2004 festival The 2004 festival was a one-day event, which was headlined by
2 Many DJs. Other acts included
Groove Armada,
Arrested Development,
Jurassic5,
Grand Master Flash,
Super Furry Animals,
Plump DJ's,
David Kitt,
Soulwax and
Mylo. Despite the fact that there was no organised camping, a number of groups camped in the field designated as the car park overnight and stayed up talking and exploring the (then pristine and nettle-free) woods. Thus, the relaxed and friendly vibe of the earlier Electric Picnic festivals was established.
2005 festival The 2005 festival took place on Saturday 3 September and Sunday 4 September. It is best remembered for
Arcade Fire's performance which came before their subsequent mainstream success. Headlining acts included
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds,
Kraftwerk,
The Flaming Lips,
Röyksopp,
Mercury Rev and
The Human League. The premiere of "Electric Picnic: The Documentary" took place at the
Irish Film Institute on Tuesday 4 July 2006 at 19:00. The critically acclaimed documentary directed by
Nick Ryan, was filmed by a small camera crew who recorded the events of Electric Picnic 2005. Narrated by musician
Nick Seymour and economist
David McWilliams, the documentary includes footage from Kraftwerk's first recorded live performance in twelve years plus interviews with the performing bands and comedians, with a few festival-goers and with the locals of Stradbally Village, who claimed: "We get more trouble at the Vintage Steam Rally". •
Kraftwerk •
Fatboy Slim •
The Flaming Lips •
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds •
Röyksopp •
Mercury Rev •
Arcade Fire •
Soulwax /
2 Many DJs •
Damien Dempsey •
Lemon Jelly •
Laurent Garnier •
Dublin Gospel Choir •
The Human League •
LCD Soundsystem •
Audio Bullys •
Doves •
Vitalic •
JJ72 •
The Rakes •
Hot Chip •
Boss Volenti •
James Blunt •
Be Your Own Pet •
Ben Watt •
Channel One •
Goldfrapp •
The Subways •
The Chalets •
Clor •
The Unabombers •
Mr Scruff •
De La Soul •
Stereo MCs •
DJ Format •
Mixmaster Mike •
Matthew Herbert Big Band •
The Kills •
Toots & the Maytals •
The Herbaliser 2006 festival In 2006 the festival gained momentum, with all 30,000 tickets (each costing €175 including camping) selling out more than seven weeks in advance. Presale tickets went on sale on Monday 28 November 2005. The event took place on the weekend of 1–3 September 2006, with the line-up being revealed on Friday 24 March. Artists who performed across the seven stages included
Sparks,
New Order,
Pet Shop Boys,
Basement Jaxx,
Rufus Wainwright,
Bloc Party,
Yeah Yeah Yeahs,
Gary Numan,
François Kevorkian,
Groove Armada,
Damien Rice and
The Frames.
The Blue Nile's appearance was their only live performance of the year. The festival's biggest casualty was
Gnarls Barkley who had to cancel their appearance after rapper/singer
Cee-Lo strained his vocal cords.
David McWilliams made an appearance as a celebrity.
RTÉ Two televised the festival, with a special RTÉ Two Green Room being set up at Stradbally Hall Estate for presenters
Tom Dunne and
Jenny Huston. Journalist and television presenter
Joe O'Shea was arrested for driving in an intoxicated state on his way home from the event. •
Groove Armada •
New Order •
Basement Jaxx •
Yeah Yeah Yeahs •
The Frames •
Massive Attack •
Bloc Party •
Pet Shop Boys •
Josh Ritter •
Laurent Garnier •
Rufus Wainwright •
Elbow •
Paul Noonan •
Belle & Sebastian •
Jape •
Amadou & Mariam •
Minotaur Shock •
Tom Vek •
Aberfeldy • The Archie Bronson Outfit •
The Swell Season •
Damien Rice •
Super Furry Animals •
Antony and the Johnsons •
DJ Shadow •
PJ Harvey • Red Sirus •
Graham Coxon •
Mogwai •
Devendra Banhart •
Sparks •
Yo La Tengo •
David Kitt •
Mundy •
Broken Social Scene •
Messiah J & The Expert • Dancepig •
Laura Izibor •
Tapes 'n Tapes •
dEUS •
The Skatalites •
Cora Venus Lunny •
Gary Numan •
The Rapture •
Hot Chip •
Tilly and the Wall •
Saul Williams •
Soulwax /
2 Many DJ's •
Tiefschwarz •
Dublin Gospel Choir •
François K •
Coldcut •
Spank Rock •
Modeselektor • Digital Circus •
Tadhg Cooke •
Semifinalists •
Vyvienne Long •
Gang of Four •
Michael Franti •
David Geraghty •
Cut Chemist • Hystereo •
Mad Professor •
Hexstatic • Warlords of Pez •
Nouvelle Vague • Zen Hussies • The Rumours The Comedy Tent in 2006 featured
PJ Gallagher,
Des Bishop,
Neil Delamere, and Eric Lalor.
