Big Day Out 2010 in Photos

A festival day in Adelaide

When Muse announced they were touring with (and headlining) The Big
Days Out I was determined to see them. Ever since i saw them when they
toured with the 'absolution' album they have been one of my three must
see artists (the others being Jamiroquai and Daft Punk).

Unfortunately when I tired to grab tickets for the Gold Coast show
they sold out so fast I couldn't get a ticket. From there it was a
case of trying to track down some others in other cities. In the end I
managed to pick up some in the second round for Adelaide. Having been
there fairly often for work in 2009 I had a fairly good idea on how
easy it to get there.

So with flights and hotels booked it quickly became a mini holiday and
the longest stint away from Zz since he was born. Fortunately it's
only us that feel badly about that and the littleone feels like he's
getting a little holiday.

The venue for Adelaide was great all but the main stages were
undercover. Two of them were even in airconditioned buildings. It is a
bit of a sign that I'm getting old but it certainly was a much needed
break from the sun. After the line up was announced I was bit
disappointed with my mainstreamness with most of the acts we were
going to see booked on the main stages. In the end though some of the
best acts of the day were from side stage acts that in my muse
blindness I'd missed when I first checked the timetable. We caught Jet
with a surprisingly small crowd in the green stage and the were just
as energetic as the first BDO I saw them play. Hard not to get up
dancing to 'Are you gonna be my girl?'. Dizzee Rascal was a jump fest,
I think my ankles will be sore from 'Bonkers' for days. While we
weren't dedicated enough to make it into the 'D' the crowd packed it
into the main area and lifted as one when that beat kicked in. Dizzee
was one of the great showmen of the day and knew just how to get the
festival goers in the mood.

Passion Pit were fantastic but I only caught a little of the set with
travel and bathroom breaks. Kisschasey were a big surprise for me,
they really kicked us into the mood for the day.

We also saw Kasabian, Eskimo Joe and parts of Lily Allen who were
great and very listenable but just don't have set lists to get the
crowd jumping into the air hands aloft. Which is the whole reason for
going to festivals in the first place.

Grinspoon were just hitting their stride when we had to drop them in
favour of getting as close to the stage as possible for Muse.
Powderfinger were just as consistent as ever. As generically good as
their music is they do work at festivals. There was much debate
whether they (or Jet) are really just the cold chisel of our generation.

Muse were the stand out (although I was always going to say that) and
really played to their headlining status. The stage roof high screens
were just amazing. Every time I see Muse I say that they are the best
show I've ever been too. This was no different. Really I could write
this blog for another 5000 words and I couldn't do it justice. I think
ness summed up my feelings the best 'you're like a kid in a candy store'

It was just a fantastic day. Worth every minute and dollar of the
530am flight in and the 9am flight home.

Sent from my iPhone

Hottest 100 Votes in

I finally got around to Voting in the Hottest 100

Here's the list, but my hope for number one is Muse - Uprising

Art Vs Science - Parlez Vous Francais?
Basics, The - With This Ship
Dizzee Rascal & Armand Van Helden - Bonkers
Franz Ferdinand - No You Girls
Jet - She's A Genius
La Roux - Bulletproof
Lily Allen - 22
Muse - Unnatural Selection
Muse - Uprising
Passion Pit - Little Secrets

A new decade and some new directions

2010 looks like it will be a big year for me... For the past decade I've been working with one product set and this year I've taken the plunge and dropped it all for a new one.

It was a pretty big decision to make and essentially means I'm moving from a Big Fish in the pond to a Small Fish. It will be an interesting time for me because I haven't been in this position for at least 10 years.

For the most part I'm looking forward to it. There is the obvious apprehension as I'm leaving a job I've basically been working in for 10 years.

I haven't had to learn something completely new for a long time so I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into some new technology.

It should be a fun year full of change.... at least that's the plan