Electric Picnic 2019 **Discussion Only // No Ticket Sales / Requests **

Reggie noble

What a weekend , absolutely savage . Weather was A1 bar being a bit nippy Sunday , saw tons of acts in various areas and met loads of sound people (the random chats are great)

Friday : My wife and I got to stradbally Friday around 2.30/3 , was aiming for green car park as we always park there previous years and wanted to stick to what we know but we got ushered into the red one which was grand in the end as it’s a shorter walk to get inside than I’m used to .
We sleep in the car (it’s actually much better than it sounds) so parked up ready to go.

As usual first night festival antics hit me and I got too twisted so I’m a bit hazy.
First act we saw Friday was smash hits , good craic.
Then Billie Eilish , over rated but not bad.
Onto Kettama next - can’t remember any of it but I bopped loads
Stayed in terminus for Amelie lens , Same as above , wife remembers more and said she was deadly.
Then we went to spike island and had a bit of craic there before bed.
Only ate once Friday , Thai red curry and it was poor enough .

Saturday : Slept till 10.45 sat morn , which I’m shocked at , never normally sleep that Long .
Had a Few bottles at the car for breakfast then on into beach boys tribute in trailer park , very good way to start the day .
Had time to kill so went over and petted them lovely little dogs over by the horses , so cute. Went to bingo loco at today FM tent for 20 mins , bit of craic .
Into that apres ski spot for 2 minutes for a gawk. Then onto the inflatable church for 10 mins , great craic in there . The red haired priest lad looks like frank carter .
Then we went to riptide movement for 3 or 4 songs , sprawled out n had a beer in the sun.
Next up was joe Rooney in comedy tent , very funny , great impression of Christy Moore chatting to Kurt cobain.
Seen bono in the tent listening to David McWilliams after that .
Met up with friends and went to Gerry cinnamon. Literally didn’t hear one song as we were chatting at the very back drinking pints , I know , brutal form . Raging I didn’t pay attention .
Then we went To Charli XCX for a bit, would’ve liked to of stayed longer but followed the crowd we were with to bonnie Tyler .
I snapped outta my buzz then and got away from that crowd , so me and my wife hit Metronomy , savage , so funky . Great bopping
Next onto Richie hawton, not for me , I could’ve swore he played the exact same beat for 25 mins , cat repetitive.
Next up was the strokes , class , loved every second of it , they’re the reason I went this year after a 2 year break from EP. Had no beef with Julian , I’m hearing a few did. Loved them.
Next up we went back out to the car and stocked up on drinks then back in for kelly Ann Byrne, very good . My wife hit the sack then and I went into Jerry fish , dono who was playing but I had a good bop there too then home to bed .
Food was much better today , had a lovely pepperoni pizza , curry chip , gourmet sausage and home fries and brisket bap all through the day , all very tasty .

Sunday - fairly seedy waking up , didn’t sleep as long as Friday night . Headed into John collerary in the comedy tent , poor enough .
Got duck chips after that , they were cold and rotten , bad start to the day .
Yonaka next up , great little set , dono how they aren’t bigger when you see some of the ****e that makes the big stages (1975), love the front woman .
Next up we got last 20 mins of King Kong kompany , brilliant , got me right back in the form . Surely they’re main stage level next year as the dance closer on Saturday night . Would’ve been brilliant after the strokes . Nice touch bringing 61 year old Mary out .
Next up Razorlight , not great but Ok .
Then Johnny marr , brilliant , handled the technical issues great . Onto MO next , I was getting pretty tired at this stage , she has a couple of great tunes but I couldn’t get into it too much due to my own tiredness . Lastly we had the streets , I’m a huge fan of theirs , seen them in the Olympia earlier this year and that was a better gig . Don’t get me wrong , I enjoyed them tonight but there was a bit too much ****e talk with ur one crowd surfing etc .
Had a lovely pizza next then we headed home , wife drove n didn’t drink Sunday . Home, showered in bed in Kilkenny by 1.30

Special shout out to the older couple I met who snuck all their drink into the main arena in their friends 9 year old daughters wheel chair. Dedication

Epic weekend , have zero complaints , saw no trouble , security sound ,they didn’t catch me sneaking drink in , all people I met in great form , roll on next year. Safe home everyone , I can’t sleep so did my rambling review now

kg703

Excited to read all the reviews, away in the states so can't go through all the past few days posts but very interested to see if the changes made were for the better / worse??

