The Big Day Out is one of the most economic ways to have a great time seeing heaps of great bands. Unfortunately due to the scheduling clashes inherent in such a massive event, it’s also the easiest way to be disappointed at the awesome bands you had to miss.Another great way to miss a band is to get held up in queues on the way in, and so it was that we arrived just in time to hear The Grates thank their audience for helping them get over their nerves about the day. This year saw a new venue for the Melbourne leg of Big Day Out, with Princes Park filling in nicely for the still-being-renovated Showgrounds. The capacity was smaller, giving the day a milder feel, and the closer proximity of the stages made it easier to see, or at least hear, a lot more bands.
The biggest difference between venues was the positioning of the smaller green and purple stages next to each other under a giant tent, and running them at alternating times to avoid sound clashes, like a miniature version of the main stages. So arriving at the end of The Grates also meant turning up at the start of The Greenhornes. A nice early-rock/R’n’B influenced introduction to the day, it wasn’t long before the crowd warmed to them, even if most in the audience seemed to be having their first taste. Drummer Patrick Keeler’s enthusiasm lead the band through an energetic set, especially the closing James Brown cover.
Gerling took to the orange stage with flannel shirts and guitars, looking like a long lost grunge band. The following set was heavily focused on their more rock and guitar songs, and considering the last time I saw them at BDO it was a largely electronic set (with shirts and backpacks), it was nice to see the other side of the band showcased this time around. They also beat a certain much-hyped-afro-led band to the punch, sneaking in the opening riff to White Unicorn, which saw a few of the idle crowd turn their heads in a moment of confused excitement. Meanwhile, Sarah Blasko had the tent completely packed out when she hit the green stage, thanks no doubt to her growing exposure on Triple J.
Magic Dirt have to be one of the most regular bands to appear on the Big Day Out tour, and their consistent sets show why. They covered newer tracks like I Love the Rain (which saw Adalita don an acoustic guitar, definitely something new in the Magic Dirt universe), through to a feedback drenched rendition of She-Riff. The highlight was a strong version of Vulcanella. The first time I’ve seen this song live, it was everything I’d hoped for as Adalita prowled the barriers in front of the crowd and the rest of the band threw themselves around to the distorted music on stage.
The already mentioned scheduling conflicts meant Mudvayne had to be skipped in favour of Sleater-Kinney back in the tent; a hard decision to make, but ultimately a good one as I witnessed one of the standout performances of the day. Drawing mainly from their recent album The Woods, the set was an example of how rock should be done. The interaction between Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein (both playing guitar and vocals) is fascinating to watch live, as is Janet Weiss’s unique drumming style. These were best shown off in tracks like Jumpers, where Tucker’s vocals soar, the bouncy Step Aside and What’s Mine is Yours where Brownstein’s guitar solo is literally a show stopper.
Wolfmother have made an appearance at every major festival over the last six months, and wherever they are so are the legions of Wolfmother t-shirts. So it was no surprise that they hit the blue stage to a large, and appreciative audience. And it was no surprise that like every Wolfmother show, it was loud, it was fuzzy and it was powerful. It was the 70s all over again. They stormed through hits like Apple Tree, and Woman, but if their Hottest 100 results are anything to go by, just about EVERY song is a hit.
Next it was back to the tent for The Go! Team, and a manic performance it was. Fleshing out an album composed largely of sampled bits and pieces to a six piece live band provided a greater feeling of life to the songs, with members jumping as needed between instruments as diverse as recorders, xylophones, keyboards, harmonicas and the more conventional guitar, bass and drums. Lead vocalist Ninja also displayed great diversity as she switched seamlessly between rapping and singing, and her “dances from around the world” during Ladyflash were a big hit with the crowd.
The positioning of the smaller stages next to each other also made for greater exposure to bands as there was a fairly constant stream of music coming from the shared speakers at any given time. And so it was that I heard End of Fashion while waiting for Henry Rollins. I can’t say I was too impressed with their music. O Yeah was a hit with those watching them, but that’s always the way with the single. They played well, but I had trouble finding anything about their songs that made them stand out from the others or grab me in any way.
