More about: DeftonesRed Hot Chili PeppersSuper Bock Super Rock

“Thanks for coming out and supporting live music” Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ bassist Flea shouted to the crowd, during their headline set at the first day of Super Bock Super Rock in Lisbon. And this is exactly what happened for three days at Parque das Nações in Lisbon. But Super Bock Super Rock (SBSR) isn’t just about the headliners. If you look below the surface you’ll find an array of exciting Portuguese as well as, up and coming, international acts.

SBSR been going for 23 years and in that time the likes of The Cure, David Bowie, Rage Against the Machine and Kendrick Lamar have graced their stages. This year’s headliners were the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Deftones and Future. The Parque das Nações - also home to Expo 98 - is situated 30 minutes from the airport. While this might be the as exciting and glamourous as previous years when SBSR took place in Meco Sesimbra with its own private beach and camping, it does suit the needs of the festival perfectly. There are excellent transport links to and from the site, each stage is only a five minute walk from each other and there is plenty of space to relax and get away from the crowds in between the bands.

Day 1:

Alexander Search got the first day of SBSR underway at the EDP stage. This was fitting as lead singer Salvador Sobral gave Portugal their first Eurovision win earlier in the year. The music is inspired by the writings of one of the greatest poets in the Portugese language, Fernando Pessoa, with all the lyrics being Pessoa’s. Musically it was grandiose, as Sobral was joined by pianist Júlio Resende, but with stark electronic undertones. Brazilian psych rock sorts Boogarins followed Sobral. The sting had been taken out of the sun at this point in the day and their music matched this. As they performed a breeze picked up and everything had a lazy, hazy feel to it, which matched their music perfectly.

The Orwells changed the pace slightly with their brand of brash and raucous indie. Playing a greatest hits set that won over the crowd with their garage rock revival sound. Kevin Morby slowed things down a with his melodic and angular indie rock. The crowd swayed, sung along and lapped it up and were visibly, and audibly, upset when this set came to an end.

After a short break, basking in the setting sun, and letting the world go by, and getting reacquainted with Super Bock, it was over to the main stage for Capitão Fausto. Their brand of psychedelic rock, is a continuation of the Tropicália scene from Brazil in the 1960’s, as their music is full of luscious harmonies, delicate guitars and a sense of fun and whimsy that is missing from 90% of guitar pop. As I left the main arena to hear back to the EDP for The Legendary Tigerman, I witnessed one of the most exciting and visceral experiences of the entire festival on the LG stage. Throes + The Shine are relatively unknown in the UK, but their intensity and lust for life was infectious. Mixing elements from Afro-beat, hip-hop and punk, whilst wearing day-glo traditional African outfits, they pogoed all over the stage and even instigated some slam dancing in the pit, without missing a lyric of beat. To call it incredible, is devaluing not only their set, but the word.

Back on the EDP stage The Legendary Tigerman was updating the sound that the Stooges created on their Funhouse album. Massive power chords, and provocative riffs, coupled with pounding drums and vibrant avant garde saxophone felt like it would bring this historic building to its knees. Then it was back to the main stage for the day’s headliners.

As soon as the Red Hot Chilli Peppers took to the stage the sellout crowd erupted in a cacophony of noise I hadn’t experienced for a while. Their set was culled from their ridiculous back catalogue, meaning it was non-stop hits. ‘Can’t Stop’, ‘Californication’, ‘Aeroplane’, ‘By the Way’, ‘Suck my Kiss’ and ‘Give it Away’ all made appearances. The highlight of their set was their interludes between songs. These ranged from avant garde jazz workouts, funk jams, pure rock belters and tender ballads helped give the set a sense of spontaneity and fun, rather than a band just going through the motions. It was the perfect way to end the first day.

Day 2:

If rock had been the vogue for day one, rap and hip-hop was the order of day now. Pusha T got the EDP stage under way. This was hip-pop at its most enjoyable. The crowd were singing along with his call and response songs. Jessie Reyez slowed things down a bit with her smoulder pop stylings. The day truly got going when Portugese underground rapper Keso appeared on the LG stage. His brand of spoken word/hip-hop got the crowd bouncing and contemplating his stories of social commentary. At one point he made his DJ stop a beat, so he could carry on acapella. This was one of the most moving moments of SBSR. A fan next to was brought to tears by this part of the set. He told me later that he was touched by the lyrics and sentiment that all he could do was shed a tear. This is a young and hungry, rapper to keep an eye on.

Next it was back to the EDP for Slow J. Like Keso, Slow J has a huge underground following that is slowly starting to permeate into the mainstream. Slow J’s set was filled with insightful lyrics and clever production. This meant the crowd was putty in his hand. Seeing Slow J and Keso back-2-back showed that the Portuguese hip-hop is thriving and these two artists have plenty of crossover, and ideas, to mean we should be hearing about them for a long time to come. There was another short break of basking in the sun, and chatting to my fellow festival goers, it was back to the main arena for The Gift.

