Electric Picnic 2024 **No Ticket Sales / Requests** - Waiting in line, terrible time, over familiar

Well said Wooderson.

Regardless of opinions on the artists booked, I think it would be a bit mad to expect it to be on a par with Glastonbury. Glasto has attendance 3x what EP pulls and just has a way bigger legacy due to being decades older and originating from a time when there was a lot less competition.

Tbh, a lot of the issue just kind of sounds like it comes down to personal tastes of who is booked. "Quality" is really a pretty subjective thing. Who is it you're wanting to bring back who you're sure is not going to be playing there now? If I look back 10 years to 2014, most of the headline acts don't look to me like they'd be totally out of place on the 2024 poster.

Paolo Nutini actually headlined both festivals, which I think should serve as an indication that it hasn't really changed that drastically. You also had Arctic Monkeys in both 2013 and again in 2022. The Killers headlined last year too after having previously headlined in 2012. Fair enough that there are some acts like Niall Horan or The Script that I wouldn't be keen on myself, but my point is more that I still don't feel like I would be shocked to see 2014 headliners like Mogwai, Chic, Foals, Outkast, or Beck on the poster for any recent years. Maybe a few of them wouldn't get top billing anymore but still. And last year had enough of acts I'd consider pretty decent down the list too (Idles, Johnny Marr, Steve Lacy, Viagra Boys, Young Fathers) that I probably would have been happy enough anyway.

Tbh a lot of the ones I would be more inclined to avoid (like the aforementioned Script and Niall Horan), I expect to see up there anyway just because they're big Irish acts and a big Irish festival is going to tend to book at least a few big Irish acts most years. I really think that has more to do with just playing to an Irish audience than any attempt to dumb things down or appeal to a younger crowd.

We're destined to spend the rest of our lives having the same arguments. It's feck all to do with the headliners, I'd just boil it down to the belief that the booking conversations are music ones rather just financial ones. Of course music is subjective but anyone telling me that it's impossible to run an EP sized festival without sacrificing the quality is full of ****. Have your Paolo Nutini but balance it with an interesting act that I've never heard of that doesn't gig here every 2 weeks instead of the Coronas. For fecks sake, there's great small international acts on every week in the Grand Social or Whelans or the Workman's or whatever. Plenty of them on the festival circuit. They'd cost very little. Give Foggy Notions their tent back. It's never happening but it's entirely doable. Let's everyone agree that they see where the frustration comes from and leave it at that.

The direction of EP has changed but some peoples expectations of it haven't. They still see it as the festival it was 10/15 years ago and they just aren't the target audience for it anymore. 

If you've got "eclectic taste", as someone mentioned earlier, EP probably isn't the festival for you. "Bland" music tends to have a broader appeal so that's what you're going to get. Of course they could curate more varied lineups but why would they bother? Why take on that added risk and cost to bring in a crowd that they don't need? It'll sell out either way. You can try to dress it up any way you like, culturally important, Ireland's biggest festival etc. but at the end of the day it's a business, they are out to make a profit.

Do they pay more to the Irish acts? I would have assumed it was the opposite like you say with Glastonbury, and that the reason there's always a few of them high on the poster is that they're relatively cheap for the size of a crowd who will see them here.

I don't know how much we can really say in terms of trends between 2018 and now though. There have only been 3 actual events in that time since covid knocked out 2 of them, and even then I'd say most people aren't referring to 2019 when talking about the differences.

For the record in case I come off too optimistic, I'm not supremely confident that 2024 will have a great lineup. I have it in the back of my head that I am very ready to sell my tickets if it's not one I'm interested in, and a repeat of 2023 would be a borderline sell for me, I just don't think it's going to be that accurate to be making big predicitons based on what is really just the last 2 years of lineups.

Without a doubt no regular posters for either Coldplay or Adele, unless you have posts saying orherwise. RHCP regularly play festivals, not the draw they once were and easily within reach of EP. They played the 55k capacity NOS Alive, the 70k Pinkpop and the 45k Tinderbox festivals in Euripe last Summer. EP is bigger than all and has vastly more cash as it charges more for tickets than each of them.

Every generation has bland music. No previous generation has had such bland acts headlining its music festivals. Good luck debating that on here.

Glastonbury has less than twice the attendees of EP (140k to 75k). In a country with thirteen times the population of the Republic. The Picnic is thus proportionally seven times greater given its native population. It has the potential to be as significant a festival in Irish terms but needs smarter curation. TV coverage would help as it has significantly for Glasto. I understand the rationale for booking popular acts that have short-term and limited artistic appeal. Keeps many of the good folk happy.

There is, however, no excuse for having a narrower booking system that excludes African, successful reggae and heritage acts and has reined in the international hip-hop acts of late. You tried to foolishly justify that in 2022 by stating that EP had no history of booking hip-hop acts. This was despite past lineups being a who’s who of American rap acts from The Sugarhill Gang to Kendrick Lamar with everyone affordable (and I mean everyone) of note in between.

It ain’t hard to have a diverse festival. it really ain’t hard.

It would always help but did that joint booking policy apply to any of the smaller 2023 festivals I mentioned? All had less cash than EP.

A few pages back people were talking about Adele.

RHCP do play festivals in europe but nearly always the likes of Rockwerchter, or Nos Alive which are really just a one big stage and 3 or 4 small stage festivals set up not like EP that 30 plus stages that can thus afford to play €1m plus to RHCP. Plus RHCP are enormously popular here so it in there interest to do headline shows for more money than a EP slot.

the likes of the black Crowes, Travis, stereophonics, kings of Leon, Mumford and sons headlined Glastonbury in last two decades. All terrible bland music that’s no better than picture this.

