While conversations about the searing heat at the Melbourne leg of the Big Day Out were becoming almost as excruciating as the billions of photons ferociously pummeling our skin, artists making up the best lineup the festival has seen in years took to the stage and ensured a whole day of sweaty musical goodness.
Dedicated fans of rock ‘n‘ roll crawled out of bed uncharacteristically early for a Sunday to make it over to Flemington Racecourse in time to see British 50s rock ‘n‘ roll throwbacks The Jim Jones Revue destroy the gigantic ball of sweat and sunscreen they called an audience - many of whom were hearing the band for the first time - with their mix of post punk glory and hard hitting piano driven 50s rock ‘n‘ roll.
After a brief sojourn to the Boiler Room where Brazilian electro-pop band CSS (formerly Cansei de Ser Sexy) hypnotised fans looking for respite from el sol into a trance-like state of involuntary dancing (the closer to the stage, the more voluntary said dancing was), Andrew WK kicked off his set in the only way he knew how - by bringing the party.
Forty-five minutes of being told to party while the same song (yes, I am convinced Andrew WK has recorded one song 30 odd times and tricked fans into thinking he’s releasing new albums) might sound like a horrible experience, but WK’s energy is infectious and his early-afternoon slot made the remainder of the day more bearable.
South African art-rappers Die Antwoord had little chance of living up to the hype surrounding them, but their show was fun. After a brief intro from DJ Hi-Tek complete with samples saying he’s going to “fuck you in the arse” Ninja and Yo-Landi Vi$$er hit the stage with their first single ‘Enter The Ninja‘. Despite much of their schtick seeming lost on the audience, the crowd still looked on with a combination of admiration and bewilderment.
The angriest performance I saw was undoubtedly coming from Deftones over on the main stage. After over twenty years of playing together, the band still have the ferocity in their sound that was there in the late 90s when they were king. The brutality was quickly countered by Andrew WK’s solo reprise performance at Lilyworld, which featured guest appearances by audience members drunk or brave enough to climb up and chime in.
A spectacular run of acts began from 5:45, with Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros squeezing into the Converse stage tucked away in a little corner of the festival. The intoxicating sound the nine (one didn’t make it to Australia) members produce isn’t something you get to see every day. The knowledge that every sound produced is being played live adds an exciting touch to the show that is sometimes missed with smaller bands relying on backing tracks and it gives the band a chance to reproduce their so-far-only album ‘Up From Below’ faithfully without ending up a carbon copy of the recording.
Dashing across the racecourse for proto-punk icons The Stooges was worth the trek, but the inevitable gust of wind had made its way to Flemington just in time to see Iggy and co hit the stage and proceeded to ruin the sound for all but the closest fans. Despite this, a great set consisting mainly of songs from the band’s 1973 album ‘Raw Power‘ showed some of the younger acts how it’s really done.
The highlight of the day wasn’t German industrial fire-breathers Rammstein, who followed. It was back on the Green stage when a little-hyped Primal Scream played their iconic 1991 album ‘Screamadelica’ to a modest, but adoring crowd. Both Rammstein and Primal Scream suffered from Melbourne being a geographical oddity on the Big Day Out circuit - both bands were relegated to a daylight set where in other cities nightfall would have already hit and the impact of their visual-intensive sets wasn’t as striking as it could have been.
A quick lie down on the gigantic Lilyworld cushion to the soundtrack of the number one viking-metal band in the Melbourne area - Barbarion - recharged the batteries just enough to get through the last set of the day.
Grinderman’s set was not marred by daylight. Their brutal performance of their two albums combined with a chaotic lighting display put the audience in the middle of a violent storm assaulting all senses. Despite (or because of) Grinderman feeling more like a theatrical performance than a rock show, the weary-legged crowd stumbled out of the venue on a high.
The 2011 edition of the Big Day Out will go down in the festival’s history as one of the greats. It was a lineup that drew a lot of older festival goers back to the festival they had turned their back on. While many - myself included - felt like the Big Day Out had turned its back on risk taking, preferring to let the many other festivals that have sprouted up in its wake pander to those willing to look outside the mainstream, this year the festival reclaimed its place as the festival for literally everyone.
If this doesn't paint enough of a picture for you, check out Undercover photographer Ros O'Gorman's photos of the event here.
Follow the author Tim Cashmere on Twitter.
Follow the author Tim Cashmere on Twitter.
While we prepare to bring you our most recent interview with Deftones (look for it later this week!), check out our interview with the band the last time they were in Australia below:
