11^e édition bonjour ! Il était temps que ça commence. Mais on va se le dire, c’est sous un ciel capricieux pas content que les pikniqueurs sont venus assister aux performances de Jay London, Laura Jones et Matt Tolfrey ce dimanche. Pas grave.

The eleventh season of the Piknic kicks off in fine style this May long weekend with a double-header celebrating the many rich forms of house and spanning both sides of the Atlantic. Pack your bags for two days of festive reunions presented by Smart Set in collaboration with Nightlife!

The MOOG stage starts bumpin’ on Sunday, May 19^th, with an exciting label showcase for UK house imprint Leftroom. Montreal’s very own Jay London, who set the Virgin Igloo on fire at Igloofest 2013, gets the deep house groove flowing starting at 2pm. At 5:30pm, Leftroom producer Laura Jones, who was first discovered by the highly coveted Visionquest crew, takes the stage. Capping the day off at 7:30pm is label founder Matt Tolfrey, a prolific DJ and producer whose crates should be overflowing with test-pressing house and disco-edits from Leftroom’s stable of sublabels, Leftroom Ltd, Left’d, and Foot & Mouth.

Over at the GURU stage, two of our fine city’s most adventurous DJ’s go back to back all afternoon! We’re talking about none other than Bowly and Guilty, who start the journey at 3pm, leading us through a boundary-pushing 4 hours of bass, funky, house, and everything in between.

On Monday, May 20^th, our love of first-class house moves to our continent as we welcome one of Detroit’s finest to Parc Jean-Drapeau! Locals Creatures of Habit, the ultra-hype pairing of Maher Daniel and Amir Javasoul, will get the Moog stage fired up like a barbeque at 2pm and keep fanning the flames for the next 4-and-a-half hours. At 6:30pm, Planet E label founder and Grammy-nominated Detroit producer Carl Craig returns to Montreal for what is already certain to be one of the season’s big highlights. Do not miss this one!

The GURU stage, meanwhile, will be home to Casbour Records for the day. Starting at 3pm, hip-hop, African touches, and electronics will blend into a fierce soundtrack, as the Casbour inner circle of Driss Skali, Gone Deville, and NOTV go back to back on the decks.

To put some balm on your broken hearts in light of the recently prohibition imposed by authorities on bringing alcohol onto the Piknic site, we’ve devised a special “rehab” plan to get you through the rough transition period. Overall, we’re offering you lower prices, a more diverse menu and a spotlighted drink for $5 every week. Here are the details:

VINO! – As usual, we will sell bottles of wine - red, white or rosé. But look out, because the price range is quite unbeatable this year. 5 whites, 3 reds, 1 rosé, and even a sparkling wine (buuuuuuuuubbly!) on the menu, all between $15 and $25 a bottle and from $ 4.50 per glass. Yes, ladies and gentlemen! So hop hop hop towards the Barefoot Wine Bar to enjoy. Don’t forget your reusable glasses!

BEER – More choice in addition to regalar features Sapporo and Pabst. Welcome Sleeman Draught and Blanche de Chambly! If you still aren’t aware, for the past four years, the discount "glass" has been in effect: save $1 on draft beer if you bring back your first cup. That amounts to $ 4.25 a drink!

THE $5 DRINK – At each event, a different drink will be featured for a special price of $5. At the first event (Sunday, May 20), that special drink will be a can of Pabst beer (usually $ 6.50). The next day (Monday, May 21), it’s an alcoholic iced coffee (usually $ 6.25) in the spotlight. Enjoy!

Of course, the famous buckets of sangria and alcoholic lemonade (homemade recipes) remain on the menu at the Refreshment Oasis. A must! Not familiar with this offering?

Consult the Bucket Guide to see what all the fuss is about.

Till Sunday!

We start the season with a * SUPER SALE * at the Piknic Boutik: almost all items will be DISCOUNTED at the first two events this Sunday and Monday. It's time to get yourself a t-shirt from a previous year, a bottle, a visor, a fanny pack ... a souvenir, y’know! Everything is AT LEAST 50% off. Unbeatable. See for yourself:

Sweatshirt : $20.00
Men’s t-shirt : $10.00
Women’s t-shirt : $5.00
Special-edition t-shirt : $8.00
Vinyl bag (large) : $3.00
Vinyl bag (small) : $1.00
Black cloth bag : $6.00
Bottle : $3.00
Fanny pack : $1.00
Visor : $3.00

As for 2013 edition t-shirts, hold tight. They’ll be available in the coming weeks.

Happy shopping!

