| R.I.P. BIG DAY OUT New Zealand - 2012 review. |
| Written by Sarah Mudgway |
| Thursday, 26 January 2012 20:34 |
 Walking into the Mt. Smart Stadium grounds for 2012’s BIG DAY OUT, the usual feelings of excitement and anticipation that one feels when walking through the festival's gates, was this year joined by sadness. After all, it was only a few days earlier that organizer Ken West had announced that this year’s event would now be the last time that the Big Day Out would make the trip across the Tasman, and with this year’s festival already having been considerably downsized to cut costs, upon arrival it wasn’t surprising to see why Mr. West made the decision that will undoubtedly leave a hole in many music fans’ Summer schedule. You know that usual D barricade? Gone. That typical fight up to the front of the crowd to see your favourite band was a distant memory, with perhaps the exception of Soundgarden who closed the Main Stage with a rather impressively sized crowd. One lone stage replaced the old Blue and Orange Stages at the top of the field with a skate ramp set up next door, which although a great novelty, didn’t seem to really draw too much interest all day aside from the 45-minutes that skate legend TONY HAWK made an appearance. Down further from the ramp was the very small Skate Stage which was home to many of the days’ local acts such as Midnight Youth and I Am Giant who were scattered between a few internationals. For those rave fans that used to partake in some not-so-legal activity before heading into the dark heat of the Boiler Room, this year the rave had to take place outside. Yes, that giant tent in which I’ve maintained a love/hate relationship with throughout the years was nowhere to be seen, with just a usual outdoor stage set up in its place. While there was something special about seeing some of the world’s best dance/rap acts in such a confined indoor space with thousands of others (Dizzee Rascal 2008, anyone?), the sweat-dripping-from-the-ceiling factor was certainly not missed this year - and artists such as GIRL TALK commanded the stage with infectious energy and had the audience in the palm of their hands, and up on the stage in a confetti and balloon-filled dance party. I could go on about the small crowds, the weird foam pit which had chunks of foam annoyingly flying through the air, or the anarchy corner which had kids running from getting soaked in watered-down paint fights straight into the main stage crowd and getting their paint on unsuspecting concert-goers (maybe I’m just getting old)... but despite all of this, the 2012 Big Day Out was full of positive energy, good times and its usual array of music which all in all, was a great send-off to the festival that has given so many of us some unforgettable memories. British band THE VACCINES were the first act of the day I had a chance to check out, and they set the day off to a good start. Describing their sound as being influenced by “50s rock 'n' roll, '60s garage and girl groups, '70s punk, '80s American hardcore, C86 and good pop music”, their energetic early afternoon performance had the audience bopping their heads and shuffling their feet, with a few faithful fans up the front singing along to every word and largely ignoring the rain which was showering down. Wandering into the Boiler Room stage area, I then stumbled across Brooklyn-based rap group DAS RACIST. As someone who had never heard of these guys before, I was surprisingly entertained by their stoner-rap antics and the hilarious projection screen images behind them (ranging from weed, to Bart Simpson, to Beyoncé). Playing tracks such as ‘Brand New Dance’ and singing an auto-tuned ode to their favourite water brands, their apparently no-care, fun and fresh approach to their music had their audience size grow considerably throughout their set and to me, represent the beauty of festivals such as Big Day Out - the chance to check out artists you never would have otherwise. Local lads UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA had the Green Stage audience happily listening to their 60’s-inspired tracks, with many choosing to hang back and soak up the sunshine from the comfort of the grass. Led by ex-Mint Chick Ruban Nielson, he impressed with his Jimmy Hendrix-esque guitar solos - and their track ‘Ffunny Ffrends’ was the perfect way to close off the set, getting much of the audience up on their feet and enjoying our local talent.  BEST COAST were the next act to take to the Green Stage - and impressed straight from the get-go, opening their set with ‘The End'. Frontwoman Bethany Cosentino projected the perfect mix of sass, coquettishness and vivaciousness - all while running through a set that included singles 'Our Deal', 'Boyfriend' and 'Crazy For You', as well as new song 'In Your Sleep' and an old-school treat, 'Something In The Way'.  Click HERE for more live BEST COAST photos.  