NEWS
EVENTS
Sonar Festival 2014 is here!
House | Friday 30th May 2014 | Annalisa
Sonar is a festival unlike any other. With an ethos of promoting and nurturing forward thinking music and media, this supreme urban gathering has gained a world renowned reputation based on its un-compromising values and attention to creativity since it’s inception in 1994. In the third week of June each year, Barcelona plays host to 3 days and 2 nights of Advanced Music and New Media Art. The proceedings are divided into two sections – Sonar by Day and Sonar by Night as well as an array of Off Sonar parties to be enjoyed outside of the festival timetable. In the heart of a city as eclectic as Barcelona, Sonar makes for an all-encompassing cultural and musical experience that never fails to explore the new and emerging avenues of dance music as well as providing many of the great favourites each year.
During its 20 year history, this astounding festival has evolved from housing 6000 visitors with 40 Spanish media affiliates at its birth in 1994, to the now upwards of 80,000 attendees and hundreds of accredited media and creative associations. Over the course of 1997-2000 Sonar grew from 18,000 visitors to 53,000 during which time the image of the festival changed into a mass prevailing platform for expression welcoming acts ranging from the likes of Brazilian carnival dancers to oddities such as stuffed dogs on wheels and twins with extrasensory powers. In 2001, Sonar by Night moved to the larger venue of the Fira Gran Via area in L'Hospitalet de . This expansive capability allowed it to house grander forms of concerts that could facilitate extensive audio-visual displays over a number of stages that perfectly encompass the atmosphere of this festival that has risen to such great heights.
The key element of this incredible inner-city happening is its completely unique take on the mix of creativity, technology and curation. Housing what is effectively one of the biggest celebrations of music and media in the world, the festival is a breeding ground for new ideas and epic entertainment. Whether you’re into your tunes and want to party hard for a few days or just want to enjoy the vibes of a unique atmosphere in one of Europe’s greatest cities, we’ve pieced together our top picks for the highlights of this year’s edition to help give you a guide of what’s in store for Sonar 2014.
Our top 10 acts of Sonar by Day
1. Bonobo
As a modern-day figurehead of emotive, melodic and intricate music, Bonobo has helped usher in an awareness of a soulful take on new electronic sounds that he so very well creates. With over 10 years production experience under the Bonobo alias, Simon Green’s attention to detail and emotion make his live shows nothing short of awe-inspiring. Performing his recently released sixth album at Sonar by Day on Friday, we’re sure that this will be quite an unforgettable show.
2. Machinedrum Vapor City live
This titan of electronic music keeps continuing to explore and present exciting new projects and collaborations that effortlessly break the confines of genre. On Thursday of Sonar by Day, Machinedrum will be showcasing his most recent and potentially boldest album release to date – Vapor City. In his words “Vapor City Live is a performance of the full album set to a video projection made by visual artist :. The performance will involve myself playing electronics, guitar and vocals while Lane Barrington will be on drum kit and samples.
3. Neneh Cherry with RocketNumberNine
Neneh Cherry is an artist that has encapsulated an audience with her unique talent and style for a very long time. Each time she returns with new work, it seems better than the last and her latest album ‘Blank Project’ is no exception. Produced by the wizard that is Four Tet and featuring the post-rock space-dance sounds of British band RocketNumberNine, she once again has managed to strike gold with her ability to fuse sounds in a knowledgeable and brilliant way. Her performance at Sonar by Day on Saturday is sure to be one that’s not to be missed.
4. Koreless
Haling from North West Wales, this young producer has reveled himself over the last couple of years to be an extremely gifted creator of sensitive and tuneful electronic music. After being introduced to UK label Young Turks by Jamie XX, Koreless has honed his sound with impressive progression. With collaborations with the likes of Sampha and Jacques Greene and support from all sides, this talented and unique producer is set to keep on rising with his moving and sophisticated productions. Catch him playing on Thursday of Sonar by Day.
