FIB 2019: The Cure, Iggy Pop and Pixies

Some festival lineups make immediate sense. FIB 2019 was one of them. The Cure, Iggy Pop and Pixies on the same bill felt less like a scheduling decision and more like someone had assembled a personal hall of fame. All three acts had history with Benicassim, all three had devoted followings among the FIB crowd, and all three delivered performances that justified every bit of anticipation.

The 2019 edition ran from 18 to 21 July and sold out well in advance. By the time the Thursday night acts took to the stage, the campsite was full to capacity and the atmosphere around the arena was as charged as any in recent memory.

Robert Smith Closes the Festival in Style

The Cure took the Saturday night headline slot and played a set of truly extraordinary length. Robert Smith, in the form that only he seems capable of sustaining across a career that now spans nearly five decades, led the band through a journey that covered the full sweep of their catalogue. The goth classics arrived alongside the pop songs and the deep cuts, each one received with a fervour that suggested the crowd had been waiting years for this specific moment on this specific beach.

The sight of thousands of people singing "Lovesong" into a warm Spanish night is not something that is easily forgotten. The encore ran deep into the small hours and felt less like a performance and more like a shared experience that nobody wanted to end.

Iggy Pop at 72

Iggy Pop took the stage on the Friday night and immediately dispensed with any notion that age might have mellowed him. Shirtless, ferocious and visibly delighted to be there, he delivered a set that drew heavily on The Stooges catalogue while also covering ground from his solo years. "Lust for Life" opened to a roar that could probably be heard from the beach. "The Passenger" arrived mid-set and did not so much raise the temperature as confirm that it had never dropped.

At 72 years old, Iggy Pop was the oldest person on the FIB 2019 bill and almost certainly the most physically exhausting performer of the four nights. The contrast between his raw, confrontational stage presence and the idyllic coastal setting was exactly the kind of thing that makes FIB different from every other festival.

Pixies Return

Pixies headlined the Thursday night and delivered a precise, powerful set that reminded the crowd exactly why the band's influence stretches across virtually every guitar act of the past three decades. Frank Black - now performing as Black Francis - led the band through a selection that balanced deep album cuts with the songs that made them famous. "Debaser", "Here Comes Your Man" and "Where Is My Mind?" hit with the force of songs that have never worn out their welcome.

Paz Lenchantin, who joined the band as full-time bassist in 2014, brought a warmth to the performance that had sometimes been missing in earlier reunion-era shows. By 2019 Pixies felt like a functioning band rather than a legacy act going through the motions, and that made all the difference.

The Supporting Programme

The four nights around the three headline acts were equally strong. The Benicassim programming team has always been particularly good at curating a supporting programme that complements rather than merely fills space around the main events. The 2019 supporting bill reflected the same commitment to quality over quantity that had defined the headline choices.

The beach, the heat and the campsite did the rest. FIB 2019 was the kind of edition that arrives occasionally and reminds you exactly why you keep coming back.