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This year the lineup made the difference, said Marcotte of the almost 150 bands. Headliners included Grunge band Alice in Chains, fan favourite Megadeth, veteran rockers Mötley Crüe and Weezer.

Though the music shook houses hundreds of metres away, the influx of people made for a quiet weekend for the Sûreté du Québec. Spokesman Sgt. Ronald Mc Innis said there were no major incidents and most police manpower was spent managing traffic. Mc Innis said some 26,000 cars came to Montebello, which sold out of parking permits for the village limits on Thursday afternoon.

Marcotte said support for the event is at an “all-time high,” likely because of all the business it drums up.

The Fairmont Le Château Montebello was booked more than six months in advance for the two-day festival. General manager Geneviève Dumas said the international crowd had only good things to say about the setup.

“This year, since everything was going smoothly, the morale of the crowd was really good. Last year, you could feel the frustration. It was a bit chaotic,” said Dumas, adding the mailed bracelet passes helped prevent long ticket lines.

Dumas even opened her lawn to visitors.

“There’s not enough capacity for all these people,” she said. “All the citizens are pitching and camping people on their lawns. You have kids selling hot dogs and lemonade stands.”

That’s what 13-year-old Mikaelle Millette did with her friends, too young to join the rock festivities inside the gates. Millette’s family opened their lawn to 35 tents and estimates they sold 1,000 hot dogs over the weekend.

Dumas said now she’s used to the coloured hair and outlandish costumes that bring energy to Montebello.

“The town is completely transformed,” she said.