5. Daniel Miller
With a lifetime’s worth of experience in forward thinking music, working closely with artists such as Depeche Mode, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Moby, Goldfrapp and many more, Daniel Miller is perhaps one of the most influential musicians to be deeply involved in electronic music of the last 40 years. His unique experimentation and wealth of experience makes for some incredible DJ sets that bring together his breadth of knowledge into a cross-genre experience. He was recently awarded the Pioneer award at the second annual AIM (Association of Independent Music) awards due to his enormous lifetime contribution to impeccable musical quality. We look forward to seeing what’s in store at his set on Thursday of Sonar by Day.
6. Oneohtrix Point Never
With a strong intent on deep exploration and attention to detail in his music, this Russion-born artist endlessly presents epic works reflecting a whole range of influences. His recent Warp Records release “R Plus Seven” retains his dystopian and atmospheric quality as well as making a subtle comment on life in this digital, post-internet age. You can catch him playing on Friday of Sonar by Day.
7. MØ
Fresh and exciting, this Nordic wonder has emerged with buckets full of charisma and creativity. With her very interesting take on hip-hop influenced electro funk pop, MØ bursts onto the stage with a new sound and style that presents a brilliant contemporary hybrid. We’re very much looking forward to seeing what form this takes at Sonar by Day on Thursday.
8. TOKiMONSTA
Her heavily proclaimed sun-drenched beats echo a bleepy and soulful reflection of a mind filled with expression. Her debut LP, released on LA/Japanese clothing label Foreign Family has struck people with a resounding new edge on tuneful creativity. We’ve heard that her sets are the stuff of magic and can’t wait to see her at Sonar by Day on Saturday.
9. Throwing Snow
The multi-faceted mind that is Throwing snow has an array of projects at his feet. When he’s not producing interesting and enveloping club tracks, he’s running his labels Left_Blank and Snow Fall. Throughout the last two years he has unveiled himself amongst the UK dance music scene with wide acclaim and appreciation. It’s going to be a exciting trip of a set, catch him on Friday of Sonar by Day.
10. Tarek Atoui
Here is an artist whose work knows no bounds. Creating sounds on his own eminently electronic instruments recorded in a natural environment, this is music that really speaks pure expression. Having presented his work all over the world to a captivated audience, his live performance at Sonar by Day on Friday is going to be something very special indeed.
Our top 5 acts of Saturday Night
1. Massive Attack
Massive Attack have reached the status of living legends and this is a rare opportunity to see them in a festival setting. With over 20yrs of award winning hits and sold out shows behind them, this will be an unmissable act.
2. CHIC ft Nile Rogers 
An act unlike any other, CHIC were the band responsible for bringing disco to the mainstream in the late seventies. More recently, Nile Rogers has re entered the spotlight via his successful collaborations with Daft Punk. With so much experience at such a high level in the music industry, don’t pass up the opportunity to see this living legend.
3. Four Tet
Truly a master of his art, Kieran Hebden aka Four Tet has risen to the top of his field over the past 10 years. With a string of globally successful hits behind him, Four Tet’s eclectic sets are always top quality, providing a peek inside the mind of a man with encyclopaedic musical knowledge.
4. Paul Woolford 
A man who has been consistently producing quality music and playing at high profile venues (he became a resident at Space in 2008), Paul Woolford - and his aliases Special Request & Bobby Peru - is now receiving more and more attention after his breakthrough summer hit, Untitled, earned him mainstream radio plays last year.
5. Laurel Halo
Laurel Halo is an American recording artist and live performer who released her debut album, Quarantine, on Hyperdub in 2012 to widespread critical acclaim. She promises to bring something a bit different to the lineup with her live music described as hybrid rhythms, bass and psychedelic push.
For more information and the full lineup for Sonar 2014, visit: http://sonar.es/en/2014/
If you're lucky enough to be heading to Barcelona for June 12th, we'll see you in the sun...
