Primavera Sound 2025 brought its usual mix of chaos and catharsis to the Parc del Fòrum, in Barcelona, with a lineup spanning the extremes of experimental electronics, millennial pop melodrama, and gritty live performance. With the Mediterranean sun as a backdrop and a crowd ready to sweat, scream, and self-reflect, Schön! was there to witness it all — and capture all the standout moments.
At the opening night, FKA twigs needed little more than minimal scenography to conjure an entire cosmos. Her Thursday night set on the Estrella Damm stage bent pop performance into something sinewy and spellbinding — and she only needed a pole, a sword, and some scaffolding. Across contortions (yes, including pole dance) and sparse-but-precise costume changes, FKA twigs danced her way through EUSEXUA, then dialled the energy down to deliver liquid intimacy with Home With You, Two Weeks, and a devastating Cellophane rendition. Her set followed lively and fun openers with Japanese duo YOASOBI and emerging star BEABADOOBEE, who initiated the day of music celebration.
On Friday, queer icons Charli XCX and Troye Sivan brought the heat with SWEAT, their only European joint show. A relentless club sprint through their respective eras, BRAT and Something to Give Each Other, with Sivan leaning into twink villainy as he marked his 30th birthday, and Charli XCX tearing through the brat club canon like a woman possessed. The set, however, hit its peak fan-fuelled delirium when Chappell Roan appeared on screen mid-routine, delivering her “Apple Girl choreo” in full drag-pageant mode. Camp? Of course.
Sabrina Carpenter followed, bringing her new-age Barbie energy and extra heat to the festival. On a stage somewhere between a TV studio and an oversized dollhouse, she leaned into ’80s tropes and bubblegum bravado, teasing the audience with one-liners and hits, from Espresso to the just-dropped Manchild.
But if anyone came to claim the crown, it was Chappell Roan. Dressed like a prom queen from a gothic fever dream, she turned the Estrella Damm stage into her own neon-lit fortress. She opened with Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl, read out text messages from exes (for public shaming, naturally), paid tribute to the trailblazing women before her with a belting cover of Barracuda, and closed with the queer anthem Pink Pony Club.
And through all of this pop chaos and sonic euphoria, CUPRA returned as festival partner for the fourth year, bringing with it a new highlight: CUPRA Pulse. The mirrored installation became a hub for rave realness and sonic experimentation, with sets from Crystallmess, Lolahol, and LSDXOXO transforming the space into a chrome-lit playground. The CUPRA Stage hosted influential artists like Amelie Lens, TV On The Radio, and Amaia, while the brand’s digital platform, CUPRA Music Hub, streamed the action globally.
“Music has been a part of CUPRA since our foundation. It inspires us and enables us to convey the values we stand for: boldness, creativity, and celebrating the talent of the future,” said Patrick Sievers, CUPRA’s Global Head of Marketing. “We have designed the space to amplify the connection with the audience and turn each performance into something more immersive.”
From scaffold to strobe light, from mascara tears to euphoric drops, Primavera Sound 2025 was a fantasy you could dance inside. And this year, it had a heartbeat of chrome.
photography. Àlex Grimà, CUPRA, Christian Bertrand, Clara Orozco, Henry Redcliffe, Gisela Jané, Silvia Villar, Sharon Lopez
words. Gennaro Costanzo