Electric Picnic 2023 in the sun was one to remember
Negro Impacto played at the Trailer Park at Electric Picnic 2023 on the Friday and were one of the highlights of the festival.
Last week I speculated that the change of date for next year might have been related to the Coldplay shows and Melvin Benn has deflected criticism of the change of date by promising that 2024 will be just a one-off. He has suggested that a specific artist’s availability next August was the main reason behind the switch but either way I’d imagine 2024’s event will sell out very quickly.
Electric Picnic is now one of the biggest festivals in Europe and I guess it had to go mainstream to expand so aggressively. From those early days as a small “boutique” festival it was an uncomfortable transition into this current juggernaut but this year I felt that they went back to the basics in some progressive ways too. When the Picnic started in in 2004 it was unlike anything else that was happening in Ireland at the time but as discussed here last time, other festivals have since surpassed it in this regard. Over the last few festivals I felt the Picnic had lost sight of what once made it great.
This year they got loads right. As someone with little personal interest in the big pop acts I was very impressed with what happened off the beaten tracks. This is what makes festivals such fun, and the best part of them often takes place in different areas miles away from the main stages. At the Electric Picnic, these areas were plentiful.
First up, let’s talk about Freetown. This area is located through the woods and in a spot that many festival goers might not even have known about, depending on where they were camping. Freetown started before the pandemic, and it’s really coming into its own. There’s a huge tent — around twice the size of the Marquee — playing banging techno but the real fun happens in the multiple smaller bars and venues where a host of different DJs, artists, and performers bring their own unique colourful vibes to the festival.
I spent most of Saturday and Sunday evenings exploring these different areas where DJs such as Rosa, JWY, Angi, Eddie, and many more I’ve never previously heard provided the soundtrack. The music was great but there were other performers from many other disciplines bringing their own energy and vibe to what was an incredible area all weekend. It was a million miles away from the main stage big pop outlook and like Body and Soul in the old days, it was a festival within a festival.
Body and Soul is now gone from the Picnic and there were some worthy attempts to revitalise that area of it with Croí, who hosted some wonderful artists and areas this time around. It’s still lacking something but this area has huge potential, but will only succeed when it gets its own identity.
The usual favourites remain, and The Salty Dog, Trenchtown, Fishtown, and others continue to bring fun to the woods, while in the main arena the Trailer Park has always got some good stuff going on. Negro Impacto played there on Friday and were one of my personal highlights of the Picnic.
Elsewhere in the main arena there are some beautiful areas: Global Green, which continues to push transformative ideas, conversations and activities. I did a gig for Safe Gigs and Creativity and Change which was great fun, and I spent a lot of time in this arena each day.
The Greencrafts village next door was fantastic and also provided a nice contrast to the neighbouring main stage and huge commercial fun fairs. All of the big brands did their thing, and some, like Heineken, Red Bull, and Bacardi, have been part of the Electric Picnic for many years now.
Besides the main stage the bigger tents were lively too, and my own favourite act of the weekend, Steve Lacy, tore up the Electric Arena on Friday night.
Everyone will have their own memories, but overall it was a great weekend. The sun came out like never before and Electric Picnic 2023 came and went and for once it felt like the start of the summer rather than the end.