2007 festival Electric Picnic 2007 was once again a three-day event and ran from 31 August until 2 September. The festival maintained its current size of 32,500 festival goers and kept all the same elements plus some new additions. "Early-bird" tickets for the 2007 festival went on sale between Monday 11 December 2006, and Saturday 24 February 2007, costing €199, taking into account the VAT that must now be paid on all outdoor events. Full price tickets went on sale on Tuesday 3 April at a price of €220. The first acts were officially announced on Monday 2 April. Besides the music other attractions included an inflatable church offering mock weddings, luxury tents, massage chambers, a fairground and
silent disco. Acii Disco DJs began the festival on the Friday at 12 p.m. in the Bodytonic Tent. Amongst others to take to the stage on Friday were
Björk,
Hot Chip,
Scott Matthews,
Manic Street Preachers and
Oppenheimer whilst the unnamed band responsible for
The Good, the Bad & the Queen headlined the Electric Arena tent. The Sunday night was brought to a close by
Primal Scream. The festival was marred by the death of a 23-year-old fan. The incident occurred as
The Chemical Brothers came to a climax at 2 a.m. early on the Sunday morning. Organiser John Reynolds extended his sympathies and said:
"A young man took ill at the festival, was treated at the medical centre, removed to Portlaoise Hospital and was later pronounced dead." Gardaí said they were not treating the death as suspicious. •
Beastie Boys •
Björk •
The Chemical Brothers •
Dublin Gospel Choir •
Sonic Youth •
LCD Soundsystem •
Primal Scream •
Manic Street Preachers •
Soul II Soul •
The Jesus and Mary Chain •
Paul Hartnoll •
Shy Child •
!!! •
The Go! Team •
Aim •
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah •
Camera Obscura •
Fionn Regan • Emporium • Tobias Froberg • PC Radio • SiSi •
Ladytron •
Marlena Shaw •
Bonde Do Role •
Architecture in Helsinki •
The Stooges Sigur Rós,
George Clinton and
Sex Pistols headlined. Other musicians appearing included
Franz Ferdinand,
My Bloody Valentine, German rockers
Faust,
Tindersticks,
The Breeders,
Grinderman,
Goldfrapp,
Gossip,
CSS,
Duffy,
Foals,
Hadouken!,
Wilco,
The Roots,
Turin Brakes,
Carbon/Silicon,
Conor Oberst and
New Young Pony Club. Irish acts to appear included
The Stunning,
Sinéad O'Connor,
Christy Moore,
Liam Ó Maonlaí,
Boss Volenti,
The Waterboys,
The Flaws,
Ham Sandwich,
Fred,
Super Extra Bonus Party,
Jape,
Lisa Hannigan, Le Galaxie,
Cathy Davey,
Gemma Hayes and
Mark Geary. Also attending were
Amnesty International, which celebrated the 60th anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights with a singalong of "
Happy Birthday" on the Sunday night.
2009 festival Electric Picnic 2009 took place at
Stradbally from 4–6 September. The British promoter
Festival Republic bought out the share of
Aiken Promotions as well as a further majority shareholding in Electric Picnic in March 2009. The festival was launched on 15 April 2009, with tickets going on sale two days later. The launch saw the announcement of forty-seven acts.
Orbital,
The Flaming Lips,
Imelda May,
Brian Wilson,
Basement Jaxx,
Madness,
Klaxons,
Bell X1,
Fleet Foxes and
MGMT were some of the musical acts which appeared, whilst
Tommy Tiernan headlined in the comedy tent.
2010 festival Early bird tickets for
Electric Picnic 2010 went on sale on 4 December 2009. The festival was launched on 24 March 2010, with
Leftfield,
Roxy Music,
Public Image Ltd.,
LCD Soundsystem,
Massive Attack,
Modest Mouse,
Mumford & Sons,
Jón Þór Birgisson,
Paul Brady,
Imelda May and
The Frames among the first acts to be confirmed.