Pics looked great, crowds looked huge!

Love the meet up pic

BadTurtle

So what's the verdict, lads?
Is it too crowded or have Freetown and the site/campsite rejigging helped alleviate the worst of it?
Have the Salty Dog and Trenchtown lost their souls?

SQ2

Holy mother of Jehovah... The Scratch!! Nuts!

Reded

BadTurtle wrote: »

So what's the verdict, lads?
Is it too crowded or have Freetown and the site/campsite rejigging helped alleviate the worst of it?
Have the Salty Dog and Trenchtown lost their souls?

I don’t think they’ve lost their soul! But they are certainly more crowded! The providencia area imo didn’t fit with terminus two very different vibes the latter got lost! It was needed however to alleviate the crowds which was felt at times particularly in main stage for certain acts eg Billie Eilish... sooooooo many teenagers the 12-18 year old ban clearly not effective! Anyway I’m still horizontal in stradbally - great weekend was had!

everlast75

Reded wrote: »

I don’t think they’ve lost their soul! But they are certainly more crowded! The providencia area imo didn’t fit with terminus two very different vibes the latter got lost! It was needed however to alleviate the crowds which was felt at times particularly in main stage for certain acts eg Billie Eilish... sooooooo many teenagers the 12-18 year old ban clearly not effective! Anyway I’m still horizontal in stradbally - great weekend was had!

On the point of young folk, was at the Wha last night for a bit. Saw this young girl out of her head with a bloke who was far more together. Didn't get a good vibe from him at all. I watched the 2 of them for a bit and figured that if anything happened, there's no way she knew what she was doing. We tried to have a word with your man but the extent to which he was going to help her was to grab a can and give her some, so i nabbed a security guard, filled him in and told him that at the very least, she needed medical attention. We headed off as he went over with purpose to intervene.

riddles

Went in the salty dog Friday. Bar area was a disgrace - as was the decision to hang ****ting smelling sea weed everywhere. And to cover the tables in sh1t. That said Roadhouse Doors and This Charming Man were great. Didn't bother going back to it over the weekend.

Lots of great music highlights over the three days. Technical issues during Johnny Marr :-(
Ashcroft, Gerry Cinnamon and Dermot Kennedy very good.

Food Siam thai extremely poor fare one to be avoided - big drop on last year. Kinara Indian beautiful.
Repeatedly getting short changed at the bar was a pain and having to get it corrected until I started with the card.

Crowds no worse than last year - I thought better vibe this year.
Live in locality - despite all the messages from guards not to drink and drive - our taxi guy took a back road and the guards wouldn't let him through and he ended up on the athy road took us an hour and a bit to get a 10 min journey - guard on the Vicarstown road at circa 2.30 yesterday karma will work its magic.

Traffic management was a joke at that time yesterday - bloody slow learners after 15 years :-( pain in the B*llix if you had a one day ticket.

In spite all the obvious greed that has unfolded it was still a great weekend. but if I wasn't a taxi ride away I would not consider going in a million years. Hozier as I expected is not a main stage act. The 1975 are a strange lot never heard them before kicked off sounding like the sex pistols and then morphed into Michael Bolton WTF.

All in I would say its past its peak and now in decline just how fast that is remains to be seen. Line up was just at the point of acceptable.
The academics could have been a main stage act at the very least electric arena.

Ricosruffneck

everlast75 wrote: »

On the point of young folk, was at the Wha last night for a bit. Saw this young girl out of her head with a bloke who was far more together. Didn't get a good vibe from him at all. I watched the 2 of them for a bit and figured that if anything happened, there's no way she knew what she was doing. We tried to have a word with your man but the extent to which he was going to help her was to grab a can and give her some, so i nabbed a security guard, filled him in and told him that at the very least, she needed medical attention. We headed off as he went over with purpose to intervene.

If it was the skinny blonde and the guy with baseball cap it was a can of energy drink he was giving her to wake her up a bit. Also water was being given by another friend of hers.

