Festival Internacional de Benicàssim
The Festival Internacional de Benicàssim (Valencian pronunciation: [festiˈval inteɾnasi.oˈnal de beniˈkasim]), commonly abbreviated as FIB, is an annual music festival that takes place in the town of Benicàssim, in the Valencian Community, Spain. It focuses mainly on pop, rock, and electronica artists, as well as short films, fashion shows and art.[1]
Festival Internacional de Benicàssim (FIB)
The festival begins on the second Tuesday of July, which is when the camping grounds open - although music officially commences Thursday afternoon. FIB is notable for having bands play through the night (5 pm–8 am) and has three main stages, Las Palmas, Visa, and South Beach Dance, with capacities of approximately 30,000, 15,000 and 8,000, respectively.[2] In 2009, the festival capacity exceeded 50,000; in 2020, more than 150,000 visited the festival over the four days the festival lasted.[3][4]
History[edit]
The first FIB took place in 1995. Since then, Benicàssim has been dedicated to rock, pop, and electronic music as well as featuring artists who are a reference on the world stage.
Location[edit]
FIB is held in the seaside resort of Benicassim (Castellón province) on Costa del Azahar, Valencia, Spain, 92.2 km away from Valencia Airport. Festival goers who have purchased multi-day passes can camp for up to nine days starting the Monday before and ending Tuesday after the festival has ended.[5]
Previous bands[edit]
Since the first festival in 1995, some of the most notable artists who have played the festival include The Arctic Monkeys, Beck, Blur, The Chemical Brothers, Depeche Mode, Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, Kraftwerk, Ladytron, Morrissey, Oasis, Placebo, Primal Scream, Radiohead, Lou Reed, Ride, Sigur Rós, The Stone Roses, The Strokes, Teenage Fanclub, Paul Weller and Brian Wilson.
2006 Festival[edit]
The 12th Benicàssim Festival occurred between July 20–23, 2006. Performers included Franz Ferdinand, The Pixies, Depeche Mode, Placebo, Echo & the Bunnymen, Madness, Morrissey, The Strokes, Scissor Sisters, Babyshambles, Beth Orton, Editors, The Futureheads, We Are Scientists, The Kooks and Art Brut, among others.
Maravillas Stage
Fiberfib.com Stage
Fib Club
Jack Daniels Stage Saturday
Controversy[edit]
FIB has received criticism from nationalist sectors in Spain, aimed at the fact that it does not support Valencian culture, even though it takes place in the Valencian Community and receives a high amount of public money to finance itself. FIB's director Jose Luis Morán stated in an interview that he did not intend to include any band in the festival that had lyrics in Catalan, Euskera or Galego.[22] Among the people and associations that have criticized this is Marina Albiol, an Esquerra Unida politician.[23]