The Electric Picnic has rumbled passed its midpoint in Stradbally, Co Laois tonight with festival goers preparing for a headline show by Arcade Fire.
Earlier today, Rubberbandits showed a lively crowd they had more to offer than their best known hit Horse Outside as they stormed the Electric Arena stage and James Blake brought his soft sounds to the Main Stage amid ample evening sunshine.
U2 guitarist the Edge made a surprise visit to the Electric Picnic last night to see his old friend Gavin Friday perform.
The Edge’s appearance was one of the best kept secrets at the festival and he sat at the side of the stage unbeknownst to most of the crowd.
Two eagle-eyed fans got his attention and shouted out “hey Edge, give us a wave” at which time he swapped seats.
It was something of reunion of Lipton Village, the imaginary world that the members of U2 and others created for themselves as teenagers.
The Edge’s brother Richard ‘Dik’ Evans, who was in the original manifestation of U2, The Hype, and later Friday’s band The Virgin Prunes, joined Friday on the stage for the opening number.
The artist Guggi, another childhood friend of U2, was also in the audience.
Many of last night's main acts lived up expectations. Sinead O'Connor kept attention focused on her music while Jimmy Cliff rolled out hit after hit starting with You Can Get It If You Really Want.
PJ Harvey wore an arresting head dress which resembled something Phillip Treacy might create.
An unsurprising visitor to the festival last night was the rain which fell heavily just as last night’s headliners Interpol started their set.
As forecast, the downpour lasted several hours. However, by this morning it had cleared and the site has stood up well to date.
Other Irish acts who played today included Jape, the Trinity Orchestra and Tieranniesaur.
However, the most anticipated set of the festival Arcade Fire, takes place tonight with rumours that Bono may make an appearance on stage with the Canadian group.