I Sing the Body Electric

I just got all excited looking at the Electric Picnic line up.

I was doing up a list but managed to delete it half way through so here's the release:

Needless to say...SIGUR RÓS!

As with every year, the festival takes pride in showcasing the greatest music from around the world, iconic acts together with the hottest new acts. Acts this year range from; the first ever Irish show of one of the most legendary acts of the twentieth century, the incendiary Sex Pistols to the melodic, classical, experimental Sigur Rós, the Icelandic post-rock band known for its ethereal sound and lead singer Jónsi's falsetto voice. The Sex Pistols changed if not the history of rock then at least its course and the lineup consists of the original four members, John Lydon, Glen Matlock, Steve Jones and Paul Cook.



Another iconic and influential band playing a very rare show are My Bloody Valentine whose critically acclaimed 1991 album Loveless was recently voted as the greatest rock and roll album of all time in an Irish Times poll. This is their first show here in 17 years and one of only a handful of shows they are doing across the world this year.

Scottish Indie rockers Franz Ferdinand unveil their eagerly anticipated third album with what is also one of a handful of shows they are playing globally this year.

Funk legend George Clinton & his astonishing 30 piece P-Funk Allstars will be showing us a thing or two about how it's really done. One of the most important innovators of funk music, next to James Brown and Sly Stone, he has been a major influence in the world of hip hop and beyond.

The scuzzy blues rock of Nick Cave's Grinderman appears in Ireland for the first time while the mighty Christy Moore makes his maiden voyage to Stradbally to further broaden the eclectic palette of the Picnic. Also appearing will be new Motown sensation Duffy.

Electro pop act Goldfrapp are welcomed back this year showcasing their more introspective new sound and dance icons Underworld join us for the first time. Amongst the other upbeat party acts are The Gossip, Brazillian rock dance phenomenon CSS and the classic soul-tinged hip hop of Philadelphia's The Roots.

Alternative US rockers The Breeders return after a 6 year hiatus with their new album Mountain Battles. Other acts include Wilco bringing their engaging, no-frills blend of twang-encrusted guitar rock and ballads to the stage; Mali's desert warriors Tinariwen, a trio of Irish stunning female voices Lisa Hannigan, Sinead O'Connor & Cathy Davey. The newly reformed That Petrol Emotion make an exclusive Irish appearance this year; Conor Oberst (aka Bright Eyes) plays a solo show; the austere beauty of Tindersticks, feel-good soul diva Candi Staton, the legendary avant garde band Faust; and of course it would be no Picnic without the Dublin Gospel Choir to lift your souls for breakfast.

We are also very excited to announce a new stage added Jazz & World Music Stage which will be hosted by the Improvised Music Company. Musical tastes are ever evolving, and adventurous ears at this years Electric Picnic will find plenty to stimulate them at the Jazz & World Music Stage. Ireland's leading independent jazz and world music promoters are a welcome new addition, and evidence that the festival knows no boundaries when it comes to creative music, irrespective of labels and idioms. Programmed by Gerry Godley, this stage will be an acoustic affair and will add another dimension to the Picnic's melting pot, joining the dots between jazz and contemporary classical groups, along with living traditional music from around the world, and why not some of our own traditional music too. There'll be everything from chamber music to desert blues, from funky organ trios to grooving Balkan brass.


Roars of laughter are set to roll over the lawns of Stradbally once again this year when the essential International Comedy Club Stage returns for another riotous weekend of Leckie Pickie laugher. Founded by Des Bishop in 1998, The International Comedy Club is the nerve centre and nurturing ground of comedy in Ireland where new blood can rub shoulders with the great and the good from the world of international comedy. This stage has been an enormously popular part of the Electric Picnic experience since year one and the line-up for 2008 promises to be as stellar as ever.

The Body & Soul Village will of course be once more pulsating to its own rhythm. Imagine a breathing, living, pulsating, nature inspired realm filled with beauty, art, performance, cutting edge theatre, holistic therapies, yoga, green workshops, luscious gardens, tipis & log fires, ambient bean bag lounging, acoustic vibes, night time installations, skilled artisans set free across the landscape to inspire and be inspired, an eclectically programmed Chill Stage featuring a mix of folk, world, classical, electonic, reggae, roots and hip wiggling funk - along with the "MerkaBar" geo-dome, indulging you with the best in down tempo grooves, visual art, trapese and sumptuous décor.

World renowned performance art troupe, Lucent Dossier Vaudeville Cirque crawls out of the Los Angeles underground art & music scene once again to frolic in their favorite Irish wonderland…xtravagant, other-worldly creatures from beyond create mystical playgrounds of fire and air.

Also traveling from the US and mainland Europe are many creative collectives all of whom will be designing bigger and more colourful art installations around the festival site, including David Best who will be building and burning his exquisite Temple of Truth, as seen at Burning Man.

Music & Art are just one just two aspects of the many faces of Electric Picnic, and this year we are expanding the Spoken Word area; The Leviathan Think Tank is back to nourish the addled minds of festival-goers with world class poets from the UK, US, South Africa and Australia, one-act theatre from Little John Nee and Vendetta Theatre Co. hosted by Marty Mulligan. Major debates, hosted by broadcaster David McWilliams, will reflect on the political and cultural legacy 40 years on from 1968 - the high-watermark of 1960s counterculture - featuring some key figures from the era; the future of the Irish language and the state of the music industry. There will be readings from top Irish and international authors, Salon du Chat "speed-debating", comedy news quizshows and a series of special one-on-one interviews, including one with Henry Rollins. RTE's Ryan Tubridy will host a new Sunday Morning Show with guests taking a hungover and jaundiced view of the newspapers and chewing the fat from the night before. There will be politically-tinged music from Paddy Cullivan and the Camembert Quartet, Jinx Lennon, Captain Moonlight and White Cholera as well as other very special guests and we'll have a sneak preview of a brand new series of Langerland's satirical cartoons, taking in such subjects as the Irish language, the GAA, the IRA, the Gardaí and the Celtic Tiger. Also back is the The Word poetry tent….and much much more food for thought.

