As the sun rose on day two of Sonar Festival in Barcelona, the masses once again flocked to the downtown location of Sonar by Day, pouring through the gates in even larger masses than the previous day’s festivities. Spirits were once again at peak levels during the afternoon hours, with Europe’s electronic music revelers taking full advantage of the beautiful weather and vibe of the city, the company of fellow partygoers, and of course the stunning array of musical talent from all over the world.
Once again, stand out acts were difficult to determine, as each artist contributed something creative and unique to the boundary-breaking display of electronic music across the three stages. Of particular distinction was the UK’s Hyperdub group King Midas Sound, who presented a brilliantly dreamlike set pairing their bass heavy and reggae influenced rhythmic sound with a backdrop of dramatic and hypnotic lighting in the darkened SonarHall. Also taking advantage of the confined space of SonarHall was Nosaj Thing, who performed his visual show to a thoroughly enthusiastic crowd. Matching a visual display projected against the wall behind him, Nosaj Thing took the audience on an aural and visual journey through his hip-hop inspired beats, dropping favorite tracks like “Coat of Arms” and “Fog” at key moments.
After a long day of music in the sun, we headed to the first installment of Sonar by Night, which takes place Friday and Saturday night in a massive old airplane hanger just outside of Barcelona’s city limits. Three enormous stages hosted a slew of even more enormous talent, with thousands upon thousands of people going absolutely mental for the breathtaking lineup and environment. Noteworthy acts included favorites like veteran French super-duo Air, DFA Record’s LCD Soundsystem whose performance of their beloved old track “Daft Punk is Playing at My House” got the whole room singing, and German house group Booka Shade, who all lived up to their stellar reputations as forerunners in the realm of genre bending electronic music. Indie electronic staple Hot Chip also played a thrilling live set under the open air night sky to the tune of thousands of cheering fans at Sonar by Night’s second biggest stage, SonarPub.
Mary Anne Hobb’s showcase at the SonarLab stage was also a big hit, showcasing some of the finest talent currently on rotation in the overarching realm of dubstep and UK funky. First the BBC Radio DJ herself took the stage, dropping some seriously grimy dubstep tunes and making the massive bassline reverberate through the ground and up into the enthralled audience. Second was a rare appearance by the illustrious Joy Orbison, who’s set was an extraordinary treat for UK funky fans. Flying Lotus took the stage next, spinning a set that focused on samples of some heavy hip-hop beats, and of course his own production, which contrasted effectively with his more house tinged set of the night before, and lead perfectly into the showcases’ closing set from the king of UK funky, Roska.
On the techno and electro side, 2manydjs spun a rambunctiously fun mix of electro tracks both new and old, with a multitude of stellar remixes and visual graphics animating each tracks record sleeves. Techno master Plastikman (otherwise known as Richie Hawtin) and the legendary Claude Von Stroke also each tore the roof off the epic venue. The latter’s closing set at the main stage, SonarClub, provided the ultimate ending to an incredible night, dropping monumental tracks like “Who’s Afraid of Detroit?”, shifting into some wicked drum and bass just when the crowd least expected it, and slowly bringing up the lights on the dancefloor throughout his set to emulate the sunrise outside, effectively preparing the crowd to face the bright day that awaited after the last note ended.
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