One of Canada's biggest rock festivals, Amnesia Rockfest, was marred with problems during its 2013 edition. But in efforts to have a better 2014, the festival has announced a partnership with the Festival d'été de Québec, whose sister company, 3E, will be in charge of production and logistics for Amnesia's ninth edition this June.
As we told you last summer in our concert review and corresponding news story, Amnesia faced severe backlash when onsite conditions were called into question, as organizers weren't equipped to deal with the number of people in attendance and some bands were scrambling to figure out set times and logistics.
Amnesia president and founder Alex Martel said in a press release today (January 15) that he's confident the 3E team will raise the standards of a festival, which will again take place in the small town of Montebello, QC, on June 20 and 21. Growing considerably over the years, the 2013 event brought in an estimated 100,000 festivalgoers.
"I have no doubt that [3E] will raise Rockfest up to where we want it to be because we want to create an event that lives up to our lineup," said Martel. "We are investing huge sums and we are doing what's needed to effectively manage the growth that the event has experienced over the last few years. We are committed to surpassing the smooth operation and logistics of the first seven years."
Daniel Gélinas, managing director of the Festival d'été de Québec and 3E, added, "It's a pleasure for us to provide Alex Martel, a hardworking, passionate and visionary young man, with our cooperation and expertise so that he can offer a top quality event to fans."
Proposed improvements on last year's festival include larger and reconfigured grounds, increased number of entrances, improvements to the sanitary facilities and improved stages and sound systems. Rockfest is also bringing on event planning firm Orkestra to handle offsite logistics for the event, including campgrounds, parking lots and shuttle buses.
"I'm delighted by this partnership with the Festival d'été de Québec and the changes that we are making to the festival in 2014," said Martel.
Another change this year appears to be the elimination of last year's "pay-to-play" structure, which Martel also took some heat for. The press release cites that "paid emerging artists will open the various stages rather than being on a separate stage."
As we told you last summer in our concert review and corresponding news story, Amnesia faced severe backlash when onsite conditions were called into question, as organizers weren't equipped to deal with the number of people in attendance and some bands were scrambling to figure out set times and logistics.
Amnesia president and founder Alex Martel said in a press release today (January 15) that he's confident the 3E team will raise the standards of a festival, which will again take place in the small town of Montebello, QC, on June 20 and 21. Growing considerably over the years, the 2013 event brought in an estimated 100,000 festivalgoers.
"I have no doubt that [3E] will raise Rockfest up to where we want it to be because we want to create an event that lives up to our lineup," said Martel. "We are investing huge sums and we are doing what's needed to effectively manage the growth that the event has experienced over the last few years. We are committed to surpassing the smooth operation and logistics of the first seven years."
Daniel Gélinas, managing director of the Festival d'été de Québec and 3E, added, "It's a pleasure for us to provide Alex Martel, a hardworking, passionate and visionary young man, with our cooperation and expertise so that he can offer a top quality event to fans."
Proposed improvements on last year's festival include larger and reconfigured grounds, increased number of entrances, improvements to the sanitary facilities and improved stages and sound systems. Rockfest is also bringing on event planning firm Orkestra to handle offsite logistics for the event, including campgrounds, parking lots and shuttle buses.
"I'm delighted by this partnership with the Festival d'été de Québec and the changes that we are making to the festival in 2014," said Martel.
Another change this year appears to be the elimination of last year's "pay-to-play" structure, which Martel also took some heat for. The press release cites that "paid emerging artists will open the various stages rather than being on a separate stage."
