Big Day Out 2010

[Firey_Dragon]

Or was it a technical glitch...all of a sudden there's double the profit out of the Sydney leg of the festival!

It seems that they have become very good at making money out of this thing, and become very ordinary in putting on an alternate music festival.

Big Day Out has never been an "alternate" music festival. It's always been marketed for the masses. It's just that the popular brand of music has changed over the years.

Soundwave, good vibes, peats ridge or splendour are the "alternative" festivals. IMO this lineup (first announcement) is probably their best since 04 when Metallica headlined.

I haven't really been excited about a BDO in quite a few years but the likes of Muse, Karnivool, The Mars Volta, Peaches, Kasabian, Mastodon and Rise Against have certainly piqued my interest. I grabbed tickets last night, and looking forward to the day.

 

[fish eel]

Big Day Out has never been an "alternate" music festival. It's always been marketed for the masses. It's just that the popular brand of music has changed over the years.

Soundwave, good vibes, peats ridge or splendour are the "alternative" festivals. IMO this lineup (first announcement) is probably their best since 04 when Metallica headlined.

I haven't really been excited about a BDO in quite a few years but the likes of Muse, Karnivool, The Mars Volta, Peaches, Kasabian, Mastodon and Rise Against have certainly piqued my interest. I grabbed tickets last night, and looking forward to the day.

LOL. So when they had Nirvana booked as a headliner BEFORE nevermind had gone off, and when they had sonic youth and iggy headlining, it was marketed at the masses? Ok then.....

 

[Firey_Dragon]

LOL. So when they had Nirvana booked as a headliner BEFORE nevermind had gone off, and when they had sonic youth and iggy headlining, it was marketed at the masses? Ok then.....

Nirvana were still pretty big in 1992. But you've also conveniently neglected to add the Violent Femmes, You Am I and Yothu Yindi to your list of bands who also played that year, which had a very large following at the time.

It was also the first ever BDO, pretty bloody hard to attract massive international acts when you don't have the capital. It's progressively gotten bigger and bigger acts every year.

In 1994, the year after Iggy headlined, Soundgarden, The Ramones, Bjork, Smashing Pumpkins and Primus played... They were all, with perhaps the exception of Primus, pretty mainstream. It's been this way for 15 years, the style of music has just changed. However, arguably the most popular rock act worldwide at present is headlining this year, how is that any different to 10 years ago when Blink 182 and RHCP were on the bill?

 

[Alex28]

See...it hasn't always been that way at all:

1992 - Nirvana (booked well before Nevermind took off), Violent Femmes, Hardon's, Died Pretty, You Am I (before Hi-Fi Way).
1993 - Sonic Youth, Mudhoney, Iggy Pop, Nick Cave
1994 - Bjork, The Ramones, Primus, Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden
1995 - Ministry, The Cult, Primal Scream, Silverchair, Hole, The Offspring (before they became a novelty act)

See...not always did they have a lineup which is popular on commercial radio. Not always did they have a lineup which was built around shifting tickets than being about the music.

The thing that grates me is that they must have had the second show planned the whole time. Council approval...infrastructure...convincing the bands to do a second show...it had to all be pre-planned. I think they planned the early ticket release and made sure they got a Friday sellout before announcing a Saturday show. It would have been bloody hard to sell out a Friday show if people knew that they could go to a Saturday show.

It's brilliant marketing, but blatantly misleading and all done around a pretty massive lie.

 

[Firey_Dragon]

See...it hasn't always been that way at all:

1992 - Nirvana (booked well before Nevermind took off), Violent Femmes, Hardon's, Died Pretty, You Am I (before Hi-Fi Way).
1993 - Sonic Youth, Mudhoney, Iggy Pop, Nick Cave
1994 - Bjork, The Ramones, Primus, Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden
1995 - Ministry, The Cult, Primal Scream, Silverchair, Hole, The Offspring (before they became a novelty act)

See...not always did they have a lineup which is popular on commercial radio. Not always did they have a lineup which was built around shifting tickets than being about the music.