He seemed fine to me. Saw her later, still alive.

Stillill42

One of the great picnics for me. Roadhouse Doors Friday afternoon, met Seathrun and Mucker, followed by TCM and a big gang of other Boardsies. Brilliant way to kick off the weekend, I heartily recommend it. There were at least 1 or 2 at every gig for the rest of the weekend and you could have a chat or just exchange a smile or a clap on the back or even a quick pint. Incredibly sound bunch, every one of them. The pic doesn't do it justice, lots more not in there that I ran into over the next few days. Loved the interaction.

I'm not on site so I have no dog in the great can debate but the changes were great for me. Freetown is a lovely area. I only had a wander as it's not really my music up there but it took lots of pressure off the main arena. Spike Island is a lovely little spot, saw some nice bits and pieces there, an overdue replacement for Jimmie Lee's Juke Joint. Nice sitting area outside too. Enjoyed an impromptu banjo session there Saturday afternoon.

Salty Dog doesn't seem to have lost any of it's charm to me. In addition to Friday, saw the Galway Street Club there Sunday morning, mighty craic. Ease of access to Salty Dog a huge plus for me.

New Made for Music stage a bit mismanaged. They've done a great job on it but I didn't see a sign post for it all weekend. Lots of great acts played there over the 3 days to very small crowds. It has big potential, though. Not the old OV set up, it's an open area now with a can bar.

Some barriers up at stages in the main arena to mitigate against sound bleed, successful for Cosby, not so much for poor old Jerry. They've caged in the abomination beside him but bizarrely opened out the front of the Heineken place, still a lot of noise for Jerry's tent.

Main Stage looks amazing now. Those wraparound screens are fantastic and the sound for the Strokes and Ashcroft was brilliant.

Lots of highlights, Strokes (Julian notwithstanding), Sports Team, White Reaper, Powpig, Thumper, Echo and the Bunnymen, Lamb, Touts, Bodega, Mitski, Odd Morris, The Clockworks but pride of place to Johnny and Courtney Barnett. Johnny had the Electric Arena in the palm of his hands, I was right up there to help him crowd surf and if you had told me my time was up after How Soon Is Now, I would have died a happy man. Courtney Barnett was electric, I saw a lot of guitar over the weekend but she blew me away.

Every toilet I visited had loo roll, never came across an empty sanitiser, every interaction I had was lovely, the sun shone...EP still rules, lads.

riddles

Question on the loyalty scheme (what is the discount for - If you have purchased tickets to 1 or 2 previous Electric Picnics.)

There are 2 discounts available and they apply to the following:
If you have purchased tickets to any 3 or more previous Electric Picnics
If you have purchased tickets to 1 or 2 previous Electric Picnics.
The closing date to register for the Electric Picnic 2020 Loyalty Scheme is Wednesday 04 of September at 8am CET.

Ricosruffneck

Fav stage of the fest had to have been the new 3made by Music stage,

Caught Serpentwithfeet, the Scratch, Cassia who were my band of the fest, missus loved IDER as did I.

Lovely tucked away tented area with good vibes and music fans.

Abandoman was hilarious improv rapping

Special moment for me was eating breakfast listening to the amazing Bootleg Beach Boys as the clouds cleared for the sun.

Strokes were my headliner, hozier and his very talented band were awesome.

Despite not hardly understanding his words, the streets were a great party to send me off.

Lords of strut and foil arms and hog were also great.

Great food, music, classes and massages. Great Pink moon again.

King of fests. See you in the 2020.

everlast75

Ricosruffneck wrote: »

If it was the skinny blonde and the guy with baseball cap it was a can of energy drink he was giving her to wake her up a bit. Also water was being given by another friend of hers.

He seemed fine to me. Saw her later, still alive.

Very glad to hear it. She looked so out of it, she literally bounced off the chairs multiple times. Felt like the right thing to do to get security to take a look.

Ricosruffneck

everlast75 wrote: »

Very glad to hear it. She looked so out of it, she literally bounced off the chairs multiple times. Felt like the right thing to do to get security to take a look.

Wha did you think about the Wha?

I didn't get the hype.

