Electric Picnic has announced its first wave of acts for the 2026 Stradbally festival, sending social media into a spiral with the line-up.

Headliners so far include Gorillaz on Saturday and Fontaines D.C. closing out Sunday, alongside a unique mix of artists such as CMAT, Zara Larsson, Skepta, Wonderhorn, Role Model, and Geese. 

“It’s very varied, and a bit more rocky,” said Stuart Clark, the Deputy Editor of Hot Press.

He told The Hard Shoulder that the festival is growing its reputation more and more every year.

“It’s now one of those really established European festivals like Glastonbury.

Ticket sales from continental Europe have shot up in the last two or three years and bands really want to play at it,” he said. 

Eohgan O’Sullivan from The Point of Everything podcast and the Irish Examiner noted the prominence of Irish acts for next year's line up:

“80,000 people [will be attending] and I’m assuming 95% of them will want to go to see Fontaines D.C,” he told the show.

Fontaines DC: Image by Alamy

The festival continues to be a milestone for Irish artists, with many acts following the trajectory of Fontaines D.C. and CMAT from small gigs to headline slots.

“It's just unbelievable to see them constantly going up and up on that music ladder. 

Electric Picnic is probably the pinnacle for them,” said O’Sullivan. 

Clark enphasised how there is a new-found “confidence” in Irish music.

“We used to look at London and L.A for validation, but now, we’re happy to say no, we like this ourselves,” he said, referring to the rise in popularity of Irish bands such as Amble and Kingfisher.

Both guests emphasised how Electric Picnic now offers something for everyone, and how its audience has grown across all age ranges. 

“It is really sort of 12 festivals all in one now,” said Stuart. 

“A lot of people just go to the comedy tent, or they might spend the whole weekend in Fishtown or the Salty Dog, it’s all things to a lot of people.”

Written by Annemarie Roberts