Playing a set culled from their 20 year career, The Gift had the crowd in the palm of their hand from the moment they walked on stage. In singer Sónia Tavares The Gift have a classic rock front woman. Not only did her voice get better as the set went on, but she fed of the crowd’s energy and enthusiasm. Musically The Gift sounded amazing, with soaring strings, glitchy synths and a level of passion and self-belief that made Brian Eno want to produce their new album, Altar.

Future headlined the main and musically it was incredible. His brand of high energy trap, and heavy bass, was enough for most of the assembled headz to enjoy, but added to that were his clever and inventive back up dancers, and some of the best visuals, and light show that SBSR experienced. The crowd lapped it up however and left the MEO Arena happy. Straight after Future on the Carlsberg stage was the Beatbombers. Made up of DJ Ride and Stereossauro, this duo were crowned the scratch champions in 2011, and played a set full of turntablism that would give DJ Shadow and Q-Bert a run for their money. The only problem with day two was the scheduling. On a hip-hop day it felt weird that a psych/prog pop group like The Gift and the indie pop of London Grammar would be supporting Future. The Gift and London Grammar put in excellent performances, but when the crowd left and was confronted by the hip-hop soul styling of Akua Naru, NBC and Lingua Franca it felt a bit off. Overall, the day was incredibly fun and the bands selected were at the top of their game.

Day 3:

Day three felt more calm and relaxed than the previous two days. This might have been down to the weather breaking and starting to cool down a bit, or that people were tired after two full days of watching music, but there was a more relaxed vibe at the Parque das Nações. This suited Bruno Pernadas perfectly on the EDP, as his hazy jazz was perfect for a lazy afternoon in the sun. His band is made up of a who’s who of Portugese the indie and jazz elite. People danced and people dozed as Pernadas, and his eight-piece jazz band played delicate numbers with style and panache. If Pernadas has successfully chilled everyone out, Taxiwars woke them up and get them going for an evening of music. Their blend of avant-garde jazz, deep and broody bass reminded me of something John Coxon would put out. Black Bombaim were doing similar music, but at the other end of the spectrum with droney sludge rock and huge saxophones.

The main event of the day was Deftones. This was something the crowd had been waiting for all weekend. As the main arena got busier and busier you could feel the electricity in the air. As soon as they opened with ‘Headup’ the crowd was a seething mess of mosh-pits, slam dancing, general exuberance, that hadn’t been seen all weekend. ‘My Own Summer (Shove it)’ was the second song, and the crowd truly ramped things up a gear. As the hits kept coming the assembled throng grew more and more frenzied. When they played Back to School (Mini Maggit) if felt like the whole building was going to explode. There was one downside to the Deftones epic set. They didn’t play ‘Minerva’. Maybe next time…

The unexpected find of the day was Sensible Soccers on the LG stage. Their blend of hypnotic guitars and dense electronics, with a pop feel, was perfect after Deftones. Sensible Soccers told me they are playing in their first UK date in Wakefield at the end of July. This is a very temping prospect and one that shouldn’t be passed up as it is unclear when they will return to the UK after this.

After these two incendiary sets it was time to slow it down and calm down. Luckily Sue Jorge was on hand at the EDP. Jorge was playing the Life Aquatic sessions, and was dressed in his costume from the film, even down to his iconic red hat. After I felt suitable relaxed, it was time for the final push of the weekend at Fatboy Slim. Given that Norman Cook has been making music and DJ-ing for over three years, he hasn’t lost any of his verve and love for it. Just like RHCP and Deftones Fatboy played a blinding set that as he put it “I’ve got my box of tricks and the bangers”. His set was full of contemporary classics and interspersed an almost unrelenting 4/4 thumping beat with unexpected vocal samples and drops to his past. It was a flawless way to end what had been three days of exceptional and faultless music. There is a term in wrestling, send them home happy, and as the crowd filled out of the main arena they were definitely being sent home happy.

While this year’s line-up might not be as strong as previous years, and the festival site was located in a business district of Lisbon, SBSR is a great experience because although you can see Red Hot Chilli Peppers and the other headliners pretty much anywhere throughout the summer, travelling to Lisbon gives you chance to experience the city during the day. Lisbon is a beautiful city full of picturesque views, delicious restaurants, vibrant bars that offer both a traditional, and contemporary, version of Portugal. Hopefully one day the likes of Alexander Search, Boogarins, The Gift, Slow J, Sensible Soccers, Bruno Pernadas, Keso and Capitão Fausto will end up headlining one of Europe’s hidden gems. Obrigado Lisboa, obrigado

More about: DeftonesRed Hot Chili PeppersSuper Bock Super Rock