Here’s a new package specially designed for you, if you don’t live on that island of decadence and eternal broohaha known as Montreal. If you wanna spend a fun-filled extravagant weekend (or a more relaxed one, it’s up to you) in the city while enjoying a discounted prices for accommodation and a day at the Piknic, here are some options that could interest you:

- Piknic Package / HI Montreal Hostel: single-occupancy packages from $ 45 + tx and double occupancy from $ 89 + tx. Includes two tickets for Piknic and breakfast.

- Piknic Package / Hotel Zero 1: double-occupancy package at $ 150 + tx. Includes two tickets to the Piknic and a light breakfast.

- Piknic Package / W Hotel: package based on double occupancy from $ 309 + tx. Includes two tickets to the Piknic and two cocktails.

All information on packages and reservations are online right here!

For transportation needs, Kangaride offers its customers a network for drivers and passengers who want to carpool. In addition, Piknic season pass-holders get a FREE subscription to the service for six months. That’s right, FREE!

If you’re feeling more exotic and you have sea legs, St. Laurent River Shuttles (Navettes maritimes du St-Laurent) will allow you to cross the river with the waves. Imagine: arrive to Ile St. Hélène by boat. What class! The fare is $7.50 each way (or $ 6.50 for Piknic pass-holders) and departures are scheduled every hour from the Jacques-Cartier Quay in the Old Port of Montreal.

For more information on your Piknic transportation needs, click here.

Have a great stay in our city!

You come to Piknic often? I can’t think of a better way to save on your summer. Passes are on sale until May 31 on Ticketpro.ca and at La Vitrine, at 2 rue Ste-Catherine East (corner St-Laurent).

Good news! Following the success of its first edition, the Barcelona Piknic is returning this summer for a second season! The popularity of the event was such that additional dates were added to the 2013 calendar.

Have you seen that our beautiful video for the launch of the 2013 program has gone VIRAL? Every one of the artists in the program (or almost) in 90 seconds. I invite you to view it without moderation.

As we announced at the end of the 2012 season (click on the link below to read the article), a significant change in our alcohol policy is coming into effect this year. We remind you that it will no longer be possible to bring outside alcohol into the Piknic site

http://www.piknicelectronik.com/en/news/2013/5/9/rappel-changement-important

Here's the schedule for the first weekend's artists on the MOOG and GURU stages.

2013 program will be launched on May 1st on Facebook page and/or on our Twitter. Join the conversation at 10:30 am!

Dear piknicers,

The winds of change are blowing (already) toward Piknic Electronik’s upcoming edition, breeze that’s cooling us down a bit after a scorching 2012 season.

Following a recent visit by the police to our offices, it’s with regret that we announce you’ll no longer be able to bring your own alcohol onto the Piknic grounds. “But why not?” you’re probably asking. The answer is simple: because of new legal restrictions on our liquor license, the permit we have for our bar.

In 2010, the Piknic organization took the decision to ban all personal alcohol because from the site due to the abuse of some piknicers. Following the controversy that this news generated, we retracted a bit to our current policy of allowing only a certain amount of alcohol onsite, if accompanied by an actual picnic. Unfortunately this time, we have no such room to maneuver. For the summer of 2013, we’ll be obligated to apply the Liquor Permit Act, or otherwise face sanctions:

Article 72.1. A holder of a permit authorizing the sale or service of alcoholic beverages cannot tolerate in his establishment the presence of alcoholic beverages acquired elsewhere, in accordance with the license [...].

Article 86. The Régie shall revoke or suspend a license if:

[...] 4 - the licensee has infracted section 72.1 [...]

We feared this day would come sooner or later, and now it’s here. The decision by the authorities in this matter is final and non-negotiable. To face this new reality, we prefer you to inform you now for the sake of transparency.

We’re aware that this news risks disappointing many of you. Some among you will be tempted to spend your Sundays elsewhere, but know that, for you and for us, it’s difficult to leave behind this unique portion of the Piknic concept, with which we’ve grown for the past decade. We will continue to work on evolving the event and ensure that everyone can continue to enjoy the Piknic experience. As always, we have an open ear to your comments and suggestions.

Sincerely,

The Piknic Team

You in the back there. And you in front of him. And you, you, and oh yeah, you. Thanks. And thanks to everyone else who counts as a loyal piknicers, for coming to visit us so religiously every Sunday. You are the soul of Piknic, its feeling, its colour. You are the river that provides our current, the cheese AND the sauce on our poutine, the Gatorade for our hangovers. Thanks to all the artists who made each event so unique. Thanks for the last 10 years and thanks for the next ten to come. Thanks, thanks, thanks. We can’t say it enough.