After seeing the extraordinary amount of MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE t-shirts walking around Mt. Smart Stadium, it wasn’t at all surprising to see that the band had pulled the biggest audience of the day so far. Starting their set fifteen minutes late due to technical difficulties, as soon as the band stepped onto the stage performing their 2010 single ‘Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)’ the crowd were on their feet with fists in the air and voices ready to sing. Unfortunately the first few songs of the set - ‘I’m Not Okay (I Promise)’, the dance-inspiring ‘Planetary (GO!)’ and ‘Mama’, were plagued with sound issues reminiscent of their 2008 appearance at the festival, however by the time the band launched into ‘Helena’ the sound team had managed to sort themselves out and vocalist Gerard Way’s voice was allowed its time to shine. Fans expecting to hear a setlist heavy with songs from their last release ‘Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys' would have been left feeling a little disappointed, as the New Jersey four-piece (and their touring members) played a 45-minute best-of set which included my personal highlight ‘Our Lady Of Sorrows’ from the band’s first release, 2002’s ‘I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love‘. 'Teenagers’ and ‘DESTROYA’ had much of the enthusiastic crowd singing along, culminating in the band’s final song ‘The Kids From Yesterday’ which had many a fan-girl swoon as frontman Gerard Way moved his way to the front of the crowd to greet his loyal fans.  Click HERE for more live MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE photos.  I’ll admit without hesitation that I had been unable to buy into the hype of FOSTER THE PEOPLE. Something about their hit single ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ really didn’t resonate with my music-loving spirit, so I approached their early evening set with as open mind as possible. Opening their set with ‘Houdini’ I was instantly surprised - without all the album's vocal effects, frontman Mark Foster’s voice was able to really stand out as one of the most solid of the day. They had all the energy you would expect from one of last year’s breakout bands, with Foster running from one side of the stage to the other commanding the audience with ease. Drummer Mark Pontius was a treat to watch, and as the band played ‘I Would Do Anything For You’ and ’Call It What You Want’ even I - the least likely to enjoy their set - couldn’t help but be thoroughly entertained.  Click HERE for more live FOSTER THE PEOPLE photos. Dashing away to the Skate Stage, it was time for my most anticipated set of the day courtesy of MARIACHI EL BRONX. Taking to the stage in their black and silver charro outfits with bottles of Corona in hand, the Big Day Out stadium area was transformed into a Mexican themed party. One of the most unique bands I’ve ever witnessed on a Big Day Out stage, Mariachi El Bronx entertained the smiling crowd with tracks such as the infectious ’48 Roses’, ‘Slave Labor’ and ‘Cell Mates’. Vocalist Matt Caughthran’s vocals were crisp and on point, and the on-stage banter and the obvious passion for what they are doing had their audience size continuously increase throughout their set - I mean, it’s hard to not have a great time when the band is so clearly enjoying themselves. All the band members proved to be exceptionally talented, going from guitar to accordion to other instruments I struggle to name without hesitation. Dedicating their final track ‘Silver Or Lead’ to Pablo Escobar and Jesus, the band commented that it was due to Kasabian running over time that they had to cut their set short, and with that they were off and Soundgarden were on.  Click HERE for more live MARIACHI EL BRONX photos.  It seems fitting that SOUNDGARDEN - the band that headlined the very first Big Day Out in New Zealand - would close out the Main Stage in our last Big Day Out. Opening with ‘Searching With My Good Eye Closed’ before launching into hits ‘Spoonman’ and the epic ‘Jesus Chris Pose’, the band were certainly older, yet no less talented or energetic than they were in their earlier years. Frontman Chris Cornell’s voice was as powerful as ever, soaring above the instrumentation and proving why his career pre-Soundgarden’s reunion has been hugely popular. ‘Black Hole Sun’ inspired a mass sing-a-long and the cheers grew louder when Cornell insisted the band would be back on our shores soon with new material in tow.  Click HERE for more live SOUNDGARDEN photos.  The final set of the day went to Britpop legend Noel Gallagher and his new act NOEL GALLAGHER'S HIGH FLYING BIRDS. It had been rumoured that the band would perform a number of Oasis tracks in the set, and that they did, opening with ‘(It’s Good) To Be Free’. Continuing on with some new material such as ‘Everybody’s On The Run’ and ‘If I Had A Gun’, it was when the acoustic guitar came out for a heart-warming rendition of ‘Wonderwall’ that the crowd's energy levels increased and the sing-a-longs begun. The bad boy of rock proved to have a great sense of humour, with witty stage banter such as "Well what’s not to love?" with a cheeky grin on his face in response to a fan yelling out "I love you Noel!". Closing his hour long set with the Oasis classic ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ it was a fitting song to mark the end of an 18 year New Zealand summer legacy that will be hard to replace.   Click HERE for more live NOEL GALLAGHER'S HIGH FLYING BIRDS photos. |
