If the 2009 Sydney Big Day Out had to be summed up in one word, that word would be "hot". By 2pm it had reached 33.7 degrees at Homebush with the sun slowly baking the giant crowd, not helped by the sterile and relatively shade- and tree-free setting.
Unfortunately British hipster duo The Ting Tings didn't translate so well to an outdoor festival setting, their muddied sound drowned out by a sea of sweaty munters who weren't going to let the zero shade of the green stage stop them from writhing. Despite their somewhat thin sound, tracks such as 'That's Not My Name' went down a treat with the masses.
Back over at the main stages Welsh metalcore outfit Bullet For My Valentine braved the toxic heat in full black outfits with even darker growls to match. Beyond the obvious metal posturing (leg up on the foldback speaker, anyone?) and cliched look lay an extremely tight and focused band. Tracks from their recent long-player Scream Aim Fire proved especially popular among the black parade in attendance.
The Black Kids were humbled by the crowd's enthusiasm for their tunes. As they worked through their upbeat dancey pop tracks, there were hands in the air and singalongs all about the place. The highlight was their famed 'I'm Not Gonna Teach your Boyfriend how to Dance with You', which is toe-tappingly catchy and harmless fun.
Living up to its name, the Boiler Room was literally a hothouse of bodies as acclaimed turntablist Z-Trip laid down track after track of party jams. Mashing up Jay-Z with Queen, AC/DC with A-Ha and just about anything in between, the Arizona-native DJ was undoubtedly a highlight of the day; his track selection made it almost impossible to leave the sweat-soaked room.
TV on the Radio continued on in the searing heat of early afternoon, their experimental rock sounds heading up the green stage. Though the audience was treated to tracks from their latest album, Dear Science, they paled in comparison to their older tracks from Return to Cookie Mountain and Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes. 'Wolf Like Me' was possibly the highlight of their performance which had all the makings of crowd participation and high energy, but 'Wrong Way' and 'Staring at the Sun' weren't far behind.
An afternoon sunshower provided little relief from the temperature during Died Pretty's set, their stint a pleasing interlude for the day. They recovered well after initial sound troubles and consistently played well, their tracks catchy and very easy to listen to, but the modest crowd and competing timetable proved a little too much for most.
Pendulum took to the main stage and quickly aroused a mammoth response from the audience. While their blending of drum'n'bass beats with heavier rock sounds may sound somewhat tasteless and outdated to this reviewer, the enthusiastic crowd lapped it up. Their cover/remix of The Prodigy's 'Voodoo People' provided the only truly memorable moment in a rather forgettable set.
There were occasions throughout the day when the music would be good enough to provide a distraction from the ridiculous heat. My Morning Jacket were one such treat, delivering a set that was all class. The American five-piece ran the gamut from rock to country even adding a touch of psychedelia at times in their set, which saw singer Jim James trade some wild guitar work with multi-instrumentalist Carl Broemel.
Serj Tankian theatrically burst onto the main stage wearing all white, his poor band members all in black, to brave the late afternoon set. With the sun still beaming down on the arena, Tankian blast through his new tracks (somewhat reminiscent of his System of a Down material - though much less epic). It was a little lacking in order however, as he muttered between songs about "Obama and Romeo and Juliet" and other such nattering, before launching into some brief air guitar solos.
Once pimply-faced teens sporting polo shirts and crew cuts, Arctic Monkeys have blossomed into a bunch of strapping young lads, in particular lead singer Alex Turner who played the part of the indie dreamboat to a tee with his shaggy mane and self-assured stage swagger. The band tore through numbers from their two albums, dropping breakthrough hit 'I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor' midway through the confident set. While said song got the crowd whipped into a frenzy and provided one of the day's highlights, a rather uninspired cover of Nick Cave's 'Red Right Hand' fell a bit short of the mark.
Fantomas were perhaps the black sheep of the festival, their take on experimental noise rock a welcome change to few. The crowd was surprisingly small, while Mike Patton and the rest of the band took the audience through what felt like a warped carnival soundtrack, with self indulgent solos and plenty of distortion - incredibly talented musicians to boot. The set was far from boring, with orchestral flourishes and eccentric vocals scattered throughout every tune, but was too much for many punters who took off to see The Prodigy halfway through.
As the hoards made their way to the Boiler Room late in the night for The Prodigy, it became apparent that there was no way it was going to hold that many people wanting a piece of Keith & co. As barricades and police stopped more people from entering, many were forced to get their '90s rave on outside the venue. Somehow a screen broadcasting their set, coupled with a sub-par sound system just wasn't quite the same. Regardless, many a gurner still went wild for tracks such as 'Breathe' and 'Firestarter'.
Providing the highlight of a somewhat disappointing day was Neil Young. The legendary figure took to the stage looking old, haggard and more than a little perturbed before quickly showing everyone exactly why he is and has been such a respected figure in the musical landscape for the past 40 years. Young's voice and guitar playing were as pristine as ever, and even the newer material stood up against Crazy Horse classics such as 'Hey Hey, My My' and 'Cinnamon Girl'.
The middle of the set saw Young pick up his acoustic and do three tracks from his classic album Harvest in a row. 'The Needle and the Damage Done', 'Heart of Gold' and 'Old Man' were all truly transcendent, taking the audience away from the soulless setting of Olympic Park and into a better place.
Capping off an already great set, Young and his band launched into 'Rockin' in the Free World' before ending with a truly beautiful cover of the Beatles' 'A Day in the Life'. Suddenly it dawned on us that it didn't matter that we would all go home sunburned, dehydrated and low on funds - we had just witnessed one of the greatest artists of our time in action. Thanks Neil, you saved the day.
As a longstanding music festival which in itself was renowned for bringing the biggest names in alternative music to Australia, the line-up in 2009 was less than inspiring. The festival itself seemed to lack heart and enthusiasm, with many of the musicians seemingly abandoned for bar queues and carnival rides, and crowds at a near all time low for a headlining mainstage act. There were, however, some brilliant musical surprises within the line-up; it's just a pity that so many of the acts have been recycled to the point of boredom throughout the Australian festival scene. Here's hoping for a little more in 2010.
Conrad Richters, Mike Jeffery & Carrie Dennes
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