As
we begin a new decade, we carry with us the promise of hope, resolution and new
possibilities. On January 15th,
2010, there was a strong sense of anticipation and possibility in the air. Though ironclad, meteorological
predictions of rain and thunderstorms were made, the sun showed up in full
form, and did not falter or fall victim to precipitation or pessimism even
once. It seemed the gods were
smiling upon Mt. Smart Stadium, and that anything was possible. And as a man strapped to a jetpack flew
through the sky, completely free from the confines of gravity, all doubt and
skepticism disappeared. To top it
all off, as many as 50,000 people crowded into the stadium to bear witness to
the greatest musical event of the decade (so far). With superb weather, a flying man, and performances from
some of the biggest names in today's music scene, it sure as hell was a Big Day
Out.
Big Day Out is,
and continues to be the most highly revered and respected international music
festival down under, with seven shows throughout Australia and New
Zealand. This year we had some Big
Day Out veterans, some up-and-comers and some global superstars; it was an
exciting and incredible lineup that truly installed feelings of euphoria into
audiophiles of every genre.
Big Day Out
features five main stages, an indoor tent known as the Boiler Room (because of
extremely high temperatures inside) and an array of food stalls, promotional
tents and carnival rides, all spread out over a large stadium area. Due to the number of acts, scheduling
and distance between stages, it is impossible to catch all the bands playing
unless you plan on literally sprinting from stage-to-stage, which I for one was
not. Therefore I did miss a number
of acts, including British indie rock band Kasabian, Australia's Powderfinger,
Eskimo Joe, and a number of DJs and dance groups. Big Day Out is known for its wide variety and large number
of acts, but because the day only has twelve hours in it, there are always
scheduling clashes, so I was forced to prioritize and unfortunately did miss
some great bands.
Local teenage
talent Bandicoot played a pre-official-opening show (testing out the sound
system, smoothing out kinks), and despite their tender youth, delivered an
extremely passionate set well beyond their years. After the rules, regulations and safety precautions quieted
the crowd, the iconic notes of the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey erupted from the loudspeakers, and
welcomed concertgoers to the 16th annual Big Day Out. This was the first Big Day Out of the new decade, and there
was a sense of anticipation that this was going to be a day to remember.
Australia's own
dream pop darlings The Temper Trap (QRO album review) played early on, and awarded fans with
an excellent set. The highlight
was definitely "Sweet Disposition" which had the crowd swaying in unison and
singing along to the falsetto chorus.
Almost directly after came Boston buzz-band, Passion Pit. Delivering a near-perfect set of songs
from their critically acclaimed album Manners (QRO review), Passion Pit injected their fans with
feelings of ecstasy, and was rewarded with a frenetic mosh pit that sang along
to every song. I can honestly say,
the entire crowd singing along to "Sleepyhead" sent chills down my spine. Passion Pit immersed the audience in
pure sound, mood and energy and never let them come up for air once during
their 45-minute set.
By midday the
temperature had 
reached oppressive levels, and bands unfortunate enough to be
scheduled at this time, played to smaller, albeit dedicated crowds. Atlanta-based metallers Mastodon were
one of the few who were on during the heat of the day. They did however play a lively set, and
featured the only double-necked guitar of the day. Also on at this time were local favourites Midnight Youth
and Ladyhawke (QRO live review). Midnight Youth played to a relatively
large crowd of eager young fans, and gave them a solid set, while Ladyhawke
lamented the Haiti tragedy during her show on one of the smaller stages.
At 3:30 PM, a
seemingly dark haze was cast over the stage as U.K. goths-turned-shoegazers The
Horrors (QRO live review)
appeared down under for the first time.
With their ethereal atmospheric melodies, to front man Faris Badwan's
indolent yet passionate tone, The Horrors explored unprecedented musical
territory, whilst conveying their signature deathly undertone to all who dared
to listen. It was quite an
experience, with "Scarlet Fields" being a particular highlight.
After that, the
indoor Boiler Room was the place to be, with back-to-back performances from
Girl Talk, Peaches and Calvin Harris (QRO album review).
DJ Greg Gillis, a.k.a. Girl Talk, turned the Boiler Room into a massive
dance party by inviting fans up on stage with him and managing to jam several
hundred songs into a fantastic mash-up.
Taking the stage straight afterwards, Peaches proved to be her usual
vulgar and unique self, with sexually explicit raps and distinctive if perverse
costumes. Early on in her set she
yelled, "Jesus walks on water, Peaches walks on you," and then proceeded to,
with great trust in her audience, literally walk on top of their hands. A very impressive act, that was later
almost outdone by her donning a penis shaped suit whilst singing "Shake Your
Dick".
By now much of
the crowd was making their way down to the main field in preparation for the
day's main attractions. The field
was completely thick with people and by the time Dizzee Rascal entered the
stage, every inch of grass and every tiered seat was occupied. The motor-mouthed Londoner sent the
arena bonkers with his fast paced hip-hop-meets-dancefloor-meets-grime set,
featuring a triple dose of his hits "Dance Wiv Me," "Holiday" and, as an
encore, "Bonkers".
Following Dizzee
was fellow Londoner Lily Allen, who sauntered onstage barefoot wielding a
cigarette in one hand and a beer in the other. Ms. Allen looked right at home back on stage, after her
latest retirement from music last year.
She performed all her hit singles including "Smile", "LDN", "22", and
was rudely cut short by her band during "The Fear". She also sang a saucy rendition of Britney Spears'
"Womanizer". But by far the most crowd-pleasing
song was "Fuck You", delivered in a way only Allen could pull off.
The Mars Volta (QRO
album review) then
played an impressive set of highly technical, yet often difficult to dance to,
songs. Despite the incredible
guitar solos, or vocal capability of the band, the audience only had one thing
on its mind by then; Muse. So The Mars
Volta were never fully enjoyed and possibly disheartened by a "we want Muse"
chant that began halfway through their set. But eventually they finished, and an intoxicating hush fell
over the audience...
And then there
was Muse (QRO album review). What can one say about Muse that hasn't
already been said before? How does
one describe the best live band in the world? Well let me first set the record straight by saying that
Muse seemed completely deserving of that superlative moniker. Breathtaking, incredible, outstanding
and superb are a few adjectives that come to mind when attempting to describe
Muse live. But the truth is they
are indefinable; there are no words for what was experienced at Muse's show. As the diehard Muse fan next to me
said, "Muse is the best band in the world full stop. They are why we are all here today."
Perhaps this is
true. There was a disproportionate
number of Big Day Out-ers wearing Muse shirts and carrying Muse banners, and
the crowd seemed to come alive when the trio appeared on stage. So maybe this was simply a Muse
concert, with over 40 opening acts.
Whatever the case, Muse played a phenomenal set, beginning with
"Uprising" and "Supermassive Black Hole".
With insane lasers, smoke, flames, confetti and numerous other stage
effects, Muse rocked the 50, 000 strong crowd and gave us all a night to
remember.
The night did
eventually come to a close; those who still could stand after Muse's moshpit,
bravely went and partied to Groove Armada, while the rest of us went home with
vivid memories of an epic night to keep with us for months to come. It sure as hell was a Big Day Out.
-words: Lukas Clark-Memler
photos: taken from www.nzherald.co.nz submitted photostream (link)
One rather under-the-radar development in American indie music these days is the slow but steady growth of ‘nu-gaze’, an atmospheric mixture of fuzzy guitars, understated lyrics, and pure harmony. 
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