Ricosruffneck

everlast75 wrote: »

Very glad to hear it. She looked so out of it, she literally bounced off the chairs multiple times. Felt like the right thing to do to get security to take a look.

Yes can confirm, she was a human pinball.

But a very smiley happy one, despite being so intoxicated.

everlast75

Ricosruffneck wrote: »

Wha did you think about the Wha?

I didn't get the hype.

Didn't stick around for long tbh, it was clashville for a few hours last night.

sweetie

riddles wrote: »

Crowds no worse than last year - I thought better vibe this year.
Live in locality - despite all the messages from guards not to drink and drive - our taxi guy took a back road and the guards wouldn't let him through and he ended up on the athy road took us an hour and a bit to get a 10 min journey - guard on the Vicarstown road at circa 2.30 yesterday karma will work its magic.

That guard was being a dick, we're locals too and drive in from Vicarstown and last year he waved the brother in law on no bother, had a bit of a chat. Yesterday he sent us down a bloody narrow boreen meeting cars with no room to pass etc. We circled back, tried him again to no avail and then went at the town from a different angle and got in via the heath, I think. 30 mins but still annoying!

My highlight yesterday was Let's Eat Grandma!

Not in Kansas

Loving the post mortems rolling in. One thing I noticed over the weekend was a few Boardsies mentioning low turnouts for acts. Some were poor signage but others seemed to be just poor showings.

I also noticed on the 17,000 member Electric Picnic Banter FB Page (I ended up there by a mistaken click...don't bother) that none of said 'banter' is about music!

Wouldn't have to be Sherlock to figure out the link there!

Spreece

A controversial topic on this forum is the1975. I totally understand the sentiment and I always thought that they were a bit plastic for my liking.

I went along Saturday as a determined cynic with a closed mind but have to admit that they really impressed me.

The melodies are insanely catchy, Healy’s vocal performance was perfect. Light and sound show was spectacular and the only downer was the absurd lecture from Greta Thunberg about climate change while we guzzled from our plastic beer glasses.

I don’t know if I’ll ever listen to them again but that 90 minutes was definitely memorable.

Any other cynics prepared to admit that they were ....maybe not that bad??

AdamD

Spreece wrote: »

A controversial topic on this forum is the1975. I totally understand the sentiment and I always thought that they were a bit plastic for my liking.

I went along Saturday as a determined cynic with a closed mind but have to admit that they really impressed me.

The melodies are insanely catchy, Healy’s vocal performance was perfect. Light and sound show was spectacular and the only downer was the absurd lecture from Greta Thunberg about climate change while we guzzled from our plastic beer glasses.

I don’t know if I’ll ever listen to them again but that 90 minutes was definitely memorable.

Any other cynics prepared to admit that they were ....maybe not that bad??

Wasn't at EP this year but saw them at Sziget a few weeks ago and they put on a great show

Mucker46

Bar the obvious big crowds leaving certain gigs, gerry cinnamon billie etc. I thought it felt less crowded this year. Didn't notice much of a difference with salty dog still enthusiastic crowds. 3 made by music crowds certainly down on ov crowds. Some of that is the acts but definitely not marketed as well as the ov tent. Didnt make it to freetown other than the long walk in on friday.
Old man gripe: at the big bars why cant they sell the same beers, applemans not available at all bars. Even on cans could get applemans in 3 but not at SD. Much prefer applemans to orchard thieves but had to resort to OT sometimes.
First world problems at a brilliant weekend

riddles

Not in Kansas wrote: »

Loving the post mortems rolling in. One thing I noticed over the weekend was a few Boardsies mentioning low turnouts for acts. Some were poor signage but others seemed to be just poor showings.

I also noticed on the 17,000 member Electric Picnic Banter FB Page (I ended up there by a mistaken click...don't bother) that none of said 'banter' is about music!


Wouldn't have to be Sherlock to figure out the link there!

Bit like any major event people are there to be there. People incessantly talking at the top of their voices during performances. Same as all Ireland day or Ireland home games in the six nations - bandwagon punters

Seathrun66

Spreece wrote: »

A controversial topic on this forum is the1975. I totally understand the sentiment and I always thought that they were a bit plastic for my liking.

