Logo
DiS Needs You: Save our site »
  • Logo_home2
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • In Photos
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Search
  • Community
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • Blog
  • Community

THIS SITE HAS BEEN ARCHIVED AND CLOSED.

Please join the conversation over on our new forums »

If you really want to read this, try using The Internet Archive.

105600

Festival Review

Mallorca Live Festival 2018: the DiS review
Mallorca Live Festival 2018: the DiS review
davebeech by Dave Beech May 22nd, 2018

Most people are familiar with UK festivals, their etiquette (or lack thereof) and the general goings on within them. And while line-ups may differ massively in scope and style, the protocol remains much the same: wake up, drink, try and sneak beers in to an overly priced arena the moment it opens (to varying degrees of success), drink some more, rinse, repeat. It’s a well-trodden and often muddy rite of passage that starts to wear a little thin after you hit 25.

Europe on the other hand, is an entirely different story. And Mallorca Live Festival is arguably the perfect first experience of a European Festival.

Fifteen minutes’ walk outside Magaluf isn’t the first place you’d think of to find a festival, nor is a disused waterpark the first setting one would think to house it, yet all of that serves only to add to the festival's allure, something which is built on further thanks the its position in the shadows of Serra De Tramuntana mountain range.

Even from the moment the line-up was announced, it was clear that Mallorca Live isn't just another festival interested in bringing identikit international talent in order to sell tickets. It’s a festival that feels more like a celebration of Spanish music, irrespective of genre, while harbouring an inherent need to get said music out to Spanish audiences.

And it’s a need that’s more than warranted. While often bands from European countries such as Germany or whole regions, such as Scandinavia, find their music in regular rotation on UK radio, the same can’t be said for the same number of Spanish bands.

From the genre bending stylings of La Raiz, and the irresistible indie-pop of Jump to the Moon on Friday night, to the ferocious, socially conscious hip-hop of Kase O on Saturday, Mallorca Live Festival felt like a showcase of both contemporary, and more nostalgia-hinged Spanish indie; the latter coming from the aforementioned La Raiz who manage to fill the Estrella tent to capacity for a massively well-received set.

Of course, international acts aren’t ignored at all, with arena rockers Primal Scream and gods of electronica Prodigy headlining Friday and Saturday respectively. And while each act certainly goes down well, it’s the Spanish bands that help make Mallorca live one of the most original festivals around.

While it was Prodigy we were arguably most excited to see over the weekend, the aforementioned Kase O was easily the biggest surprise and strongest act over the entire weekend. Despite understanding little of his lyrics and social commentary thanks to my rudimentary Spanish, the messages he was delivering, and the fervour with which the crowd devoured them, was contagious and by the time his set wraps up all too soon, it was clear how much his lyrics meant to so many.

A far cry from the hedonistic debauchery of Leeds Festival or Parklife, Mallorca Live simmered with a fiesta-like atmosphere, while never teetering over in to the chaos and carnage of its UK counterparts. Small in comparison, certainly, but more refined and arguably more fun also? Definitely.

![105600](http://dis.resized.images.s3.amazonaws.com/540x310/105600.jpeg)


LATEST


  • Why Music Journalism Matters in 2024


  • Drowned in Sound is back!


  • Drowned in Sound's 21 Favourite Albums of the Year: 2020


  • Drowned in Sound to return as a weekly newsletter


  • Lykke Li's Sadness Is A Blessing


  • Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alternative must sees

Share on
   
Love DiS? Become a Patron of the site here »


Left-arrow

Some Velvet Mixtape: 2018 In Reverb, ...

Mobback
105598
105603

Spiritual Transmissions: DiS Meets Mé...

Mobforward
Right-arrow


LATEST

    news


    Why Music Journalism Matters in 2024

  • 106145
  • news


    Drowned in Sound is back!

  • 106143

    news


    Drowned in Sound's 21 Favourite Albums of the Y...

  • 106141
  • news


    Drowned in Sound to return as a weekly newsletter

  • 106139

    Playlist


    Lykke Li's Sadness Is A Blessing

  • 106138
  • Festival Preview


    Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alterna...

  • 106137

    Interview


    A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash

  • 106136
  • Festival Review


    Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019

  • 106135
MORE


    news


    The Neptune Music Prize 2016 - Vote Now

  • 103918
  • Takeover


    The Winner Takes It All

  • 50972

    Takeover


    10 Things To Not Expect Your Record Producer To...

  • 93724
  • review


    The Mars Volta - Deloused In The Comatorium

  • 4317

    review


    Sonic Youth - Nurse

  • 6044
  • feature


    New Emo Goth Danger? My Chemical Romance confro...

  • 89578

    feature


    DiS meets Justice

  • 27270
  • news


    Our Independent music filled alternative to New...

  • 104374
MORE
Drowned in Sound
  • DROWNED IN SOUND
  • HOME
  • SITE MAP
  • NEWS
  • IN DEPTH
  • IN PHOTOS
  • RECORDS
  • RECOMMENDED RECORDS
  • ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
  • FESTIVAL COVERAGE
  • COMMUNITY
  • MUSIC FORUM
  • SOCIAL BOARD
  • REPORT ERRORS
  • CONTACT US
  • JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
  • FOLLOW DiS
  • GOOGLE+
  • FACEBOOK
  • TWITTER
  • SHUFFLER
  • TUMBLR
  • YOUTUBE
  • RSS FEED
  • RSS EMAIL SUBSCRIBE
  • MISC
  • TERM OF USE
  • PRIVACY
  • ADVERTISING
  • OUR WIKIPEDIA
© 2000-2025 DROWNED IN SOUND