Bilbao BBK Live 2024: Late-night music backdropped by the Basque Mountains

With striking scenery, a focus on sustainability and an ever-impressive programme, BBK 2024 saw sets from Massive Attack, Underworld and Floating Points.

It’s not often a festival takes over an entire city. But somehow, as people flocked to Bilbao this July in their tens of thousands, rather than feeling overtaken by swarms of invading gig-goers, the attendees felt equally likely to be from the Basque Country as having flown across Europe and beyond. Maybe it’s the warm welcome culture-seeking travellers were greeted with wandering around the centre, as people of all ages and nationalities soaked up the sun, beer and customary pintxos, wristbands at the ready. 

After inner-city gigs the day before, Thursday was the first full day of music, kicking off around 5pm as the relaxed Spanish routine perforated everyone’s daily timelines. There was plenty of time to explore the nearby Guggenheim Museum and neighbouring Getxo beaches – it’s not until early evening that most make the trip to the site’s location: national park Kobetamendi. 

The festival had 12 stages, from the biggest Nagusia and San Miguel to the more intimate Beefeater and Txiki, alongside electronic epicentres Basoa and Lasai nestled in the forest. With Mount Cobetas backdropped by a setting sun over the city below, Galway-hailing NewDad opened the Txiki stage on Thursday evening, while Galician rising pop artist Sen Senra provided a crowd-pleasing set to screaming Spanish fans over on the Nagusia main stage.

Later, stopping off in Spain with plenty of their world tour pending, French-electronic duo Air mellowed the vibe, celebrating 25 years of their seminal Moon Safari album. The night then saw a mythic headline performance from Massive Attack, before a tough choice between The Prodigy and Shygirl. A late-night highlight came from Rinse FM’s curation of the Lasai stage, seeing the likes of Facta and K-Lone deliver a seamless set as the mountain view twinkled behind a dedicated crowd well into the early hours.

  • © David Recio

  • Shygirl © Aliron Studio

  • Shygirl © Aliron Studio

  • Sen Senra © Blame Photography

  • Sen Senra © Blame Photography

  • © David Recio

On Friday, with the city and campsite starting to stir early afternoon post-party, Jordan Rakei’s heavenly show set the tone with members of Ezra Collective dancing along side-stage. The London jazz group’s own performance later that evening served as another highlight, with the Mercury Prize winners making true on their promise to turn the whole crowd into a dancefloor. 

Meanwhile, the much-anticipated Grace Jones made an indelible mark on the Spanish festival, belting out hits in a chaotic yet utterly commanding performance complete with a hula hooping-accompanied climax of Slave to the Rhythm. A strong billing of electronic duos filled the rest of the night with Underworld followed by Overmono, before Marcel Dettmann closed as the sun came up. 

As Saturday rolled around Chicago’s Noname offered warmth and humour alongside her poetic musical meditations, seeming just as excited to be performing in the mountains as the sizeable crowd was to be attending. Slowdive’s ethereal shoegaze provided a nostalgia hit on this final day of music, before the reaction to Jungle’s reliable feel-good offering felt bolstered by recent universal TikTok hits. It was Floating Points who closed the San Miguel stage with plenty of trippy visuals – a safe booking to wrap up the weekend with a proper dance. 

  • Grace Jones © Aliron Studio

  • © Silvia Maidagan

  • Floating Points © David Recio

  • Overmono © Blame Photography

  • Overmono © Blame Photography

As well as hosting some of the world’s biggest artists, an unspoken respect for its surroundings is something that sets BBK apart. All too often, sustainability at festivals can feel like a tokenistic afterthought: the thrust of a reusable cup across a bar at the side of a trashed field. Their B Corp certification was demonstrated by the clear, genuine commitment to sustainability, from a notable lack of litter for a festival of this size to stages made from local sheep’s wool and artificial grass due to be returned to a Bilbao football pitch. 

Set against a beautiful backdrop with all the joys of a great city break, BBK welcomed its artists, locals and punters from across the world with open arms.