itself with a line-up that’s almost overwhelming – as if the location, climate and famed Absinthe bars weren’t strong enough pulls anyway. As such, even after the withdrawals of Björk and in particular Death Grips, a focussed preview is a challenge of a welcome kind so without further ado here are a round dozen mouth-waterers from the festival bill of a lifetime.

Hooray For Earth

Getting proceedings rolling Hooray for Earth promise to be the highlight of Memphis Industries’ night tonight. Their recent album True Loves is the first half of 2012′s bombastic indie-pop trailblazer, and is perfectly tailored to the occasion and the billing. Expect the balls-out production of their irresistible feel-good pop record to be amplified to the limit.

The Walkmen

Wednesday continues the slow-build pre-amble to the exhausting Thursday/Friday/Saturday schedule, and aside Chairlift and The Wedding Present’s ‘Seamonsters’ set, The Walkmen stand out as the big pull – a band whose live reputation precedes them and it is entirely justified. Magnificently-monikered frontman Hamilton Leithauser oozes style and charisma, his super-tight band delivering the driving rhythms upon which he thrives. Not only an unmissable live proposition, but also one that demands as many repeat viewings as there are opportunities.

Grimes

The challenge of the first full day appears insurmountable, both for a bullet-point preview and more so the practicalities of taking in all you have earmarked in advance, and so it feels unreasonable to skip to Grimes’ mid-evening show – but needs must, and, after this year’s 4AD debut Visions, this promises to be one of the buzziest shows of the whole Primavera. Claire Boucher is she, and enigmatic and captivating she’s sure to be.

Mazzy Star

Mazzy Star follows suit soon after, fittingly; Hope Sandoval retains the effortless allure she’s always possessed, and this relatively rare live show, while representing a welcome step back from the high tempo thrills elsewhere, will justify its inclusion if it fulfils our expectations and hopes.

John Talabot

Late night and the clubby venues come into their own, with the live performance from Permanent Vacation’s John Talabot a thrilling prospect – on home turf too. His Fin longplayer is head and shoulders above most of the fashion-led electronic music of recent times.

Rufus Wainwright

Assuming we’re not nocturnal by this point we hope to call in on Other Lives then head to Rufus Wainwright and his band on Friday, adding a welcome dose of theatrical high-camp by way of material from his recent Out Of The Game album, delivered by that remarkable voice.

Sleigh Bells

Sleigh Bells will be taking over later on, continuing to prove they’re more than a hipster fad with a second wonderful album and their all-conquering live shows. They truly are a fearsome proposition on stage, and in Alexis Krauss they have a front woman who prowls and dominates like no other.

Beach House

Saturday again offers an absolute embarrassment of riches, with Beach House one of many unmissables; indeed, the prospect of their emotive electronic pop in such a setting seems close to perfection, and there’s no reason to think they’ll fall short.

Shellac

Shellac are one of those bands you’ve a duty to see if you’re there and they’re playing. Anyone who fails to should be refused entry to any of the countless plagiarists elsewhere, though of course practicalities dictate that we hope most don’t adhere to this, or else we’ll be lucky to get anywhere near them.

Yo La Tengo

Likewise Yo La Tengo, consistently engaging and unwittingly responsible for numerous well-intentioned pretenders since their appearance, will be more than worth your time.

LFO

Now, LFO could be THE highlight of the weekend. Mark Bell stands alongside Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Dave Clarke et al in the pantheon of the greatest techno producers ever, and as such surely represents the dream ticket for the early hours of a summer festival in Barcelona. There’ll be no shortage of perspiration in the room.

Kings of Convenience

The reduced bill on the Sunday represents a slow comedown and what will by then be welcome respite, and Kings of Convenience’s second set of the weekend seems a suitable reference that illustrates the point. Erlend Oye is a proper dude, whether as Whitest Boy Alive or with Eirik as KoC, and his charm and songcraft look like the ideal way to round off the weekend as we try to compile a realistic schedule.

Check back in a few days and see if our wishlist bears any relation to the reality; you know how things turn out at festivals…