I said EP has booked a few hip hop acts over the years and that it was never a key part of its booking policy. OutKast, wu tang, Joey badass, Nas and Jurassic 5. EP books a handful of international hip hop acts a year out of a 100 plus acts on the main stages.

the excuse for not booking a ton of legacy hip hop acts, reggae or heritage acts is that’s it’s a festival aimed for the youth. It’s try to please target audience of 18-30’s year olds. It wants to book the acts that age group love in droves. Festival republic has a dedicated hip hop festival in ireland in longitude in recent years so that impacts current hip bookings for EP

its covers alot of genres throughout its stages.

you seem to be obsessed that EP should have the depth and breath of acts that Glastonbury has even though Glastonbury is 3 times the size of EP.

i’m been to dozens of festivals across europe and none that approach the size of EP cover as many genres or have as many stages as EP. Roskilde which is bigger than EP only has 9 stages. Pukkelpop the same. Rockwerchter has 4 stages.

That’s fair enough. Expectations have long been lowered but for how long can we continue lowering them?

When another poster consistently states that EP cannot have a wide breadth of acts and only book acts that will appeal to a younger demographic then I consider it to be nonsense. There’s enough cash, stages and keen music fans to allow the provision of an eclectic range of acts.

Glasto does it on a larger scale. It ain’t difficult.

God be with the days when all we were whining about was Nile Rodgers playing again!

In fairness, pretty sure one or two nights were free gigs for HSE&NHS workers and families which fair play to them even if I don't like them but its unlikely they would have done that many nights if they weren't free gigs, not sure if they sold out all nights there and Musgrave either. I still think it's unlikely they'll play a stadium here again, maybe a smaller one but feel they're miles past their hey day of playing Croke park, time will tell.

And no there's not many Irish bands who would in the past have sold 60k-80k stadiums but we've seen that's not the benchmark for sub headlining EP, Picture This most recently played 2 nights in the 3 arena and sub headlined festival the year before. There's at least 8 Irish acts I can think of at arena level, we've had at least 5 Irish headliners in the past 4 picnics I can think of off hand think of another 3 who could. And Glastonbury have made it a prestige thing and acts will play it and won't cost as much as have generally less overheads than travelling abroad (unless they've to haul set/equipment on a tour) Vs here it's whichever Irish artist is flavour of the month throw a pile of money at to get to play it as precedence has been set.

And as @Seathrun66 said there are plenty of us here in our mid-twenties who would love lots more Hip hop and Reggae acts. I remember at B&S on year Chronixx was booked and had a huge crowd when I was there, and countless hip hop gigs I've been to incl 90s acts have had big crowds of all ages, would absolutely love Nas to be booked as mentioned one I've yet to see. And yep they do have a somewhat broad range of genre's, but the likes of hip hop and most others has followed the same booking pattern of flavour of the month with teens Vs real quality acts. As I've said in previous posts I know nearly no one who goes to electric picnic anymore and most of my friend groups who usually attended previous aren't music snobs or anything it just caters to a certain type of person, and they're most right in the middle of that target age group. I've even went to some of those artists booked like J-Hus to give them a try but didn't enjoy it. I will give them credit for Trenchtown, I'm not a big reggae head but I spent at least 20% of my time in the main arena there last year. But there is tonnes of genres neglected too, especially electronic genres outside of mostly rubbish generic tech house and hard techno and a couple of others but hopefully they realise this. I was excited when I seen one stage being touted a Jungle and D&B curated area mentioned for Croi last year but think I only seen one act in my time there last year (who was very good in fairness), but Croi overall was very good.

Tinderbox festival charges €350 for a weekend ticket and has 3 stages for 45,000 people. It can afford to pay a €1m plus for RHCP require for a festival.

Electric Picnic 6 headliner acts fees fall either side of €500,000 each.

So are likes RHCP etc who charge over a million a show going to play EP? No.

of course EP could spend a million a one headliner buts that won’t as that effectively eats up the budget for two or more of its headline acts.

https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife/glastonbury-festival-2023-capacity-how-8348640.amp Glastonbury capacity is 210,000 in 2023. EP was 70,000 so Glastonbury is 3x EP.

I never said EP has no significant history of booking hip hop. I said it’s never been a key genre on a numbers basis. A few acts a year out of 80 plus acts in main stages at most. FR has a festival that’s been primarily dedicated to popular hip hop/rnb for last number of years in longitude.

i’ve just said that EP concentrates it’s booking on commercially successful acts for main stage, targeting artists that are popular with key audience for EP of 18-30 year olds.

you keeping banging on that EP should be Glastonbury and have the depth, breath and quality of artists to match.

its never going to and not feasible for EP to ever come close.

it does a good job of covering genres but it’s never going to match the calibre of artists across genres.

Tinderbox at €348 per ticket generates €15.7m in revenue. EP at €305 generates €22.9m. It’s absurd to state that EP cannot afford an act the Danish fest can.

Glastonbury capacity is 138k. The 210k figure is for the numbers that are allowed on the site and includes staff, security, stallholders, artists, etc. You really should be aware of that. Thus the ticket-paying attendees at Glasto are 63k more than than the 75k at EP. That is nowhere near treble the size you stated and well below double the size of the UK fest.

EP cannot get the very biggest acts who play Glasto. They can however have the best of the rest and the variety and eclecticism to give fans of any genre of music an entertaining weekend in Stradbally. There’s no excuse for narrow programming.

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