There will also be more theatre such as new additions to the festival 'thisispopbaby', a fabulous new space, where debauched glamour, fairy tale excess and fun is the name of the game. Each day the glittering lounge will take you on a journey from a whimsical kitsch Never Never Land to a raw and raunchy Pop Art Palace. Featuring very special guest star Panti, Queen of the Picnic, this sparkling jewel of new pop-art and design culminates every night with a Frock 'n' Roll drag show and a down 'n' dirty PopClub. Our hosts and hostesses will meet, greet and sweet talk you in this bastion of high fashion, high camp and high excess. You're Alice baby, and this is Wonderland.
Fossetts Circus are also back, the longest running continuous circus in the world, to celebrate their 130th year in the business. And putting the Picnic into Electric is the addition of a Cooking Stage in the Spoken Word area... A Michelin-All-Star culinary cast headlined by Rachel Allen, Dylan McGrath (Mint), Kevin Thornton (Thorntons), Derry Clarke (L'Ecrivain) and more to be announced who will not only be doing cooking demonstrations in a purpose built kitchen tent, but debating whether life really is too short to stuff a mushroom in their exclusive Q&As.

Also back this year, by popular demand, is the Hot Press Chat Room which will feature intimate interviews with (and occasional impromptu sessions from!) some of the festival's biggest names. The public interviews are carried out by a crack team of Hot Press writers, including Stuart Clark, Peter Murphy, Paul Nolan and Roisin Dwyer, with fans also being afforded a rare chance to quiz their heroes. Among those who have already been given the Hot Press Chat Room treatment at Electric Picnic are New Order, Flaming Lips, Bloc Party, Primal Scream, Elbow, The Frames, Josh Ritter, The Undertones, Damien Dempsey and many more.

The Southern Comfort Crawdaddy Stage promises to draw out the Mardi Gras fever adding a touch of New Orleans style. The Bacardi B Live Arena also makes a welcome return, as ever showcasing the collaborative works of world class DJ's, musicians, live vocalists and percussionists.

I am already packing my Yurt

And I thought you were just happy to see me.

Sounds good - cant be there this year tho - Im making my return to Burning Man after an absence of 5 years this year!

Well every year I say "oooh must go to EP" and then for reasons of conflicting engagements or just forgetting I have yet to make it. This year will be different.

I thought this thread was about 'Fame' or a book written by a Microsoft multimedia head back in the 1990s or so.

Regards...jmcc

If the Waterboys are on, I'll be there!

cookiemonster wrote:

Well every year I say "oooh must go to EP" and then for reasons of conflicting engagements or just forgetting I have yet to make it. This year will be different.

I loved it last year, but am not sure if I'll go this time as family stuff will be going on. Best things were Bjork and little bands I had never heard of. It has got the 'getting bigger' thing going on, so I think go if possible, before it changes. Debates and stuff were good too.

jmcc wrote:

I thought this thread was about 'Fame' or a book written by a Microsoft multimedia head back in the 1990s or so.

Regards...jmcc

I was trying to be a bit more cultured than 'fame' with my oh so apt Whitman reference and the you go and ruin it!

are festivals really the best way to see music

think of all those bands you don't see for those hundreds of pounds?

can you ever get a decent atmosphere to watch a band between 2 and say 8 in the evening?

lostexpectation wrote:

are festivals really the best way to see music

think of all those bands you don't see for those hundreds of pounds?

can you ever get a decent atmosphere to watch a band between 2 and say 8 in the evening?

It depends on the festival. Kilkenny's Rhythm and Roots is one of the best because nobody knows about it and it is hidden in 4o tiny venues. Nothing much starts until 9 at night.

Music in a field or a tent is always risky. We are all too grown up for Oxygen, but I took a teen there a couple of years ago and music is not to be heard - some vodka tent booming out next to the main stage.

The EP is more about 3 days in the open air in a nicely chilled atmosphere than it is music. If you get some great music like Anthony and the Johnsons or Bjork that is a bonus.

Slane had something because of the amazing natural arena over the river.

There will always be six rubbish festivals followed by a seven th that is the best time you had in your life.

well those in-town ones are different, you don't have to buy a ticket for the whole weekend do you.

I went to the ep a few years back, it was okay.

well if you want to chill in the open air go camping why spend nearly 200 yoyos for the privilege i consider myself a music head who wants to go see as many bands as possible mostly rock and dance, i don't drink so i go out to see music not to get drunk in a novel place.

do you get to see 200 euros worth of bands even though you can't bi- locate, and end up feeling like your missing half you want to see.

i never been to glastonbury but a mate came back and I was looking through his program, asking oh did you see them , ooh did you see them, them and he was like no, nope, i didn't really see any bands... I mean FFS. fine enjoy the famous glastonbury atmosphere and sideshows, but do it between bands.

went to slane for the chilli peppers, went earlyish and saw 55,000 people or so ignore kelis who tried her best but isn't appropriate for vast venue at at 3:00 in the afternoon. so your really paying 70 to see one band at the end of night, why pay for those other bands and simply go to one of their regular concert gigs.

went to the second u2 gig too, it was still light out at both gigs, ireland early gigs don't encourage atmosphere, the bands waste their lighting systems on ireland. which is big pity especially with u2.