I went along Saturday as a determined cynic with a closed mind but have to admit that they really impressed me.

The melodies are insanely catchy, Healy’s vocal performance was perfect. Light and sound show was spectacular and the only downer was the absurd lecture from Greta Thunberg about climate change while we guzzled from our plastic beer glasses.

I don’t know if I’ll ever listen to them again but that 90 minutes was definitely memorable.

Any other cynics prepared to admit that they were ....maybe not that bad??

Caught them at Pohoda during the Summer and wasn't my thing at all. Their slogans and images on screen were infantile but I will concede that they put in the effort and for fans at EP their main stage slot was probably enormously exciting. All I want from the Picnic is for people to enjoy what gives them a buzz and if The 1975, Kodaline, Gavin James and others gave people joy then that all adds to a happier festival.

PS. I've got huge admiration for Greta Thunberg. Right-wing media backlash against her is just a distraction.

everlast75

Not in Kansas wrote: »

Loving the post mortems rolling in. One thing I noticed over the weekend was a few Boardsies mentioning low turnouts for acts. Some were poor signage but others seemed to be just poor showings.

I also noticed on the 17,000 member Electric Picnic Banter FB Page (I ended up there by a mistaken click...don't bother) that none of said 'banter' is about music!

Wouldn't have to be Sherlock to figure out the link there!

I'm guessing its either a swingers party or drugs... or both.

Scooby rot

Highlights for me were Richard Ashcroft, The 1975(Really surprised me), & Florence.
As get up and move Billie Ellish and Gerry Cinnamon really got the crowd going, still can't believe she is 17!
Underwhelmed by Hozier and I thought that The Stroke performance was poor(perhaps I was wasted)
King Kong Company at Body and Soul were amazing last night!
The DJ at the Art lot was great too.
F*CK BERLIN, THIS IS GLASNEVIN!

Kepler21

I had a wonderful weekend, which I will try to summarise in as many words as possible, to avoid having to do any work

I usually go on my own, so it is mainly about the music for me. The boardsies meetup was great, to see so many people from here, and run into them for random chats and gig sharing vibes over the weekend. Really enhanced my weekend.

First time going on Thursday, and while I enjoyed it , it raised a number of issues:

• Funnelling everyone to the Green Car Park made entry very slow, but of course saved on staff
• Expanding the Arena into Salty Dog and (old) Wilde/Freetown means that there is only one path around, and its a long way from the Paintball entrance to Hendrix.
• Salty Dog and Hazelwood were nice on Thursday, but sparsely populated, partly because the Freetown arena entrance was closed, forcing a long walk around to the entrance in Hendrix. Shockingly disrespectful to the Thursday artists.

Camped in ECO, which was great, lovely vibe, lovely people, not lovely being so close to the Rave in the Woods but would not go anywhere else. Slept well every night. There are only Loowatt toilets in ECO, and toilets outside are at the end of Chaplin and Wilde, both of which are quite a distance away. Late night necessities were a challenge.

Overall, I liked the Freetown area, it felt like a prototype that will be expanded on next year. There is more space in that field to do more with it. Spike Island was a lovely spot to drop in and sample the music. Providencia was nice to walk through once, with quirky spots, but not enough to bring me back. Maybe someone who spent some time in Terminus could comment how the food places were for them?
The Salty Dog change was mostly positive as I went to a couple of bands there and in the Made for Music stage that i would not have gone to if it meant leaving the Arena.
However there are now two sides and slow to get between them. There should be more food stalls on the Wilde/Chaplin/ECO side, and there should be showers on that side as well.

Security was quite mixed. Often cursory inspections of backpack etc, other times quite thorough pat downs observed (maybe because I'm an old guy i don't look like like I bringing in what they're searching for?
I did see the medical folks driving/stretchering off one guy on Sunday afternoon from near Rankins, but don't know what happened.

With the 8,000 capacity of Freetown, I feel that I noticed that it was less jammed in the main arena than the last couple of years, but it could be me. Exceptions were Billie Eilish when the campsites emptied to the main Stage, and a couple of lesser times.
The cacophony battle between Casa Bacardi on one side and Today FM Soundgarden was awful. I hated walking down that area because of it. They put up Wooden screens to try and block some sound between the main tents but there was still a lot of sound bleed. Heineken Stage and Jerry Fish facing each other with only a wooden screen in between wasn't good for Jerry. Even the main stage had more sound bleed from other areas than I remember in other years.

