Major international artists and emerging acts to take to stages at Bridge District Festival

The third edition of the Bridge District Festival was presented on Wednesday, with major international names in electronic music and emerging talent sharing the stage in LaMercedes on October 18-19. 

The largest edition yet of the festival will act as a "bridge between music, technology, art, gastronomy, and urban talks," organizers said.

In total, more than 70 local and international DJs and creators from different disciplines, spread across five stages and six themed areas, will showcase their work at Bridge District Festival.

Bridge District Festival is promoted by Bridge 48, the electronic music production school and studio located in Barcelona, in conjunction with events organizers Proactiv Entertainment, and Poblenou Urban District, a not-for-profit association boosting the cultural offering of the Barcelona neighbourhood of Poblenou.  

In this edition of the festival, organizers say emerging talent is being given a stage alongside major international names like never before. "It's not just a festival, but a space for community and creativity," as Ester Navarro from Proactiv Entertainment said. 

Lineup

The festival will be headlined by The Martinez Brothers, Dubfire, Len Faki, Pan-Pot, Davide Squillace, Mano Le Tough, and Mathew Jonson.

Barac, Magda, Prunk, Luuk Van Dijk, S.A.M., Flug, Raxon, Fedele, Anike Kuntz, Shall Ocin, No_IP, Lola Palmer, Reka, Valav, and The Unborn Child also make up the list of headline acts performing this October. 

Also performing are Max Haas, Herr, Shöke, Isa Rojas, Kid Moss, Brizas, Amalia Balbontin, Andrea Love, Andrea Zarco, Delafoxx, Dubbelle, Gomez, Hanie, Indra Traferri, Jade Rolt, Jazz K, Lefrak, Lisan, Mila Morr, Nancy, and NIIXII. 

Artists Davide Squillace, a co-founder of Bridge 48, and Flug were also present for the presentation event. 

"Bridge is a complete 360-degree space," Flug said, before adding that many of his artistic collaborations have come from connections made at Bridge 48. 

Five stages with five personalities

The LaMercedes venue, a former Mercedes factory located in the Sant Andreu district of the Catalan capital, will have five distinct stages during Bridge District Festival, each with its own unique personality.  

The Grid Stage will focus on technology and digital art accompanied by the sounds of minimal, tech, and electro. Hernán Herrera, co-founder and CEO of Bridge 48, told Catalan News that this is where they will "install and convert an immersive experience with three different technologies, with LED lights, lasers, and projectors."

The Human District Stage will bring together urban art and community with large murals painted on the warehouse walls, all brought to life with the pulse of techno. 

The Hello Future Stage will showcase local and emerging talent. Herrera says the team from Hello Future "designed the whole universe of cables and the connections we have in the visuals of the festival, a 3D modulation."

The Silent Disco Stage will offer an immersive, participatory, and "dissociative" experience. 

Lastly, the Bridge Live Stage will vibrate with the energy of live performances.

As well as the five main stages, there will be other experiences on offer throughout the "labyrinth" warehouse. "You can go there and lose yourself in different places," Herrera said.

The different rooms will have various digital and urban art spaces and galleries, as well as a space to highlight the devastation of Gaza. "We are going to project more than 18,000 names of children killed there," Herrera explained. "It's necessary."

Bridge 48

Ahead of the press conference, Hernán Herrera explained to Catalan News that Bridge 48 is a creative hub that helps "break down barriers" for artists to thrive. 

"We help them to break down the barriers they face in terms of economic or socioeconomic barriers when they want to develop an artistic project, because it's not cheap," the CEO said. "All these machines we have here, and the equipment, is quite expensive, having a good sound system, a good acoustic space."

Herrera describes the studio hub as a "kind of Disneyland park" for new generations of artists looking to develop their talent.

In addition, Bridge 48 is a space that connects emerging artists with established names. The music hub has helped aspiring musicians from 13 years old all the way up to a Grammy winner, Herrera says.