Festival Review: Bilbao BBK Live 2016

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I was struck by the beauty of Bilbao and the surrounding area. The moment we stepped off the plane into a disappointingly mild and grey Spanish afternoon, and onto the bus that would take us into town, the vistas that cascaded down upon us from almost every angle proved enough to seemingly reduce the journey time on our way from the airport to the city centre, simply because we had so much to look at. Bilbao sits almost within a valley, nestled at the bottom of countless crests and peaks that, when high up enough, stretch as far as the eye can see in one direction, before receding and giving way to the Bay of Biscay in the other. It makes for a picturesque setting for a coastal city, as well as the music festival that takes place above it.

When the press release on the BBK website describes the festival as being ‘high upon the Kobetamendi Hill’, it doesn’t quite do the scale of the event justice. As the bus from outside the Ansio Metro station climbed higher and higher into the depths of the Basque Country hills, the views of the city below became more and more spectacular, and the less inviting plunge from the verge of the road as the bus trundled along became more and more hair-raising. After it had been established that the reason our bus had stopped was to further increase its already punishingly heavy load by picking up more passengers who had been waiting near the festival entrance. Once we had inched our way up the final slope outside the campsite, we were able to get acquainted with what would be our home for the next four nights.

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The campsite which was, at the point we arrived on the first day, sprinkled with a light spattering of multi-coloured, makeshift residences rather than the full-blown carpet it would later be adorned with, was nestled within a small gully atop Kobetamendi Hill. With a single, rugged path up the middle, separating the various and numerous designated sections on both sides, and with views of the whole city of Bilbao, as well as much of the surrounding Basque country to revel in, it certainly provided festival goers with a stunning backdrop against which to rest their heads. This, coupled with the on-site bar, minimarket and picnic benches ensconced deep in the surrounding forest gave it a notably friendly, almost serene feel – almost more like a small village than a campsite.

Pixies - BBK-6

This became even more palpable once inside the campsite. Groups who had arrived together milled around, drinking outside their tents, as elsewhere people stood chatting to complete strangers, having introduced themselves over a free promotional Red Bull and a discussion of which artists they were most excited for. And the amount of music being played on portable speakers meant that, even on the day before the festival actually began, with so many travellers undoubtedly exhausted from their journeys, and more still yet to even arrive, the campsite had an immutable and immediate buzz. This first night, while admittedly the quietest of those we were to spend there, still had an almost electric atmosphere. The air crackled with anticipation at what was to come, and the hum of voices combined with speakers expectantly playing Arcade Fire tracks typified the feeling at Kobetamendi Hill’s summit – and it would only get better from here.

The day we arrived, of course, didn’t provide us with quite the levels of excitement we had been excitedly looking forward to during the preceding bus ride, flight, day of travelling and last few weeks before we set off for Bilbao. The first day however, characterised what Bilbao had been keeping from us perfectly, and not only justified our excitement, but blew our expectations out of the water in a flurry of music, food, people and partying. On the first day, not many people were out of their tents before noon on account of the heat. Spain had clearly been offended by our British disappointment at the lack of sweltering sun it had hit us with when we arrived, and had decided to get its own back by forcing us to fish out the sun-tan lotion from our bags. With more campers arriving in a seemingly constant stream, we woke up to a more populated site than we said goodnight to, and as such were greeted with an even greater sense of unmistakable excitement. On our way to the free, 24-hour shuttle bus service running between the areas of Kobetamendi Hill and Bilbao itself, we saw twice the people, heard twice the music coming from various speakers, and found ourselves twice as giddy with anticipation at what was to come. By the time we arrived back from the city, it was early evening, and therefore almost time for the music to begin, so in a bus full of English and occasional Spanish fans bellowing football chants bouncing down the hill, we set off for the main stage.

It proved difficult to deny that Bilbao BBK Live doesn’t put on a show even when simply walking in through the main entrance. A great, wooden sculpture greeted us as we arrived, sprawling and fragmenting into the darkening sky, and acting as a gateway to the equally sprawling, but in no way fragmented collection of stages, food stands and attractions that awaited us inside. This first day would set the tone for the rest of the festival, and the crowd’s first impressions formed based upon it would colour their perceptions of everything else for the next two days.

Years & Years - BBK-2

It was a night to remember. With Years & Years bowling their section of the collective festival-goers over with their synth-pop, indie stylings, before Chvrches immediately took to the stage on the other side of the site, from the moment the first fans entered to the moment they left, massive artists and massive tunes were hitting them from every angle, on every stage. Arcade Fire with their headline set, M83, New Order and Hot Chip are just some of the artists that kept fans in raptures until the early hours of the next morning. With entertainment in the form of a Karaoke stage and a Fox movies attraction also on offer, as well as the enigmatic Basoa area and the almost magical, fairy-light-adorned grounds adding to a sense of wonder and awe already cultivated by the artists, it was hard to imagine so much time had flown by when we got back to our tent at the end of the night. And by the time we did finally put our heads down for some rest, it was hard to believe how ready we were to get up and do it all again the next day, with a line-up that stayed just as stellar throughout the remainder of the festival. Pixies and Foals smashing their headline sets on the other nights, as well as notable others including Father John Misty and Wolf Alice keeping the crowd not only awake, but on their feet and bouncing isn’t a bad way to spend a weekend, and it didn’t seem like the crowd disagreed either.

When all’s said and done, after the tents had been packed up and buses dropped people off, it’s easy to see why this festival’s line-up has grown in stature in each year since its inception. Aside from being a place that makes it possible to lose oneself completely in the atmosphere, attractions and tunes it’s now able to boast, what’s more impressive about Bilbao BBK Live is the fact that it does so regardless of the age, tastes or lifestyles of its patrons. Whether fans spent all their time in Basoa, or in the middle of the grounds taking everything in from a distance, they were undoubtedly not only happy or excited, but overjoyed with the show that BBK Live put, and will no doubt hold it in their memories forever. No matter anyone’s age, tastes or nationalities, everyone who walked through the gates on the first day will have also walked through them again on the last having met people with a shared interest and passion, such is the warmth and friendliness of the atmosphere, and this will only serve to embed those memories all the more deeply, as well as to build BBK’s profile and standing in Europe’s festival scene beyond its already impressive reputation.

Foals (crowd) - BBK-6

BBK isn’t Europe’s biggest festival, and for many of the artists, it will not have been a major stop on otherwise mammoth world tours, but aside from a few technical issues during one set I watched, it will have a been worth stopping in Bilbao just as much for the artists as for the fans due to the reception they got and the atmosphere they will have glimpsed. The calibre of star that Bilbao BBK Live attracts has risen from year one, as has the festival’s star itself, and based on this year’s event, it’s impossible to see how it can’t keep climbing.

Words by Ben Kitto

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