A spoken word show in the middle of the nation’s biggest travelling rock concert seems like a bit of a weird concept. But if anyone was going to pull it off, it was going to be Henry Rollins. The iconic singer of Black Flag and The Rollins Band managed to entertain a respectable sized crowd with stories about his plan for peace in the middle east via Ramones albums and the importance of the true King of Rock, Iggy Pop (a little teaser for what was to come later).
The Beasts of Bourbon then took to the purple stage next door. It was a strong performance and although not quite the “fuck off” band of their glory days that Rollins had raved about minutes earlier, their passion for what the do is still there. By the time they finish with Let’s Get Funky though, it’s clear that most people in the tent are now waiting for The Mars Volta.
As soon as the Beasts leave the stage the chant goes up: “VOLTA! VOLTA!”. And they live up to everything that’s expected of them. Starting off with Cygnus… Vismund Cygnus, it’s not long before the eight-piece stage version of the band begin to show their chops. Eyes are predominantly on Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (formerly of At The Drive-In), but the entire band got a chance to show off their skills. More impressive was the way all members (now including Paul Hinojos, also an ex-At The Drive-In member) managed to communicate with each other through musical cues so that no matter what territory extended versions of L’via L’viaquez or Drunkship of Lanterns were taken in, everyone was able to reign it back in together with great precision. It was heart-breaking to leave during an extended version of Roulette Dares, but there’s only one chance in my lifetime I’m going to get to see Iggy Pop and The Stooges.
Pop did manage to live up to Rollins glowing praises, traipsing about the stage in exactly the energetic and erratic manner that his reputation and the reports from other Big Day Outs have led us to expect. The Stooges showed a high level of energy too, clearly excited to be back out playing their songs after 30 odd years. But it was definitely Pop who had the audience mesmerised. He called for people to come on stage and “dance with The Stooges”, and many did. Somehow one of my friends lost both his shoes in the scramble over the barrier, but he said it was worth it just to be on stage with Iggy, and to surprise him with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Late highlights in the set came from tracks like Funhouse and closer I Wanna be Your Dog, with Iggy screaming when on stage, and at other times jumping down to run in front of the crowd and pass the microphone out for the chorus, before jumping back on stage to pose like a stripper and show off that lean physique and bit of ass-crack just above his skin tight jeans. For those down the front this truly this was an evening WITH the stooges, not just watching them.
Then came The White Stripes. Recent hit Blue Orchid got things pumping early in the set and for a two piece they still managed to provide a fairly eclectic mix of sounds. Starting and stopping songs almost on a whim and combining many into medleys, Meg White kept a steady beat, while Jack White roamed the stage, jumping between guitars, pianos and a xylophone, often mid-song and at one stage Meg even took the vocals for a bit. Highlights included Dead Leaves on the Dirty Ground combined with Passive Manipulation off current album Get Behing Me Satan, and a brief burst of There’s No Home for You Here before Jack went to the back of stage, placed his guitar down and took up on the xylophone for The Nurse, during which he’d allow feedback from the still plugged in guitar to ring out during the louder breaks. And of course a rendition of Seven Nation Army at the end of the set was lovingly welcomed by the crowd.
With The White Stripes finishing a touch early, there was just enough time to rush over and catch the last two songs by Shihad. Another of the bands to consistently rock the Big Day Out, it was a shame they had to compete with the headliners for an audience tonight. But those who were there looked like they’d been enjoying themselves. Shirtless, stick thin and now long-haired, singer Jon Toogood seems to be giving his best emulation of Iggy Pop, throwing himself around as energetically as ever. At the close of My Mind’s Sedate (a perfect way to whip the crowd into a frenzy as you say goodbye), Toogood pulled apart the drumkit, then leapt into the crowd with the bass drum and rode it around. It was a contrast to Jack White’s humble ‘thank you for watching me and my sister’ speech, but then that just illustrates the diversity of this year’s Big Day Out, which once again was celebrated and enjoyed by all.
(Originally published on FasterLouder)
