The Musical Side Of Portugal - Super Rocking in Lisbon

What some may not know is that Portugal is a haven for music lovers, especially in the summer! The portuguese summer is teeming with sites to explore and things to do, like the beautiful golden beaches or the incredible green hills. But! If you’re more of a “listener” than a hiker, I’ve got some great suggestions for you! I’ll be presenting the biggest summer music festivals in Portugal, all the way from the breezy North to the warm south.

Super Bock Super Rock

To be honest Super Bock Super Rock has a bitter sweet feeling for me. It used to be the biggest competition for NOS Alive, when it was located near the beach of Meco on the other side of the river Tejo. But in recent years it moved to Lisbon, to Parque das Nações, and although the old venue had it’s shortcomings, the change to Parque das Nações costed some of the older attendees. But, in all fairness, it’s still deserves your attention, it’s a pretty big festival in Lisbon and holds a great line-up, and Parque das Nações in July is also interesting to visit.

Chilling in Super Bock Super Rock, by João Maria Fortuna.

Where is it?

Parque das Nações is in Lisbon, on the eastern side to be more exact. The whole area is a must-see, having attractions like the Vasco da Gama Mall, the Oceanarium, the Casino, the old venue from the 1998 World Expo and Altice Arena, the largest indoor concert hall in Lisbon, and many, many more. The latter two are part of Super Bock Super Rock’s stages! Right next to the river! (I encourage you to take a walk on Parque das Nações if you have the chance). So it’s safe to say that the organization, although losing audience with the change of venue, still was able to adapt and try to get as much as they could from the new location. And even though it lost the beach and trees of Meco, the view by the river in the sun of July is also beautiful. And the venue is big enough that it never gets too crowded to walk around!

The entrance right in front of the Vasco da Gama Mall, by Marta Santos.

How to get there?

With the change from the coast of the city the festival lost its camping site (I personally disliked this a lot) but what comes with the big city is a myriad of transportation, specially to such a known place like Parque das Nações, and that is a real step up, the festival used to have a big transportation problem but now it’s a breeze! The metro station Oriente is next to the entrance but it closes at 1am, but you still have buses and taxis stopping all around the area. And to compensate the lack of camping, the festival has some suggestions on where you can stay!

Outside Altice Arena, by João Maria Fortuna.

What to see?

This is what I wanted the most the talk about in this article, because what for me stands out about Super Bock Super Rock is that “rock” is more of and attitude than a music genre, the festival it’s willing to try new things, even if they aren’t always loved by everyone! And in terms of genre it prefers to by varied, having legends like Sting and Peter Gabriel, rock giants like Queens of the Stone Age, or Red Hot Chille Peppers; indie darlings like Arcade Fire or Beirut; hip-hop greats like Kendrick Lamar or Princess Nokia and dance inducing concerts by Justice or Fatboy Slim, it really is a melting pot of genres and artists! And It pays respect to portuguese music too, having many national bands perform alongside the international ones. By the way, if you have some time between concerts be sure to check out the urban art exhibitions they have next to the secondary stage!

Kendrick Lamar at Super Bock Super Rock, by João Maria Fortuna.

So feel free to experience the many music festivals Portugal has to offer like this one, for more tips on other festivals check some of my other articles, or read this one by fellow editor Vasco.