Ready for "Big Day Out" with my fancy schmancy last minute ticket
My posse: Joe, Tom's brother, Liam, Tom (Joe and Liam are music junkies and are both in their own bands)
The Texan group Spoon brought a little yeehaw to Melbourne

New discovery Billy Bragg was mainly a one-man show including spurts of political commentary but sang one ditti with my other new discovery Kate Nash
New discovery Billy Bragg was mainly a one-man show including spurts of political commentary but sang one ditti with my other new discovery Kate Nash
My roommate Heath's (on right) band Children Collide scored a 5pm timeslot at Big Day Out - pretty sweet gig

My favorite show of the day was Arcade Fire

Bjork brought a lot of color, flair, and "zank ju's" (her way of saying thank you) to the stage
Bjork brought a lot of color, flair, and "zank ju's" (her way of saying thank you) to the stage
Big Day Out is the closest thing Australia's got to Austin City Limits Music Festival. It's a one-day show that rotates through all the major cities around here: Auckland (NZ), Gold Coast, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, and of course Melbourne. The line-up is reminiscent of ACL Fest, which is a big deal in Australia. A lot of bands are reluctant to make the long voyage out here so they typically have fewer opportunities to see big name bands. It's interesting to compare ticket prices of professional sporting events and music festivals/concerts with those in the U.S. The sporting events are far more affordable here (with a pro footy game costing as little as $20 and Australian Open arena tickets costing $70 with ground tickets at only $30); however, this one day music festival ticket cost $140, around the cost of a 3-day pass to ACL festival. The prices seem to be reversed from the U.S.
Big Day Out has been sold out for months (45,000 capacity), but I snagged a spare ticket from a co-worker on Thursday. Yes! I was stoked since I don't want to miss a single thing in my Australian adventure and because my roommate Heath was playing at the event. I went to the festival with our neighbor friends from down the street - Joe, Liam, Tom, and Rory. We lucked out with perfect weather - a super sunny day, not a cloud in the sky, without being smoldering or steamy. It actually cooled off a little too much once the sun set. There were 8 stages set up around the Flemington Racecourse (also the site of the Melbourne Cup and Royal Melbourne Show) with different styles of music pumping throughout the day. Highlights included: Arcade Fire, Billy Bragg, Kate Nash, Silverchair, Rage Against the Machine, Spoon, Regurgitator, Gyroscope, and of course Children Collide (see bigdayout.com.au for a complete listing/timetable). Big Day Out also included theme park/thrill rides, a variation from ACL Fest. I got a little too much sun today and will probably be feeling a bit like a lobster at work tomorrow, but I have to communicate my great appreciation of Australia Day which resulted in a paid holiday for me to attend a music festival. Good country, Australia.