Kneecap at Electric Picnic: what the critics said

Saturday saw one of the biggest acts of the weekend perform, as Kneecap took to the stage in Stradbally.

The Belfast rappers have gone from strength to strength every year, with thousands of fans gathering to see them perform in less-than-ideal weather conditions.

It has been a hectic week for the trio, who had to cancel their US dates due to their next court hearing in London.

On Friday night, they performed in Belfast with Fontaines DC, as they joked on Saturday, they were "very hungover boys".

Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs as Mo Chara, appeared in court in London charged with displaying the flag of Hizbullah, a proscribed terrorist organisation in Britain, an offence he denies.

No matter the location or date, Kneecap will never stay quiet on what they feel strongly about.

From showing solidarity with Palestine, promoting the Irish language, to condemning politicians across the world, their performance at Electric Picnic was no different.

Their hits that grabbed people's attention, such as Get Your Brits out, to C.E.A.R.T.A, and H.O.O.D, to Better Way to live, the fans loved every moment.

The Irish Times gave their performance five stars, as Mo Chara said he is a "free man" when discussing his charges.

A priority for the band in every performance, they spoke up on Palestine, as Mo Chara condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Our brothers and sisters in Palestine are under tremendous pressure. I don’t mean to lecture you, but until something changes, I’ll take time out of every gig to talk about this on stage or whatever platform we have.

"Netanyahu is a war criminal. It’s about time politicians started doing something about it. It’s not fair to put the burden on the people when elected representatives are doing f**k all.”

The actions of the Irish Government also came under the spotlight, with screens flashing up at the beginning of their performance, “No more Israeli war bonds” and “Get the US military out of Ireland”.

As the Irish Examiner noted, political leaders were condemned through the set, with fans chanting "free Mo Chara", as the paper predicts it will not be long before they headline.

Viktor Orban, who banned the group from Hungary for the next three years, and the leader of the British Conservative Party, who initially blocked the trio from receiving funding from the British Government, were only to be overturned by a court ruling in 2024.

The group also referenced themselves as the Wolfe Tones on cocaine."

As RTÉ included in their review, Kneecap have always had a special connection with Electric Picnic.

At a time when many acts have suffered from speaking out in support of Palestine, the organisers of Electric Picnic ensured Kneecap would be allowed to speak freely.

Mo Chara looked back on performing in front of 60 people, compared to the thousands of people they performed in front of on Saturday.

Móglaí Bap thanked the fans for their support through the years, as he said, "We weren’t on the radios, we weren’t on the TV, and the only reason that we are here on the main stage at EP is because of all you Fenian b*******".