Celebrating its 20th year Big Day Out’s Gold Coast leg seemed to sport an unofficial dress code of clothing optional for girls and wearing your Dad’s palm tree/geometric shapes print shirt from the 80s for the males. Feeling overdressed in my AAA Backstage t-shirt and denim shorts I set out to see my first act of the day.
Cool, calm and commanding Abbe May open the Orange Stage to not nearly enough people as they deserve. Leading lady (and namesake of the band) Abbe executes each of the bands hits Taurus Chorus, Mammalian Locomotion and Design Desire with incredible vocal prowess that is laced with laid-back sex-appeal. Demonstrating that she certainly knows her way around a guitar Abbe May nails lesser known hits Perth Girls and You Could Be Mine to a crowd that has doubled over the 40- minute set. It’s only 11:40am and I’ve already seen one of the best acts of the day and developed a pretty big girl crush.
Straight up next door is Papa vs Pretty opening the Blue Stage and the crowd is buzzing to see the Sydney trio. I was not as impressed as I thought I was going to be by the boys, feeling as though they lacked the stage presence needed to kick off one of Big Day Out’s two main stages. Regardless of that fact, Papa vs Pretty fans were right into it with Darkest Way being a favourite.
Seeking shelter from the midday sun I trek to the Converse Green Stage where I was met by an initially surprising large crowd. After performing their own soundcheck (kudos!), Stonefield launch straight into a powerhouse set, completely making up for the fact they were 20 minutes late. Lead vocalist and drummer Amy Findlay’s mighty voice fills every corner of the tent and even gives me the chills at one point. Supported by her equally as talented three sisters who are all masters of their own respective instruments it’s hard to believe how young these girls are. After hearing Blackwater Rising, Drowning and a killer cover of Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love it’s hard not to make the comment that these girls were born in the wrong decade. Finishing with Through The Clover I am no longer surprised by how many people came to see Stonefield, only that these girls are not headlining every festival in the country.
Caught the end of Frenzal Rhomb and was reminded of what Big Day Out sounded like in the 90s.
Americans Cage the Elephant were a pleasant surprise with a set full of raw energy, particularly from front man Matthew Shultz who stomps around the stage (and the crowd a few times) as if he’s consumed an inhumane amount of sugar. The Essential Stage crowd absolutely loved the Kentucky boys and their tracks Shake Me Down, Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked and Pixies-eque Around My Head. Shultz takes time to pay tribute to recently passed Etta James and it’s a shame that 90% of the crowd don’t know who that is.
Boy & Bear start to a near capacity Orange Stage with Milk & Sticks setting a nice pace after Parkway Drive. Dave Hosking’s dream-like vocals sound great projected over the masses, but the intimacy and charm created by the band feels lost in a festival setting.
The Boiler Room is packed waiting for Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All and I’m interested to see exactly what the hype is about. Turns out it’s not much as the rap group can barely be heard shouting over each other. They’re definitely enthusiastic to be up there and it has the Boiler Room going absolutely crazy. Maybe I just don’t ‘get it’.
Best Female (ARIA winner) Kimbra explodes onto the Green Stage and shows fans just how creative she is with her voice in Settle Down. In a get-up that has her looking like a gorgeous living doll she encourages the crowd to sing-along in Two Way Street and her cover of Bobby Brown’s Every Little Step. Looking genuinely excited to be up there Kimbra proclaims she’s happy to see everyone knows her music, stating “it was tough going for a while!” The beginning of Cameo Lover is met with screams and there’s no doubting that Kimbra has worked her way into the psyche of Australians for good.
Playing for the first time in Australia (what the hell?!), Röyksopp hit it out of the ball park with their impressive live show. What Else Is There is a highlight as are the Deadmau5 inspired headpieces worn by the duo.
My Chemical Romance played to a legion of fans who braved the wet weather to hear Helena, Teenagers and Welcome To The Black Parade. Throwing their fists into the air in perfect unison there’s no questioning who those punters came to see.
By the time headliners Soundgarden came on stage only the loyal were left in the D barricade due to the rain. I relocated undercover and came to be disappointed with the grunge rockers 1hr15mintue long set. Was it the weather? Was I simply too far from the action to really enjoy the music? Hits like Black Hole Sun were lacklustre and the boys fell short of delivering in my books.
After an uninspiring performance by Soundgarden, uber-artist and closing headline act Kanye West kept punters waiting 45 minutes due to technical difficulties caused by the rain. Whatever the reason, people were pissed. After crowds chanted a few rounds of “bullshit” and an apology from a Big Day Out stage crew member, Kanye West unveiled his live ‘masterpiece’. Complete with dancers and an impressive backdrop West emerged on an ascending platform to Dark Fantasy, and it was then I realised this was the exact same set as his Splendour in the Grass performance last year. Of course he played the favourites; Jesus Walks, Touch The Sky and Gold Digger as well as newer hits All Of The Lights and Monster. Kanye West definitely knows how to deliver a show and has everyone involved and loving each of his songs, but without the hype and controversy surrounding this artist what would we be left with? After witnessing some supreme Australian talent earlier in the day (Stonefield, Abbe May), I’d go as far to say they could have executed a closing performance just as good. Since the passing of his mother in 2007 West makes it a point to include the track Hey Mama in each tour and thus concluded his performance with the track and closed the Big Day Out main stage for 2012.
Lauren Young - AAA Backstage
