Thousands surrender to Charli XCX and Troye Sivan in first big night of Primavera Sound 2025

Barcelona’s biggest music festival, Primavera Sound, is officially underway, after doors opened at Parc del Fòrum on Thursday afternoon. Thousands of music fans flocked to the venue by the sea, where 14 different stages are set up for hundreds of musicians to perform to thousands of fans this week. 

"Lineup is definitely better this year," Onya and Orla, from Derry, Ireland, told Catalan News after having come to the festival last year. "Everybody is good," they both added, however, agreeing that the performer they were most looking forward to was Charli XCX, singing with Troye Sivan. The artists presented their Sweat Tour, their only performance in Europe after last fall’s tour in the US.

Maya, traveling from London for her first Primavera Sound, decided to come after seeing the lineup announced, and while she is "excited to see" most of them, her go-to on Thursday was Charli XCX. "I think that one is going to be really good," she told this media outlet hours before the concert started at 1:15 am.

Phil, Isabel, and Steven traveled from Vancouver, Canada, ready to party. They were all wearing a 'brat' t-shirt, in reference to Charli XCX's latest release. 

"One of the reasons why we are here," they all replied when asked if they just wanted to see the artist behind 'Apple.' (The song, not the electronic devices brand.)

"It's incredible, the fact that it is seaside, and everything that is going on, and everyone that is dressed up really committing to the theme, it's an incredible vibe so far," Phil mentioned. The three repurchased tickets from a second-hand seller in December, so they thought it was a "scam." The music festival sold out in early January.

Charli XCX and Troye Sivan took to the stage to the excitement of thousands who had been waiting for hours with a 1:50-hour-long concert. Both sang some of their hits, such as 'Apple', Rush, 1999 (but remixed), and even 'What's The Time.'

Fans surrendered to the British and Australian singers who set the cherry on top of the cake for festival-goers attending this year's event, many of them had been waiting since doors opened at 5:00 pm.

Both artists took to the stage at 1:15 am and sang past 3:00 am. In fact, Troye Sivan was already in Barcelona's Primavera Sound last year with a solo concert. Less than a year later, Sivan repeated the experience in front of thousands who danced and chanted to the rythm of their songs.

While Sivan was the first to take the stage, Charlie XCX was the most acclaimed of both, when a large green banner with the letters 'brat' appeared on stage and the singer started her perfomance.

For Charli, it was a pleasure singing in the "party capital of Barcelona."

However, aside from Charli XCX and Troye Sivan, there were dozens of more artists performing at one of the many stages, including the main ones: Estrella Damm and Revolut, such as Jamie XX, Parcels, FKA Twigs, and beabadoobee to name a few.

Juls, who also traveled from London for the event, said that she prefers "older line-ups, not going to lie. But there are definitely some good artists this year. Very excited to see FKA Twigs."

Onya and Orla were both looking forward to seeing Kate Bollinger, an alternative indie American singer, who delighted her fans with 'What's This About,' Postcard, 'J'aime les filles,' to finish with 'All This Time.'

Among the first festival-goers awaiting their favorite artists, there was Miquel, a Catalan who has been coming to Primavera Sound since 2019. He told Catalan News that he is very looking forward to seeing Charli XCX and Troye Sivan, but recognizes that in the past, there have been more international artists than local ones.

Meanwhile, Sònia, has a completely opposite point of view, as she "comes to Primavera Sound to see international artists, as she already goes to other music festivals looking for national musicians."

While the main part of the music festival started on Thursday, around 30,000 people got to enjoy a free opening night on Wednesday, with artists such as La Casa Azul, Caribou, and Llum.

Check all timetables for Primavera Sound 2025 and get ready before going to the event by reading our guide.

Noise complaints

The associations Stop Concerts and Xavecs (Neighborhood Network Against Noise), and organizations from the Maresme area filed a legal complaint on Monday requesting that the  courts shut down one of the Primavera Sound stages, "located very close to residential buildings, a student residence, and a hospital."

The groups have included data from last year's sound level records that demonstrate "violations during the days and nighttime hours of the last festival."

However, the Primavera Sound organizers maintain that they have always complied with regulations and said that after the 2024 edition, the Sant Martí district did not report any violations that would warrant sanctions.

Council points out acoustic obligations

Barcelona City Council has pointed out that Primavera Sound organizers are already obliged to implement measures to minimize the festival's acoustic impact on the surrounding area.

After organizations called for the closure of one of the stages, the council emphasized that a number of mandatory measures are already in place for event promoters.

These include positioning stages to cause "the least acoustic impact on the environment," installing acoustic limiters on all stages, and measuring sound levels at nearby residential buildings.

The city council reports that no sanctionable noise violations were found during last year's Primavera Sound.

However, it acknowledges that noise thresholds were exceeded at certain times.

In those instances, it notes that strong winds exceeding 5 m/s were recorded, which invalidates the measurements under current regulations, as it becomes unclear whether the noise came from the festival or the wind itself."