Primavera Sound Santiago: Beach House’s dream pop and a ‘kawaii’ surprise on the first day of the festival in Chile

The offer of music festivals is increasingly broad in the region and, while the most popular media strive to have trending artists or those who already fall into the category of great classics on their lineup, this month one landed in South America that He has distinguished himself in his native Barcelona for bringing together those musicians who have become the favorites of specialized critics and music lovers for their sound innovations and those emerging artists who are shaping up to follow that path.

The Primavera Sound It began its South American tour in Sao Paulo (Brazil), continued its journey in Buenos Aires (Argentina) and this Friday, November 11, it opened doors in Santiago de Chile. In the Cerrillos Bicentennial Park, which hosted Lollapalooza in March, five stages have been set up that will show all this weekend the programming designed mainly for those who come to discover new proposals. On the first day of the festival, three stages were used: PuntoTicket and Santander, set up for star artists; and the BITS, reserved on Friday to showcase new Chilean talents.

The doors opened at 2 pm and Spaniards from Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba were the first to hit the stage with progressive rock with flamenco elements. The first attendees took seats on the grass while the day offered a few rays of sun for an afternoon that would gradually become cold. “El valle” and “Gitana” were some of the songs on a setlist of just over half an hour in which there was no lack of accelerated guitar riffs and the treble (with reverb) of vocalist Dandy Piranha, which were heard between the ‘ headbanging’ and the attention of those who were beginning to discover what the programming of day 1 brought.

Minutes later, on the front stage, Santander, an image was projected with the title of the album “Que me parta un rayo”, whose 30th anniversary would be celebrated by its author, Christina Rosenvinge, with an audience with whom she has a long relationship.

“I have great memories of when I sang these songs in Viña del Mar,” said the Spaniard after a performance with new arrangements of songs like “Fleas in the heart” and “Someone who takes care of me.” “Was any of you at the 1994 edition of the festival?” she asked, while a dozen hands went up. The set of the former Christina and the underground lasted for about an hour and concluded with the artist’s thanks for those who turned her songs into classics in our language. “Thanks to you who have kept this record alive, I have managed to have a wonderful life,” she said.

japanese surprise

Shortly before 6 in the afternoon, it would be the debut on Chilean stages of a band that would become the favorite of the date. Chai’s Japanese entered with full energy and did not lower it in any minute of those they had on the stage.

Dressed in pink and with masks, they began their performance to the rhythm of “No More Cake”. Although they presented themselves with a choreography in the purest style of a ‘j-pop’ group, their presentation offered very different environments between theme and theme. The four members of Chai were solvent when they had to be more ‘showgirls’, but also when they had to be musicians on stage, filling the Bicentennial with a sound that ranged from punk to disco.

Many discovered this group for the first time at the festival, but immediately connected with the energy of its members who, aware of the popularity of Asian culture in Chile, appeared at one point with a flag saying that this country was ‘ neo kawaii’. And the bridge was also built on the side of the artists, who in their repertoire were revealing the influences of musicians such as Michael Jackson, Heart or Led Zeppelin. One of the highlights of the day.

Desperate ballads and a magnetic farewell

The next star was starred by a Mexican who has been reaping very good comments despite his youth. Kevin Kaarl only needed his acoustic guitar to touch the most sensitive veins of the audience in the first minutes of his set with songs that talk about deceit, difficult relationships to end and loneliness, but intoned with the particular voice of this boy from 21 years are captivating.

The energy would change completely when, 10 minutes later, a cult band from the Chilean ‘under’ appeared on the scene: Fiskales Ad-Hok, who sang, in their own style, heartbreak songs like “Mi condena”, but also hymns of rebellion. like “killer terrier”.

Although this was the only Chilean band that set foot on one of the stellar stages, on Friday the BITS stage was dedicated to presenting the new voices of the southern country, which has experienced a growth in its urban and trap scene as seen by Antónima, Akatumamy, VLntna B, which were some of those that were presented in this section.

The Chilean-Peruvian Shirel deserves a special mention, who took the stage at night and stood out for her excellent vocal and scenic performance, which was rewarded by an audience that stayed with her, while on the Santander stage the last star was already beginning. of the date by Beach House.

The American duet did not need to interact much with the public to gain their attention. With an aesthetic of dark colors, between sepia and black and white, the artists were positioned together with a supporting musician (a drummer) and offered a long-lasting sound journey.

As they themselves said in one of their few moments of dialogue with those present: “Usually when we play at festivals, we have to do short shows, but this time we can play the full set”. And that was the spirit of the first Primavera Sound date in Chile, an opportunity to listen carefully and with the time and space they deserve to some of the artists who are being a reference in the industry.

The day will continue this Saturday and Sunday with the presentations of Björk, Lorde, Travis Scott and more. The fence stands tall.