The thing that grates me is that they must have had the second show planned the whole time. Council approval...infrastructure...convincing the bands to do a second show...it had to all be pre-planned. I think they planned the early ticket release and made sure they got a Friday sellout before announcing a Saturday show. It would have been bloody hard to sell out a Friday show if people knew that they could go to a Saturday show.

It's brilliant marketing, but blatantly misleading and all done around a pretty massive lie.

The only years they didn't have bands that were popular on commercial radio were 92 and 93. Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden and Bjork had a huge following, and were played frequently on commercial radio in 94. Same with Silverchair, Hole and Offspring in 95. And then it continues on.

The only difference is the style of music. Muse have hardly been thrashed on the radio until recently as well.

As for the 2nd show, there'd be agreed options for additional shows in the contract every year. They've only taken it up twice it seems.

Both days would sell out irrespective... 2004 proved that.

 

[Alex28]

2004 was a (supposedly) one-off due to Metallica. They needed to do this to make Metallica viable.

Apparently Muse has cost a bomb to get out here due to there really being no other headline option who is relevant to this year (Neil Young was a bit of a bust last year). Word is they needed to do a second show to make it worthwhile.

I think if they sold a Saturday first then tried to sell a Friday they wouldn't have sold out both. If they announced that they were doing two shows initially they would have battled to sell them both out. They planned everything and executed it perfectly to ensure Friday sold out and they got the more attractive day as a second show to ensure both sold out.

 

[Firey_Dragon]

2004 was a (supposedly) one-off due to Metallica. They needed to do this to make Metallica viable.

Apparently Muse has cost a bomb to get out here due to there really being no other headline option who is relevant to this year (Neil Young was a bit of a bust last year). Word is they needed to do a second show to make it worthwhile.

I think if they sold a Saturday first then tried to sell a Friday they wouldn't have sold out both. If they announced that they were doing two shows initially they would have battled to sell them both out. They planned everything and executed it perfectly to ensure Friday sold out and they got the more attractive day as a second show to ensure both sold out.

I would bet my house that ever since 2004 there has been a clause in every contract for the chance of additional concerts.

The concert sold out in a matter of minutes, it's pretty safe to assume 2 festivals would have sold out over 3 months. They've reduced capacity this year down to 50,000 from 65,000 in previous years.

I'm sure they planned it this way, but I have no doubt they wouldn't have expected it to sell out this quick, its unprecedented. The 2nd day will sell out in a matter of days as well.

The thing with BDO is, they have enough idiotic fanatics that will buy tickets to both days irrespective of when they are... That much you can bank on.

It's target audience is the 15-28 age group, a large part of that group are on school or university holidays during that time. The days are irrelevant.

 

[Alex28]

100,000 (even though I think it is closer to 110,000) tickets in a depressed economic market is a massive risk. There was only one way they were going to be able to ensure they got a decent return from this - create a market of panic so people appeared grateful that they decided to put on a second show which will inevitably sell out.

BDO sells out straight away every year. That was not the issue. The issue was around how to sell the second show and to me they were underhanded about it. I have no doubt they instructed Ticketmaster to sell early. They created much more hype than they were going to generate by a normal sale and were able to guage the demand for a second show.

It just seems to be more about selling tickets these days than it is about the music. You can put Splendour and Good Vibrations in the same category as well these days, but the Big Day Out is king.

 

[fish eel]

Nirvana were still pretty big in 1992.

They were booked before Nevermind came out on the back of bleach when nobody knew who they were.

But you've also conveniently neglected to add the Violent Femmes, You Am I and Yothu Yindi to your list of bands who also played that year, which had a very large following at the time.

A side from a big hit from Yothu Yindi, none of those three bands had big mainstream following. I mean, sh*t, you am i were an inner west pub headliner at the time.

