Big Day Out was abit fun this year
Posted: Wed Nov 5, 2008 6:55 am

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Have you got your ticket for BDO 09 yet?
I'm going.
I go every year.
This is what I saw at BDO 08.

Every year I get home after BDO feeling the same…a little dusty and a little stinky…pretty much little like I’ve just completed a 12 hour marathon.
This year had no exceptions and to be honest with you, it was probly one of the worst as far as the above goes.
Mix 45 thousand people with dry heat, tearing up the dust and you’ve got one hell of a long day ahead.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love BDO as much as the next guy, but when you’re stupid enough to wear jeans in that kind of weather, you’re bound to run into a few problems.

The Checks were the first on my nicely hi-lighted list, so expecting an encore performance to Rhythm and Vines; I took position up the front. Instead we got crap sound and a show that lacked their usual charisma and charm. Maybe they were hung-over? I don’t know…
Onwards and upwards I say, so off to enjoy another NZ band, The Exiles. Having only heard one of their songs before (yes, you know the one), I was pleasantly surprised to find all of their songs just as catchy. After their colourful set, Battle Circus wooed the crowd so well with their Muse-like sound and happy faces that suddenly I forgot how uncomfortable I was in my jeans…fantastic! Anyone who can do that deserves and instant five stars in my book!

The Lookie Loo’s put on a lively performance playing all my favourites off their EP. For once, I was proud to be from Hamilton…and it made me think; maybe we really are The City of the Future?!
Other events of the afternoon included getting sucked into Dizzee Rascals set before being spat out like an old piece of gum. It still amazes that no-one choked in there, the air was so thick.
Finding my lost friends, we checked out The Electric Confectionaires who were so dull I nearly left to have a nap. The only thing to get me through was the thought that Motocade were up next who, as always put on a great show to get us geared up for a New York treat, Battles.

Without a doubt it was these guys who stole my heart. Who knew Battles could actually play those crazy sounds on every day instruments?! After bopping to singer, Ty Braxton who stunned the crowd with his enthusiasm, I was ready for a cup of tea and a sit down. No rest for the wicked though, right?! Enter Shikari had been hi-lighted so I was ready to have my eardrums blasted with a new kind of sound…half dance and half that yelly kinda’ stuff that I’m still trying to decide whether I like or not...One thing I am sure of is that these guys know how to rock it, running round the stage like squirrels jumping off speakers. Watching the crowd go nuts over this band was like watching a hurricane. You didn’t know where it was going to go next, and if you weren’t careful you’d most likely end up being swept amongst it.

Down at the main stages, Bjork was finishing up with a striking laser light show along with confetti drifting into the sea of her admirers. This was so impressive, that I nearly even liked her for a minute.
There was no way we were going to get anywhere near the stage for Rage without being trampled to death, so after an unsuccessful search to find seats standing on some stairs was the way to go. This turned out to be the best idea since sliced bread! From here it was awesome to see the crowd jumping up and down like a massive heart pumping blood round the entire stadium. From the front to the back of the crowd, there were so many raised hands and pogo-ing that it felt like a ridiculously oversized dance party.

One of my favourite parts of the 12 hour BDO marathon is finishing up to head home. It’s only then that you realise how huge your day was because it’s the first time it is quiet enough to hear your thoughts. Worn-out concert goers swarm up the steps like bees finding their way to the hive, or in my case the bus. It’s these beloved bus trips that always prove how exhausted you are when the dust and stink you were worried about at the beginning of the day no longer matters. All that’s important is the shower and bed that awaits.

Amanda Ratcliffe

RE: Big Day Out was abit fun this year
Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 10:45 pm

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