The third edition of the La Grosse Lanterne festival in the forest exceeded expectations this year. Despite the Saturday rain and thunderstorms, over 700 music fanatics turned up to the event in Béthanie. During the two days of festivities, festival-goers were treated to live music, visual arts, good food and outdoor activities. The valiant attendees enjoyed the picturesque forest and camping on the banks of the Black River.
The ticket-holders arrived on Friday, August 12th as soon as the site opened at 3pm to unpacked their camping gear before musical performances by Félix Dyotte, Pawa Up First, Organ Mood and Brown on the village’s hostel stage (adapted to accommodate the rain). The instrumental band Pawa Up First gave their very last performance. In parallel with the shows, film fans crowded under a big tent to view the documentary Demain, featuring Cyril Dion and Mélanie Laurent, as well as Montréal New Wave by Érik Cimon. The collective Moonshine closed the first night with a DJ set that lasted until the wee hours of the morning.
On Saturday, August 13th, Saratoga, Les Marinellis, I.D.A.L.G. and Safia Nolin played in succession on the stage inside the hostel. The intimate vibe of the venue did justice to the talent of these artists. Later, Heartstreets, Chocolat and Klô Pelgag gave memorable performances at the big stage. For the first time, Groenland performed songs off their upcoming album, to be released this September, in front of a more-than-enthusiastic crowd. The excitement was incredible during Lisa LeBlanc’s set, which was cut short due to the rain. Dead Obies then ramped-up the energy to a fever pitch to close the festival. Finally, the most courageous ticket-holders ventured into the forest to see Le Matos and Shash’U play on the outside hostel stage.
We would like to thank all of our volunteers and technicians who worked harder than ever to deal with the difficult weather conditions this year. Thank you to the artists and all the festival-goers! We also want to thank all of our sponsors without whom the festival would not have been possible: Québécor, Boréale, Stingray Musique, Moog Audio, Naya, Omnison, Boîte à musique, Atelier du Loisir, Karibu, Chic Choc, Quartz Vodka, Domaine Pinnacle, Ungava, Pivot, Akufen, MRC Acton, Publicité Sauvage, La Voix de l’Est, LAQV, Cosy Bubble, Lucion, Lumen Pulse, Natech, BLVD, Airstar Canada. Finally, thank you to the medias for their great coverage.
Long live La Grosse Lanterne! See you next year!
Photo: R.Wester