Live Report: Kingfishr thrill crowds with career-highlight Electric Picnic main stage performance

To reduce Kingfishr to 'Killeagh' would be a witless insult. It takes more than just one popular tune to play the main stage of Ireland's biggest festival for its biggest crowd yet.

Albeit, the Limerick-based band is self-aware. As fans buzz in anticipation of their Electric Picnic set on Sunday afternoon, stage visuals make a cheeky jab at the online haters with an ironic compilation of TikTok clips.

"The band Kingfishr might have the handiest job I've ever seen in my entire life," says one clip. "They just rock up to random pubs around the world, drink pints, stand on tables and sing that one tune."

Kingfishr is about to prove them so very wrong.

They burst on stage with the upbeat rock-folk track 'I Cried, I Wept'. Between Eddie Keogh's powerful belting vocals and Eoghan McGrath's twangy banjo melody, it's a high-energy tone-setter for the rest of their set.

Kingfishr at Electric Picnic. 31 Aug 2025. Photo: Abigail Ring/hotpress.com

While the band tunes up, Keogh raises a can of lager, cracks it open, shouts "sláinte!" and takes a swig, to which the crowd erupts with "olé, olé, olé" chants. Yes, after only one song. There is no doubting how much fans love Kingfishr.

The setlist moves between 'Shadow', the first song Keogh ever wrote, to 'Diamonds & Roses', a track from their album Halcyon released only weeks prior. Each song is performed with heart, full of vocal belts, twangy banjo, passionate acoustic guitar and a few cheeky harmonica solos.

Kingfishr at Electric Picnic. 31 Aug 2025. Photo: Abigail Ring/hotpress.com

One such harmonica solo comes when Keogh climbs into the crowd for 2024 folky single 'Shot in the Dark'. After a big of melodic harmonica, he sings — well, tries to. His voice breaks with emotion as he tells fans, "I’m speechless, thank you so so much. This is the best day of my life."

The gig was just as stunning visually as it was musically. Screens showed the crowd overlaid with a rising moon, crashing waves, blooming roses and many more images described vibrantly in their poetic lyrics.

"I can't possibly tell you how much this means to go from unknown, under-capped gigs to this," Keogh tells the crowd. "This is absolutely insane, this is the greatest day of my life."

Kingfishr at Electric Picnic. 31 Aug 2025. Photo: Abigail Ring/hotpress.com

In the typical custom of leaving the best for last, they play their smash-hit 'Killeagh' at the end of their set. A tearful Keogh is accompanied by tens of thousands of fans singing their hearts out to what could be considered a new Irish classic.