Big Day Out @ Royal AdelaideShowground, 03/02/06

Wed 8th Feb, 2006 in Gig Reviews

I must admit, nearly every year when the acts for the coming Big Day Out are released, I feel slightly disappointed and remember the line up from the year before when the acts seemed to be so much more exciting. Usually when the big day arrives, however, I realise that I was being way too harsh and the bands are actually really good fun after all. Last year, I had a fantastic time and saw an amazing variety of bands. You can’t get much more diverse than the Beastie Boys and Slipknot within a couple of hours of each other.

This year’s line up gave me similar thoughts when announced and I hoped for the same feelings of relief on the day as I had in the past.  

Unfortunately, this year actually did fall a little bit short in the excitement factor for me, and for many others I spoke to. The good news is, the Big Day Out is so much more than just a rock concert. It doesn’t matter if the bands disappoint, the Big Day Out is good value for money regardless. For those of you who have yet to experience the festival, I like to think of it as a way of sampling lots of somewhat alternative and heavy music. With at least five stages operating for over twelve hours, you can move around for the day catching bits and pieces of lots of bands and DJs you have never seen before or just check out the few acts that you really came to see. 

I started the day nice and early for a change and got to the venue not long after the gates were opened. There seemed to be a lot of stalls located around the showgrounds selling food, clothing, jewellery, and much more, on top of the obligatory band merchandise sales. It certainly seems that the Big Day Out is turning into an alternative version of the Royal Adelaide show. All it needs now is the showbags.

After a quick trip to the guest bar for a beer to kickstart the day, I moved to the main arena to catch my first act for 2006, Faker. These guys were much more ‘old school’ than I was expecting. They seemed like a real pub band from the ‘80s to me. With the rock vibe in the air and a beautiful sunny day upon us, things were off to a very good start. After another trip to the bar and another wander around the showgrounds, I returned to the main arena to see the end of Gerling’s set followed by Magic Dirt on the next stage. These performances were pretty good but nothing that I would fondly remember in years to come.

Next up, it was time for the only major band on the bill to represent the heavy demographic. Although Mudvayne didn’t wear the freaky facepaint that they were once known for and which Slipknot now do better, they certainly made their presence felt. They made better use of the large stage than most of the bands on the bill and kept up the high energy levels for the whole set. I must also commend the security staff for looking after the hot moshing crowd and handing out hundreds of cups of cold water to keep everyone hydrated. Good work! It’s not often you see pleasant security guys who seem to understand the large crowds at a rock show.

After my fix of the heavy stuff, the next band in the arena, Wolfmother, just didn’t do it for me. I understand that they are supposed to be the next big thing in this country but they just come across to me like a Zeppelin inspired garage band with bad haircuts. Maybe one day they will grow on me but for now I just don’t see them as deserving of a big billing at the Big Day Out.

After spending so much time in the sun, I figured that it was now time to experience the dark corners of the boiler room. In here I found Soulwax offering up a fairly interesting blend of rock and electronica. This was a very different vibe to the Big Day Out that was going on outside in the sunshine. Gone was the carefree summer vibe as the boiler room delivered the atmosphere of a gloomy nightclub at midnight. While I was happy for the variety, I was happier to return to the fun outside. I was glad to be out in time to catch the last half of the Hilltop Hoods. They suited the big stage better than I had anticipated and it was really good to see an Adelaide band up there getting the crowd’s full attention.

Next stop was my first trip to the Converse Essential stage. Here I saw the entire set of New Zealand’s Shihad. I wasn’t sure if they would still have the edge that they used to have after all these years. Considering they have never really achieved the sort of success that they believed they would get someday, I was glad to see that they put on a brilliant show. They definitely still have the passion in their performance. There was no way I could have left their set before the very end. Certainly one of the best performances that I saw all day.

After Shihad, The Living End seemed very meek up there on the big stage. The space was largely wasted on them. Their set was one of the most hit filled of the day and the crowd loved hearing all their anthems but they are one band better suited to the small smoke filled clubs that they started playing in years ago. The same could be said of Franz Ferdinand’s low key performance style but when the Scottish quartet hit the stage, the crowd were really fired up and loved every minute of it. Before their set could finish, I had to leave my position to prepare for a front row position for the next act, Iggy and The Stooges. This was definitely the highlight of this year’s Big Day Out for me. To see such a legendary performer, Iggy Pop, perform with his classic band from the ‘70s was amazing. Iggy is close to 60 years old but looks fitter than anyone I know and outperformed everyone else I’d seen all day by a mile. This performance just flew by and before I knew it, the last major act for the day had hit the stage.

As the major headlining act, The White Stripes were very underwhelming. It felt like the day had peaked after Iggy left the stage and the White Stripes were just there to chill out the crowd before bedtime. I’m sure the hundreds of fans in the front rows for them would disagree with me but compared to previous years, the headlining act weren’t really up there with the most memorable experiences from previous festivals.

At the end of this hectic day, regardless of the main acts on the bill, the Big Day out is an experience that is best enjoyed over the full day and seen as one event featuring lots of different acts rather than as a concert for the main headliners. It was once again an experience to remember and leaves me waiting for the announcement of next years bands.