In 1994, the year after Iggy headlined, Soundgarden, The Ramones, Bjork, Smashing Pumpkins and Primus played... They were all, with perhaps the exception of Primus, pretty mainstream. It's been this way for 15 years, the style of music has just changed.

At the time, I wouldnt call those bands terribly mainstream. I mean, Bjork mainstream? Ramones? Even Smashing Pumpkins. To put them in context at the time, their side shows were played in clubs......

However, arguably the most popular rock act worldwide at present is headlining this year, how is that any different to 10 years ago when Blink 182 and RHCP were on the bill?

It's not, it's been rubbish ever since it shifted to homebush.

BDO sells out straight away every year.

It would sell out even if they didnt announce the acts.

 

[Firey_Dragon]

They were booked before Nevermind came out on the back of bleach when nobody knew who they were.

They were still popular, I have conceded they weren't thrashed on mainstream radio.

A side from a big hit from Yothu Yindi, none of those three bands had big mainstream following. I mean, sh*t, you am i were an inner west pub headliner at the time.

Violent Femmes were at the peak of their popularity, their last ever studio album was released in 93. You Am I may have been a pub band but they got plenty of airtime.

At the time, I wouldnt call those bands terribly mainstream. I mean, Bjork mainstream? Ramones? Even Smashing Pumpkins. To put them in context at the time, their side shows were played in clubs......

Bjork was currently in australian top 10 single charts with "Human Behaviour" and Smashing Pumpkins similarly were as high as 15 with "Disarm" and "Today". Both were MASSIVELY mainstream at the time. I think you're conveniently forgetting how often these songs were thrashed on video hits back in the early 90's. The Ramones whilst not mainstream, had a massive cult following.

It's not, it's been rubbish ever since it shifted to homebush.

As opposed to in 97 (Last year at Moore Park) they had
Soundgarden - "Superunknown" released in 96 made it to number 1 on the Australian record charts
The Offspring - "Ixnay on the Hombre" released in 97 reached number 2 on the australian charts. "Gone Away" was released as a single before the Big Day Out.
Hole - "Celebrity Skin" was released, probably the only album anyone ever knows that they released. But I'm sure they most could recite the words from the song "Malibu" given how much it was thrashed on the radio.

See where I'm going with this? The festival has always had "mainstream" bands except for perhaps its first year or two. Which even then, still had very popular bands. The only difference is the genre of music has broadened a bit.

 

[skeepe]

What's the big deal here? Is anyone surprised that organisers of a music festival would put popular acts on their bill to try to sell more tickets?

Fishy I sense your argument is more based on the fact that you've gotten older. There were always young dickheads at music festivals, we just don't notice it when we're one of them. As we get older, we do because we mellow out a bit more.

 

[Firey_Dragon]

What's the big deal here? Is anyone surprised that organisers of a music festival would put popular acts on their bill to try to sell more tickets?

Fishy I sense your argument is more based on the fact that you've gotten older. There were always young dickheads at music festivals, we just don't notice it when we're one of them. As we get older, we do because we mellow out a bit more.

That's the crux of it. We romanticise about years gone by, and while music evolves (or declines) whichever way you look at it, you look back at these festivals and think about how much better they were back then. The kids who attend it now, will do the same thing in 10-15 years time. The reality is, the philosophy and aim of the festival never changes (to put on as many big acts as possible and make as much money), its just the style of music that is popular changes. In the 90's who would have thought a band like Hilltop Hoods would take the mainstage?

Ironically, Big Day Out is the festival that made Powderfinger popular, yet many are probably whinging now that they are not a good fit, and certainly not worthy of a headline slot

 

[fish eel]

They were still popular, I have conceded they weren't thrashed on mainstream radio.


Violent Femmes were at the peak of their popularity, their last ever studio album was released in 93. You Am I may have been a pub band but they got plenty of airtime.



Bjork was currently in australian top 10 single charts with "Human Behaviour" and Smashing Pumpkins similarly were as high as 15 with "Disarm" and "Today". Both were MASSIVELY mainstream at the time. I think you're conveniently forgetting how often these songs were thrashed on video hits back in the early 90's. The Ramones whilst not mainstream, had a massive cult following.


