Review by Billy Geary
Arriving at Flemington early on Saturday morning, there was an air of excitement amongst those arriving to see the first few bands. 2013 brought with it a rejuvenated Big Day Out, something that was much needed given the performance of the festival in recent years.
Despite the bright outlook, the Melbourne leg of Big Day Out got off to a shaky start when it was revealed to the gathering media contingent at the front gate that a truck break down had mean that some sound gear meant for the main stage had not arrived. The result meant that House Vs. Hurricane’s set was postponed to 8pm on the menial Red Stage and Me had their allocated set time halved as technicians battled to get the main stages ready.
The upside was the issues left plenty of time to check out other acts, with indie poppers Toucan being this reviewer’s choice. Despite the early slot, Toucan played an energetic set to a reasonable sized crowd in what was a great start to the day.
Back over at main stage, after about half an hour of intermittent white noise, local boys Me blasted through 20 minutes of their grandiose rock. Sitting somewhere between Muse and Queen, the band are masters of all things epic with ‘Like a Fox’ and ‘Vampire! Vampire!’ being particular highlights.
Shortly after, the very heavy and very sleazy Every Time I Die whipped the growing crowd into a literal frenzy. Circle pits and crowd surfing was the order of the day, as the band’s thrashy hardcore turned plenty of heads and almost certainly turned just as many away, such was the ferocity of their sound. A jog over to the Essential Stage yielded the tail end of Hunting Grounds’ set. The Triple J favourites had clearly developed a decent following in their short life, with a large crowd gathered to see the Victorian natives. Finale ‘In Colour’ saw a mosh pit break out plenty of crowd surfing take place
Meanwhile, Gary Clarke Jr. was wowing a huge crowd at the Green Stage with his soul-tinged blues. The man has recently been labelled the saviour of blues and, judging by his set on Saturday, it’s hard to disagree with that statement. In particular, renditions of ‘Numb’ and ‘Please Come Home’ were quite something to witness.
Despite lacking much stage presence, Band of Horses played one of the sets of the day, with their swampy rock fitting the warm afternoon setting perfectly. In particular, ‘The Funeral’ and ‘The Great Salt Lake’ are powerful reminders of the band’s talent, with the punters clearly enthralled throughout their set.
Over at the Green Stage, Keith Morris and the rest of OFF! were showing the kids what old school punk looked and sounded like. Despite the small crowd, the band was undeterred, making the tent seem like a dingy little pub such was their intensity. At the same time, the equally energetic Smith Street Band continued their rise out of Melbourne bars as they treated a loyal crowd to their anthemic and poetic rock.
Pulling one of the biggest and most energetic crowds of the afternoon was Childish Gambino, the hip-hop project of the very talented Donald Glover. MC Glover clearly had the crowd in the palm of his hand while, his band filled the sound out nicely. It was more than refreshing to see a hip hop group whose music wasn’t just spat out by a laptop in the corner, and the energy in the tent was increased ten fold because of it.
Judging by the size of the crowd, one could be forgiven for thinking The Killers were headlining the festival, as they played hit after hit after hit. Opening with ‘Mr Brightside’ and following up with the likes of ‘Smile Like You Mean It’ and later on ‘Somebody Told Me,’ the Las Vegas natives filled every stadium rock cliché possible and yet it was impossible not to mouth the lyrics. An impromptu cover of ‘Waltzing Matilda’ led the band’s customary acknowledgment of Australia Day before finishing their set with the wonderful ‘When You Were Young,’ punctuated by an assortment of fireworks and plenty of flickering lights. It was the perfect festival set, providing plenty of fist in the air moments, however those looking for something more would have been disappointed, with the band lacking any sort of connection with the audience.
After a short wait, the evergreen Red Hot Chili Peppers played a mostly outstanding set that traversed the entirety of their back catalogue. All four members showed exactly why they are one of the biggest bands in the world as they threw themselves around the stage with an energy that belied their years. The sing-alongs during tracks like ‘Californication’ and ‘Under The Bridge’ were immense, whilst their funkier tracks such as ‘Tell Me Baby’ and ‘Suck My Kiss’ saw pockets of people dancing everywhere.
Bassist Flea was a marvel to watch, his fingers moving faster than humanly possible, whilst between songs he amused himself and the crowd by doing handstands and running all over the stage. This energy seemed to rub off on the rest of the band, with Kiedis looking half his age as he jumped around the stage. The encore featuring the fantastic ‘Higher Ground’ and staple ‘Give It Away’ made for a fantastic end to their set. While the Chilis do have their detractors, on Saturday they delivered exactly what was expected of them as headliners – a set brimming with hits and plenty of energy to go with it. It was a great return to Melbourne for the veterans and it certainly pleased those in attendance.
All in all, despite a tumultuous start to the day, the 2013 edition of the Melbourne Big Day Out was an out and out success. The addition of ‘Chow Town’ was a brilliant idea, whilst the promoter’s decision to only book bands that released albums recently ensured the line-up remained reasonably fresh. Overall, this year’s Big Day Out showed that the festival remains an important part of the Australian summer and is still very capable of delivering an excellent selection of music.
Big Day Out @ Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne – January 26, 2013
Reviewed artists links:
Toucan
Me
Every Time I Die
Hunting Grounds
Gary Clarke Jr.
Off!
Smith Street Band
Childish Gambino
The Killers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
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