The weather held up really well; the only awful weather being from 2-6am Friday night/Sat morning, with a couple of showers occasionally Friday morning and Sunday.

The Music
I think I saw some of about 42 acts, which probably means I bounced around more than usual.
Friday: Highlights: Billie, Dermot Kennedy and the Roadhouse Doors/TCM combo. Hozier was OK. Galway Street Club and Cooks But We're Chefs bookended the day.
Saturday: Kicked off with a few boardsies at the Bootleg Beach Boys, great craic. Inhaler, Biig Piig, Freya Ridings, Gerry Cinnamon and Maverick Sabre were all really good, but the last 4 clashing was a real shame and meant I got less of all of them than I wanted.
Foil, Arms and Hogg on Comedy Stage were great. Sons of Kemet were incredible, something like Techno Sax and Tuba that you can't keep still to. Brittany Howard was superb, highlight was Lamb on Body and Soul late night. Tried the Strokes but Julians ramblings put me off, so I left.
Sunday: Traditional start with the Dublin Gospel Choir; then Yonaka and Powpig on Made by Music stage were both excellent (although Powpig all looked about 15). Dropped into the Wha to take some photos of them and enjoyed them more than I expected. Apart from the excellent Johnny Marr, bounced around stuff that was OK until the final clash almighty of my 3 favourites of Florence, Courtney Barnett and Michael Kiwanuka, none of which disappointed

So overall, one of the best Picnics yet. Thank you for the input and opinions over the last months, and especially to the really nice decent people behind the Boards nicknames that I got to share the weekend with. I am already looking forward to seeing you next year.

Seathrun66

I know it's traditional to say that you've been to one of the best Picnics, but hey, when you have what else is to be said? And in a possible case of hyperbole I'd like to add that EP is not only the best festival on this island but amongst the best in Europe. I've been to a fair few in the UK and mainland Europe and for me only Glastonbury has the breadth of music, art and variety that the Picnic continues to offer. It also helped that the traffic was pretty easy, the weather ideal (overnight rain and one small shower was a blessing given the forecasts), the company great and the music intoxicating. There's a lot of pop and blander guitar music that most posters here aren't into. Yet there's always much to see for indie/dance fans, I always have clashes and can compile a great alternative festival every year from the acts I didn't get to see.

Firstly, thanks to all the Boardsies for the great company over the weekend. The meet up at TCM was fun and good to bump into you all at different times over the weekend. What a lovely bunch you all are and see you circa 5pm on Friday 28 August 2020 (tickets on sale on Sat at 9am). Cover bands again hugely enjoyable to start the days - TCM & RDs up to their usual high standards but the Bootleg Beach Boys on a sunny early Saturday were probably the highlight. Seven/Eight boardsies there including Busher & his wife having a ball dancing on the table. If only all days could start like that.

Very few negative aspects but I'l reiterate Stillill's point about the 3 Stage not being signposted well (or at all). I also felt the stage organiser missed a trick by not booking a crowd-puller to start the weekend (say Booka Brass) and thus let people know about the setting. And yet again why can't people put their litter in bins? Loads of stuff strewn about on the way in. I assume that loads of people left tents and rubbish in the fields and that's something that we as a society must sort out, not concert promoters. I also think they need to remove the viewing stand closest to the large bar at the back of the main stage. Or all three of them. Bottlenecks could turn bad and it just takes one bad incident to create a tragedy. And Jerry Fish continues to require more noise protection. Glad the Logic stage has been part-silenced but alas the Heineken stage has ramped up the volume. And adds little to nothing to the fest. I'd also shut down that bandstand at the entrance to Body & Soul near their main stage. I didn't hear any live stuff there, only monotonous dance stuff and they entirely ruined Jessica Pratt's set. Why book an artist with a Laurel Canyon set when you're going to not allow her to be heard. I like the new location for the Haunt but maybe having it back in its old spot would mean the removal of that stand. And nattering during acts. Unlikely to cease anytime soon but the talk during Biig Piig entirely ruined her act for me. Hope to catch her again with a more discerning and sensitive audience.