As opposed to in 97 (Last year at Moore Park) they had
Soundgarden - "Superunknown" released in 96 made it to number 1 on the Australian record charts
The Offspring - "Ixnay on the Hombre" released in 97 reached number 2 on the australian charts. "Gone Away" was released as a single before the Big Day Out.
Hole - "Celebrity Skin" was released, probably the only album anyone ever knows that they released. But I'm sure they most could recite the words from the song "Malibu" given how much it was thrashed on the radio.

See where I'm going with this? The festival has always had "mainstream" bands except for perhaps its first year or two. Which even then, still had very popular bands. The only difference is the genre of music has broadened a bit.

actually I referenced that year in an earlier post as the start of the decline IMO ;-)

What's the big deal here? Is anyone surprised that organisers of a music festival would put popular acts on their bill to try to sell more tickets?

Fishy I sense your argument is more based on the fact that you've gotten older. There were always young dickheads at music festivals, we just don't notice it when we're one of them. As we get older, we do because we mellow out a bit more.

:lol: :lol:

Maybe, but I guess it's got more to do, IMO with the cultural landscape changing and the lines between mainstream and 'alternative' (which is a crap label anyway) have become more and more blurred.

There's no getting away from the fact either the the BDO is bigger than what it was in 1996. Bigger venue in Sydney, need to sell more tickets and that gets reflected in the type of headliners they need to seek out.

 

[LESStar58]

The BDO 2010 line up has got to be one of the worst I've seen in a long time and it seems to have deteriorated over the last 2 or 3 years in particular...

 

[Timmah]

Through all these arguments, I can say that I think a majority of people go for the music. This is my first BDO, and I'm going because I can't wait to see Muse, Powderfinger and Grinspoon live again.

I don't much care if those tastes are mainstream, it's music I enjoy.

 

[Firey_Dragon]

Through all these arguments, I can say that I think a majority of people go for the music. This is my first BDO, and I'm going because I can't wait to see Muse, Powderfinger and Grinspoon live again.

I don't much care if those tastes are mainstream, it's music I enjoy.

This is my first BDO since 2005 because this lineup actually interests me this year. Muse, Karnivool, Mars Volta, Rise Against, Peaches, Mastodon and Kasabian have secured my ticket. You can choose to take it or leave it every year, the lineup isn't going to make everyone happy. This year I think it's a more diverse first announcement than we've seen in many years and even if I don't like alot of the main acts, I know I'll find a new band to like at the JJJ essential stage.

Mainstream or not, you're always guaranteed to see two or three acts throughout the day that will surprise you. Muse alone are worth the entry fee, I've seen them 4 times now, they're an unbelievable live act.

 

[fish eel]

Through all these arguments, I can say that I think a majority of people go for the music. This is my first BDO, and I'm going because I can't wait to see Muse, Powderfinger and Grinspoon live again.

I don't much care if those tastes are mainstream, it's music I enjoy.

I dont know if it's an argument or not Timmah, just a nice discussion about music and the type of festival the BDO is/was/has become with some differing views.

At the end of the day, music is subjective, and aside from saying Grinspoon are dreadful there really is no right or wrong ;-)

 

[Timmah]

I saw them for the first time at Sydney Entertainment Centre back in Nov 07... unforgettable. Brilliant.

 

[Red Bear]

That Timmah is going shows the mainstreamness...

If the second lineup is sh*te i will sell my ticket.

The biggest problem with BDO is the crowd these days, just so many twats there for the event rather than the bands in particular, shirtless blokes with sunnies, teenybopping chicks with massive glasses, that type that are a dime a dozen around the place. It can ruin a band/event when you run into these people who clearly dont go to shows normally, and bought a ticket cos it was the thing to do.

 

[Timmah]

That Timmah is going shows the mainstreamness...

:roll: