L'AgorASaint-Fortunat, Quebec · 2010–2014 · techno-bohemian campground

The events

Earthdance, Sundari, Tatanka and the others

Five Earthdances, three Tatankas, a Sundari, a Reggae Bash, the very first Timeless, solstices, full moons, a self-managed camp, ceremonies. Everything the page and the websites announced, in order.

Earthdance, the global dance for peace

Earthdance is a synchronized festival, "in 60 countries and more than 200 places around the world", around the International Day of Peace, with a prayer for peace played at the same moment everywhere. Saint-Fortunat hosted one as early as 2007 and 2008; the Donjon, then L'AgorA, took it up every fall from 2010 to 2014, becoming an official Earthdance venue and, in 2013, a "peace-building organization" recognized by Earthdance Global. "For a last year presented at l'AgorA, we invite you to come and express, in your own way, according to your inspirations, what peace in the world means to you."

The posters

Party nights

The site rules, 2013

The text handed to the festival-goers of Tatanka and Earthdance 2013 began with a clarification: "When you visit the Agora, you are entering the home and workplace of several people who wish to share with you the vision of a creative world in harmony with nature." Then came the rules, in both languages:

"Thank you for your participation, understanding and vigilance!!"

The Earthdance 2011 line-up

From Friday evening to Sunday afternoon, almost non-stop, with two "let's take a walk on the wild side" breaks: DJ Shalom, DJ YvY, DJane Fatima, DJ MadChris, DJ Psychotik, Celktik and Kinematik, DJ Audiophil, DJ Tegavs, DJ Naaz, DJ Risa, DJ Prana Papa, Eric Mandala live, DJ Om Shanti, DJane Lemon Balm, DJ Karmapa, DJ Jeff MKUltra, DJ Rikam, DJ Decode, Longstocking & Boom Tara, DJ Magnetic Phil, DJ Spo_Onani, DJ Glitch, and to close, "A gore A". Styles announced: world psy, tek-trance, tribal house, dubstep, full on, psytrance, cumbia, world music, goa, progressive, minimal techno.

The Sundari 2011 programme

The festival's page on ledonjon.ca, captured by the Wayback Machine on May 18, 2011, announced a "100% ambient festival": "The next 3-4-5th of June 2011… We will have the honor to receive on this Appalachian mountain Adham Shaikh and Uwe Neumann, with other accompanying musicians, in this unique adventure proper to enchantment. Attention, hold on the magic carpet!" And, throughout the festival, "a welcoming place for kids and grown-ups", activities in nature "for your little sailors", camping "with possible electrical hook-ups", two lakes and a river for swimming, a mountain and its trail, free spring water, food stands, healing stands, "enchanting, breathtaking scenery".

The live acts, the DJs, the workshops, the booths and the tickets

Live — Dreamtree Project (Nelson, B.C. / Val-Morin), "the Indian dub fusion project of Juno nominee Adham Shaikh and Uwe Neumann"; Adham Shaikh (Nelson); Apadooraï (Montreal), "kind of an aboriginal rebel child… a symbiosis between a duo of didgeridoo freaks"; Lutin des Bois (Paris), founder of Secret Vibes; FreeWorm (Montreal), "the sound environmentalist" who produces "electro-organic"; Xnorophis (Montreal), "organic marginal music", with "a new tribal dub set for Sundari"; Tetsuo Tek (Similkameen Valley, B.C.), "a fairly dark dubstep set that will surprise you"; Rob-Vector (Boston), "a fan of Dreamtree Project, he's coming all the way to us"; Monokongo (Montreal), "a prog tribal set".

DJs — Dub Style Selectah live vs Sabi Non Stop (Montreal), dub; Rikam vs Mat THC (Montreal), of Tech Safari and the Éclipse festival, "an ambient psychedelic vs downtempo set, a special for the occasion"; Seb vs Kiran (Montreal), Mandala sound & vision, "an ethno ambient set à la Interchill"; Bendala (Montreal), "worldbeat peace & love"; Psyberth (Montreal), psychill "with organic, tribal and melodic sounds"; Longstocking vs Aquarius (Montreal); Solar Prophecy (Sherbrooke); YvY (Sherbrooke), "a vibratory unification of love in a small point in the universe that is the Earth"; Lunar Groove (Montreal), chill-out; Psyrenity (Montreal), tribal psychill; Deception (Montreal), "a mix of goa and prog full of surprises"; SpoOnani (Quebec City), chill-out drum'n'bass; Prana Papa (Quebec City), "from chaïchill to psyworld"; Zen (Inverness), of Altar Records, "active since 1995 in the underground trance and psychedelic ambient scene"; Andreï K (Montreal); Semira (Quebec City), "groovy earth chill"; Alakazoo (Saint-Fortunat), Psy Bûcheron Prod, "a psy dub downtempo set at 70 bpm"; Sinaë (Montreal); Zven (Montreal), psychedelic ambient.

The decor — Psychedelic Sanctuary Creations (Montreal), Cosmo (Peterborough), "Cosmic SpaceCrafts", and the Lune Noire (Saint-Fortunat).

The workshops — sacred geometry, by Cosmo; hula hoop, "the principles and foundations of hooping", by Valérie Hanson; "Dreadlocks 101, myths and facts", by Alle Sundari; Break Dance Ballet, with Ketty and Alle, "two of the most extreme opposites of dance… Eat, breathe, sleep, dance".

The booths — La Moustache Verte, wheatgrass juice; L'Arbre à Palabre, tea room; TrancePlants, shamanic and medicinal plants; Le Baril Roulant, craft beers; Resto chez Mmmm, soups, salads, sandwiches; Le Donjon, coffee and information; Zenergica, massages; a healing area; DJ Zen, CD sales.

The tickets — $35 "for the first 15 tickets bought online via PayPal", $40 until February 28, $50 until June 3, $60 at the door; on sale at Psychonaut in Montreal, at the Arbre à Palabre in Sherbrooke, at Exo in Quebec City, at Chanvre du Nord in Saint-Jérôme and at Shanti Baba in Toronto. The lodges of the indoor campground, "includes electricity and running water", were reserved through PayPal. Signed: "For universal love… which will allow real change. The team of the Donjon, grandeur nature!"

A "Sundari Transport" page organized the shuttle: departure from the Sherbrooke metro station in Montreal, "meeting point corner of Square Saint-Louis and St-Denis", Friday June 3 at noon (arrival in Saint-Fortunat at 2:30 pm) or at 8 pm (arrival at 10:30 pm, "full"), return on Sunday; $30 round trip, "limited seats, reserve soon when purchasing your festival ticket".

The Tatanka 2013 programme

In June 2013, the address ledonjon.ca led straight to the festival's page, "painted" by Tekout, Lune Noire and Six Feet High: "Tatanka is back in force in 2013 for its second edition!" Three outdoor stages, "more than 50 DJs of international calibre", street and circus artists, VJs, belly dancers, workshops, silly games, free camping, a restaurant on site and a "Relaxation Lounge area" with massages, rugs, cushions and shishas. The styles announced: techno, psy/prog, electroswing/balkan, dubstep, techouse/electro, chill/psybient, slam poets, d&b/jungle, dub/psydub, worldbeat, breakbeat, "scratchers on turntables". Tickets at $25 in March ("online only, sold out"), $35 in April, $45 in May, $55 in June, $70 at the door. The original page, with its photos, is preserved in the archives.

The live acts, the DJs, the visuals and the decor

Live — 1,618 (Operation Mindfuck Rec.), Montreal, prog tech; Biobazar, Trois-Rivières, world/trance; Delicate Frenesie, Montreal, dark psy; Florian MSK (D.M.T. Records), Montreal, minimal techno; Kola Papass, Montreal, prog/electroswing; Lynxpoint (Ghotiithout), Montreal, prog; Masingularity, Montreal, psy; MC Ultra K, Montreal, trip-hop; Monokongo, Montreal, prog; Über, Montreal, prog/tek; Wave Parasites (Hardtimes Prod), Montreal, techno; Xnorophis, Montreal, electroswing/tribal.

DJs — Absolute, Montreal, psy; Ajaxbeats (Konkrete Jungle / NYC Ravers), Brooklyn, jungle; Aikido (Fractal), Montreal, chill/prog; Akibel (Evolove), Montreal, psy; Akshobhya (Logic Vision Records), Montreal, min/psy; Arachnaphabob, Quebec City, psy; Audiophil, Val-David, psy/tribal; Bendala (Space Gathering), Val-David, psy/ethno; Black Cat (Hardtimes), Montreal, jungle/tek; Clectic (Les Pirateries), Montreal, eclectic; D-Brain, Montreal, psy; Deception (Studio Sundari), Montreal, psy; Der Denker (D.M.T. Records / Concepto Hipnotico), Montreal, min; Dez1 (Upsessions), Quebec City, d&b; Dezz aka Serenity vs Dubldrop, Montreal, dubstep; Ed-Liner (3e œil), Montreal, techno; Elios, Montreal, chill; Exode, Montreal, downtempo; Fat Louie (Orgone Nrg Lab), Quebec City, d&b/trip-hop; Floydianchild, Quebec City, shamanik dub; Galaks (I.D.J./F.A.K), Montreal, techno; Glitch (Transition Productions), Quebec City, prog/psy; Jahlex (Reggae Bash), Montreal/Jamaica, reggae; Jeff MK-Ultra (Natura Festival), Montreal, psy; Hopeku (Joof Records / Planet B.E.N.), Quebec City, prog; Horizon (24/7 Records), Montreal, psy; Karmapa, Montreal, psy; Kerston (Sound In Motion), Quebec City, dubstep; Kilura (Pounjah Familia), Quebec City, chill; Kurse, Granby, drum and bass; Lectrick and Busker (Scratch Routine), Montreal; LunarGroove (Relaxation Lounge), Montreal, chill; Mattysea (Quite Nice), Montreal, jungle, dubstep; Max Dirt, Montreal, electro; Meta B (Monkey Dub), Montreal, d&b/dub; Mohinia (Logic Vision Records), Montreal, psy; Mr. Lion (Tatanka / 6'High / Quite Nice), Montreal, stepper dub; Nismo (Cyber Loft), Montreal, house; Nitrous (Monkey Dub / In Da Jungle Recording), Montreal, d&b; Obsidian (Logic Vision Records), Ottawa, psydub; Okin, Montreal, tekhouse; 0m Shant1, Montreal, dubstep; Pleckobwoy (Risk / Quite Nice / 6'High), Montreal, ethno trap, jungle; Pranapapa (Tatanka / Relaxation Lounge), Quebec City, shamanik trance; Risa Selector, Sherbrooke, dub; Sabi Non Stop (Tekout / Tatanka / 6'High), Montreal; Samiam, Montreal, downtempo; Semira, Montreal, world/electroswing; Seven Ways (Transition Productions), Quebec City, prog; Shanshancroft, Montreal, electro glitch; Sinaï, Montreal, chill; Sipherdee (64HRZ), Montreal, dubhouse/d&b; Snowphish vs Lockout (MTL's Bassix Production), Montreal, deep dubstep; Spo_Onani (Upsessions / Tatanka), Quebec City, techno/d&b; Stalker aka Forteress, Montreal, d&b; Symbolium (United Beats Records), Montreal, psy; Synthetik (Prism Code), Ottawa/Montreal, psy; Transurfer (Logic Vision Records), Montreal, psy; VNFX (F.U.B.A.R. / Tekout), Montreal, prog/glitch; Wally (Highonbeats.com / Risk), Montreal, bass; YvY, Sherbrooke, ethno. "… And that's not all!"

Visuals — VJ Virus, Lévis; VJ Shanshancroft, Montreal. Decor — Jo Landrix and Darsana Luna, Montreal. "The workshops, the slam poets, the street artists will be announced soon!"

TimeLess 2014, the first Timeless

From Friday, August 29 to Monday, September 1, 2014, for the Labour Day long weekend, L'AgorA hosted a festival that did not exist yet: the TimeLess Festival, organized by Maxime Larocque, Sumi Kim and Enakim with L'AgorA. The announcement opened like a fairy tale: "Once upon a time ॐ TimeLess… A gathering in nature that you won't forget, an experience of freedom, that will be forever part of the history of the Universe, and the land of the AgorA. You are all invited to a memorable labor day weekend. Be ready to be a part of this psychedelic phenomena."

Two outdoor stages, three nights: the Neverland for psytrance and prog, the Cherry Island for chill, downtempo, minimal techno and electro swing, and the big indoor space of the bunker "in case of bad weather". On-site camping, a restaurant, "Good Vibes ☼, Leave no trace ✿, Please car pool". The headliner came from Spain: Yar Zaa, live psytrance, on Monday at 5 a.m. Tickets at Psychonaut and through PayPal: $40 until June 1, $50 until August 1, $60 until August 28, $75 at the door.

After the festival, L'AgorA's page wrote: "A huge THANK YOU to the devotion of the Timeless festival promoters! Their presence made it possible for the party to unfold smoothly, and yet with such intensity!!" D-Brain, who played on Sunday: "For a last visit to L'AgorA, I had immense pleasure enjoying this mystical, high-energy place…" And a festival-goer: "Thanks to everyone for this incredible weekend! I can't wait to see you all again!" It was at Timeless, at the gate, that tickets were sold for the last Earthdance, three weeks later.

This first Timeless started a twelve-year series: the festival came back on Labour Day in the following years, in Saint-Julien in 2015 (with, again, a "Neverland stage"), then elsewhere in Quebec, all the way to Sainte-Agathe-de-Lotbinière, where the 2026 edition was held.

The full schedule of both stages

Neverland, Friday — 7 p.m., opening ceremony; Icky Magdala (techno); VNFX (techno prog, F.U.B.A.R. Prods); Sabi Non-Stop (psytek).

Neverland, Saturday — Decipher vs Dreamstate 7 (progpsy, Studio Sundari); NaiLik, live psytrance (Grasshopper recs, Japan); NaiLik vs Digit; Digit (Twisted Delysid); Délicate Frénésie, live darkpsy; Synthetik vs Psyllium (Studio Sundari / F.A.K / Prism Code / Psyllabus); Absolute (morning progpsy); Sarah Fairy (progpsy); LongStocking (prog); Sound of Nature (three-hour live set); XSTNZ, live nature step (DRT); Viridian (minimal); Hofstader (minimal, Dj School Montreal, Destitution Records); Nyagwai (tribal progpsy, Tranceparence Productions); AudioPhil (ethno progpsy, Val-David); Majikal (progpsy, Ritual nights).

Neverland, Sunday — Symbolium (psytrance, United Beats Records / Vibromassacre, CISM 89.3); D-Brain (psytrance); Djane Akibel (psytrance, Kupuri Music); Yar Zaa, live psytrance (Phantasm recs / Maharetta recs, Spain); Karmapa (full on morning); PranaPapa (ethno full on); Mind Exposure (psytrance, Voie Alternative / Transition); Risa Selektor (progressive); Psymon (prog, 3e Oeil / ThirdEye); Clectik (Fréquences Subliminales); 1.618, live techno; Noey (tribal progpsy); Chase (progpsy, 3e Oeil); Gr3mlin (psytrance, 3e Oeil); Migrana (darkpsy); Hexa5 (psytrance, Timecode Records, Freak Addiction Krew, Prism Code).

Neverland, Monday — Floydian Sound (psytrance); Aikido (psytrance, Altar Records / Fractal / NUR); MaSingularity, live psytrance (Ovnimoon recs); MantraVadin (psytrance, Shamanic Garden Productions); Enakim (progpsy, Shamanic Garden Productions); Über, live progpsy; DaliDalma (progpsy, Tranceparence Productions); Dj Zu (prog).

Cherry Island, Saturday — PsyHippopotamus (psychill); Viridian (psybient); Psytonica (downtempo); Genesis (psybient); Decipher (chill); Mind Exposure (tech prog); VNFX (electro techno); Barbish (electro swing); Psymon (techno minimal); Longstocking (upbeat downtempo); Sickness vs Plecko (drum'n'bass); Icky Magdala (live techno); Chase (tech); XstnZ (bass music); Risa Selektor (house).

Cherry Island, Sunday — Wawaron; Sabi Non-Stop (chill ethno); Karmapa (psychill); AudioPhil (downtempo); Psytonica (psychill); Care; D-Brain (prog); Unicorn; Ed-Liner (techno); Sarah Fairy vs Majikal (electro swing); Nyagwai (tribal house); Hexa 5 (tech house); Transurfer (prog); Noey Kwan (tribal tech house); Clectic (techno); Sour Sweet (downtempo); Pranapapa (psychill).

Cherry Island, Monday — ÜT, live psybient; Délicate Frénésie (chill); Aikido (psychill); Daligator (Quebec rap); Bendala (psychill); Cām̐da yōd'dhā (downtempo deeptrance); MaSingularity (DJ set, 1970s psychedelic rock).

Visuals — Mr. Sun, "string art and eye candy"; VJ Michel Bilodeau.

The ATV shuttle (25 s). During TimeLess, Christian comes down to pick up the festival-goers at the bottom, by the house, with the ATV and its trailer, to take them up to the campsites.

TimeLess 2014 in pictures

Photos by Cedric Bissonnette, posted on the event on September 3, 2014.

Ride-sharing

A public group of 248 members, "Co-voiturage // Ride-share → AgorA", organized transport "at all times towards the Agora". For Earthdance 2013: "Does anyone have a bus/van/camper he would like to fill with riders and get his gas paid?" And for every festival, the same instruction as at the Donjon: "Let's try to carpool."