2011 festival Artists who played in 2011 included
Arcade Fire,
Pulp,
The Chemical Brothers,
Interpol,
PJ Harvey,
Beirut,
Blonde Redhead,
Zola Jesus,
The Drums,
Santigold,
The Family Stone,
Joan As Policewoman,
Best Coast,
3epkano,
Power of Dreams,
Yuck,
Foster The People,
Alexandra Stan,
The Undertones,
Public Enemy,
Jimmy Cliff,
DJ Shadow,
Flying Lotus,
The Charlatans,
Mogwai,
Sinéad O'Connor,
White Lies,
OMD,
Toots & the Maytals,
Lykke Li,
Midlake,
The Rubberbandits,
Death in Vegas,
The Go! Team,
Big Audio Dynamite, Boys Noize,
Paul Kalkbrenner,
Dave Clarke,
Twin Shadow,
Willy Mason,
Trentemøller,
Killing Joke,
Health,
Mundy,
Gavin Friday,
The Walkmen,
Adam Beyer,
Sharon Shannon, Ivan St. John,
The Cast of Cheers,
Micah P. Hinson,
Caitlin Rose,
The Potbelleez,
Adebisi Shank, The Danger Is,
Codes,
And So I Watch You From Afar, and
O Emperor. The festival triumphed at the Irish Festival Awards, winning seven gongs, including Best Large Festival, Best Line up and Best Toilets.
2012 festival Artists who performed at the 2012 festival included
The Cure,
The Killers,
Elbow,
Sigur Rós,
Christy Moore,
Orbital,
Hot Chip,
The xx,
Wild Beasts,
Of Monsters and Men,
Patti Smith,
The Roots,
Crystal Castles,
Grandaddy,
SBTRKT,
Mmoths,
Metronomy,
Bat for Lashes,
The Maccabees,
The Horrors,
Richard Hawley,
Azealia Banks,
Ed Sheeran,
The Jezabels,
Michael Kiwanuka,
Gavin Friday,
Ryan Sheridan,
Róisín O,
Van Dyke Parks,
Roots Manuva,
Bell X1,
Dublin Gospel Choir,
Glen Hansard,
Grizzly Bear,
Willis Earl Beal,
Alabama Shakes,
Tindersticks,
Fatoumata Diawara, Land Lovers, Eagle and the Worm,
Solar Bears,
Staff Benda Bilili,
Little Roy,
Lanterns on the Lake,
Jonathan Wilson,
Baxter Dury,
Cranes,
Milagres,
In Tua Nua, Codes, Conor Linnie, Ocho and more to be announced.
2013 festival The announcement of the 2013 festival was delayed significantly owing to a legal dispute regarding ownership of the festival between the festival's founder
POD Concerts and its majority shareholder
Festival Republic Dublin (FRD). Despite fears that Electric Picnic would not return in 2013, Electric Picnic was subsequently scheduled to take place between 30 August and 1 September. The initial line-up for the festival was announced on 25 April 2013 to much fanfare. The line-up included
Björk,
Fatboy Slim,
Robert Plant,
My Bloody Valentine,
Arctic Monkeys,
Franz Ferdinand,
Wu-Tang Clan,
David Byrne & St Vincent,
Eels,
Noah & The Whale,
Johnny Marr,
Disclosure,
Ocean Colour Scene,
Hurts,
Mick Flannery,
The Walkmen,
Baauer,
Tiga,
Warpaint,
Savages,
The Strypes, Poliça, Chvrches,
Parquet Courts,
Clinic,
Deap Vally and Soak.
2014 festival Electric Picnic 2014 took place at
Stradbally from 29 to 31 August, attended by 41,000 people. Early bird tickets went on sale on 19 March 2014. A Full weekend ticket cost €154.50 for purchasers who could prove they had been to three or more picnics, €174.50 for those who could prove they had been to the picnic once or twice previously. Tickets then increased to €194.50 until 4 July and, €229.50 after that date. Sunday tickets were priced at €90. Sunday tickets had sold out by 13 June. Full weekend tickets sold out on 31 July
2015 festival Electric Picnic 2015 took place at
Stradbally from 4 to 6 September. The first acts were announced in March 2015. There was speculation that the capacity would be raised from the present 42,000 to 47,000 to cater for increased demand. The headliners were Sam Smith, Blur, and Florence and the Machine.