The positive aspects were legion. Did I mention the sun? I really didn't expect to have to apply suncream on Sat & Sun morning. What a pleasurable chore to endure when rainfall was the expected default setting. Toilets all clean. Volunteers cleaning up regularly (though I wish they had less to do). And I loved the new layout. I liked Spike Island, Terminus took lots of people away from the main arena and Providencia seemed good but I was there very late at night when most was shut down. In terms of cans i took them in on Fri & Sat with only cursory checks. As I asked before the fest were security advised to be a little more lax this year due to the changes? Lots of people with tins by the SD and in the main arena. Security, volunteers, food and bar staff as nice as ever.

Music wise it was excellent. The Strokes were stunning, the sound and their playing was flawless as were Casablancas' vocals. He annoyed some people but i found him hilarious. I don't believe that he was patronising, just trying to engage with the crowd and band but struggling to get the vocabulary right. And those screens! No wonder they were impressed. State of the Art stuff that looks better every passing year. Bunnymen great as ever but I though Mac was going through the motions a little and I'd have liked them a little louder. Caught half of lots of acts and even less of some others so can't fully judge them all but I enjoyed some of the pop stuff (Charli XCX, Billie Eilish), found Christine & the Queens to have great choreography but as Scruff said to me - all their tunes sound the same. Tilted still great though. Yves Tumour was eccentric and I'm trying to work out whether he was something astonishing or a clever charlatan. Get back to me on that. Duff McKagan was charming and wonderful, I could have watched a lot more of that. Guitar bands were the main thing for me though and what a lot of great ones there were, many of whom were local and give me great hope for the next decade or two - Montauk Hotel, Powpig, Khartoum, Sports Club, Working Men's Club, Just Mustard, The Claque, Thumper, Shogunz of Skank, Fonda, The clockworks, Inhaler, Silverbacks, Odd Morris & Martian Subculture. Would happily see each and all of those acts again. Though only two days there I calculated that I caught 23 hours of music as very few breaks between acts on either day. Clash central is not a bad complaint.

And so thanks again EP and all you great people who contributed to my experience. Twas a pleasure indeed.

(And apologies for the over-verbosity above).

NoviGlitzko

I miss dancing so much.

tvercetti

Eco was very good, great location, surprised by how much space was there but nearly everyone we met had spare Eco tickets. They had booked too many or someone dropped out. Could have fit a nice few more in there not that I was complaining, rathered it the way it was.

Missed the Boards meetup, was smashing through the cans with neighbours in the campsite. Apologies.

Loowatt was decent although by Sunday afternoon, there were alot of issues with them not flushing anymore. Being told certain cubicles were now for pee only.

Food as always was top class, Pieman, Cheesy Bread, Kinara and all those Stone baked pizzas were the pick.

We were blessed with the weather after what was predicted earlier in the week.

I'm not too bothered by the whole kids debate, the under 12's being there isnt effecting my time but the amount of 12 - 18 year olds around the place on Sunday afternoon was mad. Not sure where they all appeared from, were they getting Sunday tickets or buying tickets from people leaving.

Sunday had such a great lineup, think I went:
KKC - Kinda wished I got there early and got into the madness
Razorlight - Thought they put on a good showing
Marr - Obvious sound issues but handled it like a hero
Ashcroft - Loved it but surprised by how small the crowd was
David O'Doherty - Legs needed a rest
The Streets - Highlight of my weekend, loved it

I did run into the young crowd leaving Terminus at midnight on Sunday so from that point of view, the new area did a great job of separating that crowd from us less young adults. Spike Island looked great but never really got a chance to hangout there. Think there was a Burlesque place too but didn't make it in.

Great weekend overall even if most of Friday is a blur.

Mrs Shuttleworth

Puzzled that Christine and Queens drew a small crowd - she's brilliant!

Ricosruffneck

Those main stage screens.

Amazing, I travelled all the way to Mad cool festival to see them and then they ended up going back to using smaller screens.

Pleasantly surprised to see them being used in stradbally.