Big Day Out

Featuring: Neil Young, Arctic Monkeys, TV On The Radio, Prodigy, Lupe Fiasco, Bang! Bang! Eche!, Pendulum, Mint Chicks, Brand New Math, Ting Tings and Black Kids

Friday, January 16, 2009

Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland

It was possibly the least anticipated Big Day Out I’ve ever been to. None of the acts I was crazy about seeing, though I was definitely excited enough to go. The weak line-up was made all the more exciting by accompanying Nick to his first Big Day Out, and seeing a festival I’ve been to eight times now through slightly more fresh eyes.

We arrived early to support our friends Bang! Bang! Eche! who turned out to be one of the more riveting, energetic and skilled bands of the whole day. I was blown away by the sheer guts of their new, more punk songs and T’nealle’s tiny fingers! Seeing a band you’ve only ever seen in dark dingey clubs in broad daylight gives you a whole new perspective. B!B!E! put so many bands to shame, their poise and expertise puts them above many others.

After hanging in B!B!E!’s trailer and buying a hat to shield my eyes from the harsh midday sun we headed to Black Kids. There was time to kill between quite a few of the good bands early on, fortunately Black Kids were worth the venture down to the stadium. Their energetic, charming and cute synth pop was hard to translate through to the large crowd, even though they seemed used to playing large outdoor festivals. Hits like Listen To Your Body Tonight and I Wanna Be Your Limousine were totally fun live and I was digging it.

We had to leave Black Kids early to go see Brand New Math, another staple live act. Their disappointing crowd turn out was not reflected in a disappointing live show; BNM were on top of their game, and despite awkward technical issues Brad was as menacing and ferociously entertaining as ever. Plus I always love their costumes and attempts to co-ordinate; the complimentary tie-dye shirts and pants looked incredible on stage.

The Ting Tings had me bored a lot of the time during their set, it never really occurred to me just how blindingly simple their songs are until I was subjected to the repetitive 4/4 time and vocal wail of this band live. But when the hits came out near the end of the set it was much more engaging and fun. Katie pointing out her loop pedal and then bashing it endlessly seemed kind of lame to me, but the younger, un-aware audience might have appreciated it. After all it was an alarmingly young audience at this Big Day Out, considering the main attraction is nearing retirement age.

But they all came out for Pendulum, and boy was there good reason for them to! I thought this was a DJ act until I saw the five-piece live band pulling classic rock/metal poses along to hardcore rave anthems to a heaving, devil-horned mosh pit. It was the most energetic audience I would see all day – until The Prodigy. Their transitions between songs and parts were seamless and the intensity and energy of their set was on fire. It was jaw-droppingly impressive!

Which made it all the more depressing when TV On The Radio came on the adjacent stage. It seemed the sound guy failed to turn on the PA, as the band was entirely muffled and hidden under a blanket of crowd banter, mostly questioning this terrible blunder. We stayed for half the set in the hopes that it would improve, apparently it did mildly but at that point we’d scurried up the crowded stairs for Lupe Fiasco in the Boiler Room. TVOTR was one of the main reasons I was excited about BDO 09, so to see the shambolic trainwreck of their set that was completely out of their control was unforgivably bad. However it was easy to see how amazing they’d be live in a smaller, indoor venue like The Powerstation. I just can’t wait til they can come back and make up for it. Tunde’s dance moves were out of this world and Kyp’s vocals I’m sure would have been gold if I could have only heard them properly.

Fortunately Lupe and his crazy five-piece band put the smiles back on our faces with their unforgettable, indescribable, crazy, intense, ghetto-tastic set. The Boiler Room was absolutely thumping and heaving with the bombastic bass and keys and mighty drums emanating from the stage. Lupe prowled and posed like a kid on Ritalin or some almighty Hip Hop God. He praised the audience, teased them, enticed them and encouraged them to have the best time ever. It was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen in my life. SO much fun and SO magnetic.

After that it was hard to do anything but marvel and eat dinner. Then, with nothing to do, we ambled over to the Essential Stage to see The Mint Chicks. Far more entertaining and exciting than I imagined they’d be, their familiar tunes played with such ease and insistency that it was captivating. And the animal costumes ruled!

Arctic Monkeys were another let down, impossible to get to like TVOTR and so badly mixed that the sound was very difficult to digest. But the new songs were interesting, with lead singer Alex on organ/keyboard it made for a new, less energetic dynamic but these songs came across as more thoughtful and considered. We sat through all of the Monkeys on the stands, regretfully mourning the fact that we’d seemed to have missed a chance at entering the D-area front-of-stage for Neil Young on the neighbouring blue stage. As it turned out however, all the kids left the Monkeys for who-knows-where, and as the stadium emptied out we thought maybe we did have a shot, and we may as well try, as it was one of the godfathers of grunge!

When Neil Young finally took the stage it was something to behold. The towering character with floppy grey hair blowing in the wind of a stage fan around his centred bald spot, his paint-spattered jacket and baggy old jeans, his unending scowl and contempt shining through in his angry odes and anthems made an epic BDO set akin to The Stooges or Metallica or The White Stripes’ first appearance. Except this was unlike anything else. The classically trained back-up singers with typically back-up singer poise and dances, the grey-haired and tremendously skilled band, the pipe organ, harmonica, piano and guitar all feverishly played with such angered intensity and the awkward hopping dance played out like a classic gig from their heyday, brought forward twenty or thirty years. I felt lucky to be in that crowd, lucky to be so close and lucky to be sharing it with close friends. There was an electric camaraderie that was apparent in the hugging, jumping, and sharing. It was going to be a hard one to beat, possibly forever, but I was determined to see The Prodigy before I went home.

The Prod’ (as they’re fondly known) turned out to be infinitely more popular than I could have imagined, but then progressive techno-rave has always been popular in New Zealand, hasn’t it? The Boiler Room was impossible to get into and I almost couldn’t be bothered, if it weren’t for the epic lights and pounding bass coming out. All the songs seemed to have the same pre-programmed beats and there was irritatingly repetitive vocal taunts from MC Maxim – “C’mon c’mon! New Zeeeeeealaaaaand! Give it up! We love you! Big Day Out oh-nine! Yeah yeah yeah!…” But my eyes were glued and my feet wanted to jump regardless. Just like Dizzee last year there were people hanging from the rafters; freaks and weirdos everywhere. It was a great bringing-together of everyone for the final act and reminded me why I always like to finish my night off in the magnificent dance tent, always equipped with the best sound, even though my entourage had already resigned himself to a blissed-out beyond belief NY4EVA mentality.

Another BDO been and gone, I left the grounds finding myself not in my usual anticipatory mood. I was neither overjoyed nor largely disappointed, but simply content with what I’d seen. I always know I’ll be back, no matter what.

More Big Day Out photos

Posted by Sarah Gooding under New York, New Zealand, U.S.A, UK
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