Taken from the RA website (thanks Lee): residentadvisor.net

Goldfrapp, Justice, Erol Alkan and Hercules and Love Affair are among the first names out of the bag for this summer’s Sonar Festival in Barcelona.

Held over three days, Sonar is the big electronic festival on the European calendar, not least because of the dozens of spinoff club nights held around the city during festival time. The official Sonar Festival is generally split into two halves: a low-key daytime concert/expo held in the heart of the city and a monster rave held in a 20,000-capacity exhibition hall in the Southern suburbs.

Big names at this year’s festival include UK pop duo Goldfrapp, who will be performing live on Thursday night, and X-102, aka Detroit trio Jeff Mills, Robert Hood and Mike Banks, who will be recreating their 1992 album Discovers The Rings of Saturn at the fest. Dance music-wise, the bill includes a dubstep showcase (feat. Shackleton, Mala), an Ed Banger showcase (Busy P, SebastiAn) and a Freerange showcase (Jimpster, Milton Jackson). (YAY FREERANGE!)

Elsewhere on the bill there are festival regulars Diplo, A-Trak, Justice, M.I.A and Miss Kittin, and new names to Barcelona such as Hercules and Love Affair, Frankie Knuckles, Konono No. 1 and Kalabrese. Check the event listing below for the full lineup so far.

Oh, and in case you were wondering about the picture, Sonar's visual theme for 2008 is based on a series of joke genetic mutation videos which were apparently spread around the Chinese internet. Read all about it here b1158.cn

hmm not sure what to make of the line up, more names to be added of course...

There's not much to make of it at this point- it's not very extensive. but it adds to my excitement!

yeah its early days yet..

Sonar by Day

Thu 19. Fri 20. Sat 21.Jun

Asstrio (ES)
CaboSanRoque (ES)
DJ Key (MA)
Kalabrese pres. The Rumpelorchestra (CH)
Kid Acne (UK)
Konono Nº1 (CD)
Le Rok (DE)
Little Dragon (SE)
Northern State (US)
Tara de Long (US)
Tender Forever (US)
The Duloks (UK)
Yellow Swans (US)
Yo Majesty (US)

NINJA TUNE & COUNTER RECORDS presents
Daedelus (US)
J Mountain (UK)
The Heavy (UK)
The Long Lost (US)

DIRTY presents
Dirty Sound System (FR)
Discodeine (FR)
Pilooski (FR)

OSAKA INVASION presents
Bogulta (JP)
DJ Scotch Egg (JP)
Maruosa (JP)
Ove Naxx (JP)


Sonar By Night

19.Jun

Ben Watt (UK)
Goldfrapp (UK)
Leila (UK)

Fri 20.Jun

BC vs JC feat. Darren Emerson (UK)
Boys Noize (DE)
Diplo (US)
Erol Alkan (UK)
Frankie Knuckles (US)
Hercules and Love Affair (US)
Justice (FR)
Madness (UK)
Róisín Murphy (IE)
The Pinker Tones (ES)
Yelle (FR)

BBC Radio 1 presents
Flying Lotus (US)
Mala (UK)
Mary Anne Hobbs (UK)
Shackleton (UK)

RED BULL MUSIC ACADEMY RADIO presents
Buraka Som Sistema (PT / AO)
Theo Parrish (US)

Sat 21.Jun

Antipop Consortium (US)
Camille (FR)
Chloé (FR)
DJ Mehdi vs A-Trak feat. Kid Sister (FR/US)
M.I.A. (UK)
Miss Kittin (FR)
Neon Neon (UK/US)
Spank Rock (US)
X-102 discovers The Rings of Saturn (US)
Yazoo (UK)

ED BANGER RECORDS presents
Busy P. (FR)
Krazy Baldhead (FR)
SebastiAn (FR)

FREERANGE presents
Jimpster (UK)
Milton Jackson (UK)

ps - woohoo!

What's the best plan for festival tickets? Do you buy before hand (and if so, what) or wait til you get over there (is that risky in terms of sell outs)?

We're all booked up with Flights and accommodation, just need to sort tickets!

DEFINITELY buy beforehand- they will be sold out once you get there. Especially the daytime ones, those are really popular. If you think you want to go to the majority of the actual festival, buy the 3 day pass (I think around 150-200, access to all of the Sonar by days/by nights). If you're not sure, just pick and choose tickets for certain days or nights, I think they're around 30 each.

TickTackTickets sells them through the sonar website: www.sonar.es

YAY!

ps- the lineups are looking sadly low on techno... :(

here you go mandy

sonar.es

Ta. Guess we're going have to think about what we're likely to want to do!

yeah same. i personally think i'm going for thursday and saturday day, and friday night, but waiting on finding out when a friend's party is happening out there.

Are M.I.A On in day or night?

Sonar By Night

Sat 21.Jun

Antipop Consortium (US)
Camille (FR)
Chloé (FR)
DJ Mehdi vs A-Trak feat. Kid Sister (FR/US)
M.I.A. (UK)

etc...

sound thanks

get tickets b4, its a nightmare gettingthem out there, alot of fakes on the streets and long queues all day just to pick tickets up from box offices

yes- definitely get them before. and do NOT depend on taxis. just don't!

Ticket buying tip : Check out ebay first as me and my sister saved a fortune on tickets last year.

Partying tip : Whatever you do make sure you at least witness the Anti-Sonar party, if even just to look at it. FUCKING CARNAGE !!!!

thai needs to come to sonar again!

I REALLY do, although this year im all booked up for Exit & Bestival instead.

meh.