The sun is setting on this year’s edition of Primavera Sound with UK house legend Carl Cox currently serving up a blistering closing set, capping off another incredible weekend at Barcelona’s Parc del Fòrum. A year that was full of surprises – some welcome and others less so. But all of that only made for even more of a unpredictable and unforgettable experience.

One frequent motto the festival uses is ‘Choose Your Own Musical Adventure’. With over one-hundred-and-forty acts and more than fifteen stages, it’s rare two people will share the same trip. That’s before you even get to the fact that Primavera’s twenty-fourth edition was its most surprise-filled yet. Here are our Top 5…

1 – The Weather
Let’s start with the undeniable fact that the weather really affected Thursday’s proceedings. Rain had been on the forecast but with Barcelona, things can change up to 24 hours in advance. So the hope for a clear few days had still been in the air. Unfortunately at around 9am the wind arrived and that was followed by gale-force wind. Deemed a weather hazard, stages were closed, sets cancelled and hordes of festival-goers left the site. However thousands of others, like us, stuck around, danced in the rain to the sounds of BAMBII, wearing the free ponchos Primavera Sound distributed and enjoyed the shortest bar queues of the weekend! Yes, performances from Massive Attack, Bad Gyal, Doja Cat and others were scrapped but fortunately it was Day One and there were some great things coming…

2 – The Surprise Set
Undoubtedly the biggest surprise of the weekend was the big gap in the timetable at around 22h30 on the Occident stage. Rumours of a Fontaines DC show spread quickly after Grian was spotted somewhere onsite. But it was Olivia Rodrigo whose name was finally announced mere hours before her set began. Playing tracks from her first two albums, she then revealed a secret of her own – her third album features a collaboration with The Cure’s Robert Smith who then joined her onstage for its debut performance.

3 – The Levi’s Plaza Lineup
This year there were more and more smaller, pop up stages with guests announed sometimes just a day before fuelling the speculation and excitement. The Levi’s Plaza was the stage to watch at this year’s edition featuring appearances from Babymorocco, Cobrah and Isabella Lovestory. The one that shut the whole place down though was Rose Gray who played tracks from last year’s Louder, Please – which seems correct given that she shot the album artwork on the beach at Barcelona. Cut to 6am on Sunday morning and fans attempting to recreate it in the same location, post Peggy Gou’s sunrise set.

4 – Curated by Sonny
Another reveal was the Cupra Pulse lineup for Saturday which was mysteriously listed as Curated by Sonny. Not only playing a blinder of a set on the Friday, it seemed Skrillex had some more surprises up hus sleeve. Revealed the day before, it turned out that gracing the Cupra Pulse stage would be a host of huge names including Arca, Fourtet, Blawan and Skrillex himself.

5 – Conversations with randoms
The beauty of Primavera Sound is that the festival is so international that you always find someone to have a chat with about Addison Raes star power, to theorise with over the secret performance or just get a good recommendation on where to next. For us it was an Australian couple telling us to check out Raye’s sister, Absolutely, on the Disney stage by the sea and we are very glad we did. What a beautiful moment.

All of this made the festival truly unique but let’s not forget the performances because what perhaps looked at first sight like a maybe not so strong lineup really turned out to exceed all expectations. Here’s a list of our favourites…

1 – Model/Actriz
It was the show we were most hyped for and there was zero chance Cole and the guys would disappoint. If the band’s debut, Dogsbody, was a darker, grimier beast, then the follow-up, Pirouette, was the pink, shimmering unicorn – and Cole switched up his performance style to match. Now wearing heels, theatrical costumery and with reveals, he literally pirouetted his way through the crowd while screaming about wanting a Cinderella-themed birthday party. Amazing.

2 – Addison Rae
We came with zero expectations, only knowing that she was the IT girl of the moment and we have played her debut album more than we realised. But nothing could have prepared us for the star power of Addison Rae. Packed with charisma, choreo and campery the show was a deadly triple-threat. She somehow managed to be poised and precise with the dance breakdowns while breaking character and diving into the crowd and charming everyone. Showstopper.

3 – Olivia Rodrigo
Until this weekend Olivia Rodrigo was not a name that elicited much excitement here at Loverboy. Cute enough but the music never seemed to hit. But then standing in front of the Occident stage at her secret show we became a bone fide fan. Her enthusiasm was evident, the songs came to life and then she brought out The Cure’s Robert Smith for her first ever duet. Sold. If the star of Disney’s High School musical series manged to win over thee Robert Smith then we never stood a chance. A beautiful moment between them to witness.

4 – Blood Orange
Dev and the band played two sets this year – an early evening set on the Thursday but also a late night show on Tuesday as part of the A La Ciutat series. Playing Barcelona’s intimate Paral-lel 62 venue, there was space to move, the acoustics were giving and the room was full of actual fans watching, not talking. Having the opportunity to witness Dev as he jumped around on stage from playing keys, to bass, to cello was a marvel, making the night very special.

5 – The xx
There was some serious nostalgia going on at The xx’s gig, seeing Jamie, Romi and Oliver on their reunion tour, the first in eight years. Hearing classics from their first two albums, then reinvented versions of their own solo material and the chemistry they all still clearly have, it was a beautiful thing to see. The perfect end to our personal Primavera Sound 2026 adventure. See you at the next!

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