Line ups Main Stage Friday:
Ryan Sheridan,
ABC,
Nas,
The 1975,
The Chemical Brothers Saturday: Trinity Orchestra,
Hermitage Green,
The Lightning Seeds,
Gavin James,
Catfish and the Bottlemen,
Bell X1,
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, LCD Soundsystem Sunday:
Dublin Gospel Choir,
Toots and the Maytals,
Local Natives,
James Bay,
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats,
New Order,
Lana Del Rey 2017 festival Electric Picnic 2017 took place on 1–3 September. It was headlined by
Duran Duran,
A Tribe Called Quest and
The xx.
Line ups Main Stage Friday: Little Hours,
Hudson Taylor,
The Divine Comedy,
London Grammar,
The xx Saturday:
Keywest,
The Strypes,
Giggs,
Madness,
Run the Jewels,
Phoenix,
A Tribe Called Quest,
Pete Tong Sunday:
Dublin Gospel Choir,
The Skatalites,
Rag'n'Bone Man,
The Pretenders,
Chaka Khan,
Elbow,
Duran Duran 2018 festival Electric Picnic 2018 took place at
Stradbally from 31 August to 2 September. Tickets for the festival sold-out in less than 24 hours after the lineup was announced in March 2018.
Main stage Friday • 10.40pm – midnight –
Kendrick Lamar • 9–10pm – Walking on Cars • 7:30 – 8:30pm – Chvrches • 6–7pm – Ash • 5–5:30pm – Brand New Friend
Saturday • 12:15 – 1:30am –
Massive Attack • 10:30 – 11:30pm – NERD • 8:45 – 9:45pm – Dua Lipa • 7–8pm – Gavin James • 5:15 – 6:15pm – Mavis Staples • 3:30 – 4:30pm – Gomez • 1:45 – 2:45pm – Hudson Taylor
Sunday • 10:30pm – midnight –
The Prodigy • 8:45 – 9:45pm – Picture This • 7–8pm – George Ezra • 5:30 – 6:30pm – Nile Rodgers & Chic • 4:15 – 5pm – Garbage • 2:30 – 3:30pm – Inner Circle • 1–2pm – Dublin Gospel Choir
2019 festival Electric Picnic 2019 took place at
Stradbally from 30 August to 1 September.
Friday • 10:30pm
Hozier • 9pm
Dermot Kennedy • 7:30pm
Billie Eilish • 6:00pm
Christine and the Queens Saturday • 11:30pm
The 1975 • 9:15pm
Royal Blood • 7:45pm
Kodaline • 6pm
Gerry Cinnamon • 4:30pm
Years & Years • 3:15pm Wild Youth • 1:45pm
The Riptide Movement • 6pm David Kennan
Sunday • 10:30pm
Florence and the Machine • 8:30pm
Tame Impala • 7pm
Richard Ashcroft • 5:30pm
Jess Glynne • 4:15pm
Razorlight • 2:30pm Soja • 1pm
Dublin Gospel Choir 2020 festival The 2020 event was cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
2021 festival The 2021 event was cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
2022 festival Electric Picnic 2022 took place at
Stradbally from 2 to 4 September after a gap of two years.
Dermot Kennedy,
Tame Impala and the
Arctic Monkeys headlined the festival. Almost 70,000 people attended the event. The HSE issued a drug warning to festivalgoers after "high strength"
MDMA with two times the average dose was found. An anonymous drug testing facility was set up at the festival for the first time.
2023 festival Electric Picnic 2023 took place at
Stradbally from 1 to 3 September.
Billie Eilish,
Fred Again and
The Killers headline the festival.
2024 festival Electric Picnic 2024 took place two weeks earlier than the traditional dates, from 16 to 18 August. The planned dates were not well received by local farmers, who cited issues with the festival taking place in the middle of harvest season. Festival director Melvin Benn stated the change was a once-off for 2024 to facilitate a particular artist. The lineup was met with widespread negative criticism on social media, primarily due to the headlining acts being perceived as less popular and relevant compared to those featured in previous years. A controversy arose over
greenwashing at the event – David Walsh-Kemmis, owner of Ballykilcavan Brewery, which is situated 2.5 km from the festival, complained that "It's extremely disheartening to see Electric Picnic, a festival that prides itself on supporting local culture and sustainability, completely stonewall us. Supplying this festival would make a significant positive impact on our small business, securing local jobs, creating temporary positions, and boosting the local economy." Instead of using local Irish breweries, the festival signed an exclusive deal with Heineken, brewed in Cork. Melvin Benn was quoted in media as saying that he had tasted Ballykilcavan's beers, and didn't like them, so wouldn't sell them. ==See also==