I'm going to Melbourne BDO and haven't been to a festival to really only see one band before. How hard was it to get a decent position for the gig ? Like, get to the grounds at 6am, line up and run to the stage kind of hard?
big day out itself was horrible and badly organised in my unsurprised opinion. they didn't warn people that you couldn't take bags into the main area and they didn't offer an alternative. so thousands of people in the hot hot sun without the things they'd brought along to keep themselves happy and safe. and you couldn't get to the PJ side of the surrounding area without being over 18 with an age verification tag. which they didn't ID you for anyway.
Really? That's so weird. I saw people hanging their bags up and stuff but I walked right in with my purse on and no ID tag and no one said a word to me. Must be cuz I'm so intimidating. ;-)
big day out itself was horrible and badly organised in my unsurprised opinion. they didn't warn people that you couldn't take bags into the main area and they didn't offer an alternative. so thousands of people in the hot hot sun without the things they'd brought along to keep themselves happy and safe. and you couldn't get to the PJ side of the surrounding area without being over 18 with an age verification tag. which they didn't ID you for anyway.
Really? That's so weird. I saw people hanging their bags up and stuff but I walked right in with my purse on and no ID tag and no one said a word to me. Must be cuz I'm so intimidating. ;-)
you are pretty imposing with your innocent wide eyed look and height.
I'm going to Melbourne BDO and haven't been to a festival to really only see one band before. How hard was it to get a decent position for the gig ? Like, get to the grounds at 6am, line up and run to the stage kind of hard?
Did the crowd there have a good vibe?
I got front row (by luck.. the crush forced me from 2nd row to front.. not that I'm complaining) and I went up to the front during Primus (at the end of it). Probably would pay to get there earlier than that as NZers are notorious for being casual. In fact, the people at the front looked to have been largely Australian from what I could tell.
Anyway, now that I've had a day to compose myself...
The only band to have a delay coming on stage - it was a really weird way to start. Normally with BDO the acts start a minute after the band on the opposite stage finishes, but we were standing there confused for 15 minutes!
The setlist was unreal. I say this as someone who has now seen 3 shows - for me, seeing Release, Go, Habit, SOLAT, Nothingman, Save You, Baba and Footsteps was like a dream. Nothingman made me tear up. Footsteps was gorgeous. That version of Black we got was amazing (and unlike last time I was fully present and not screaming inside my own head). To finally hear Release live after almost 20 years of loving this band was amazing.
Liam Finn was a welcome addition to the stage - a shame Neil couldn't be coaxed out despite Mike's best efforts.
The highlight for me was relating to the dorky banner I took in - because.. it seemed like the right thing to do.
Mike asked for it quite early on and there was some hand gesturing between us to determine when he would take it. After a while he got my attention again and made a "I'm going to sign something for you" motion. Well! He also let me know what I looked like singing along by pointing to me and then mimicking me, eyes closed, head wobbling, pretending to sing along in blissful joyousness.
At the end of the show he came back on stage with his setlist with a little note on it for me and sent it down to me in exchange for the banner. Thankfully the guy behind me told me that the setlist had McCready picks stuck to it or I might have lost them. He was rewarded with a pick that security had given me. Then I had a spare which I gave to the son of the woman who agreed to hold up the banner for me when I thought I was going to be stuck in the second row all night. Thanks to the nice people around for making the experience fun. You're all good eggs.
Once again, Mike McCready made the experience. I didn't think he could get any cooler than he was in 2009 in Auckland, but I can't thank him enough for all the interactions and my little surprise gift at the end. I even had a kiss or two blown to me.
My photos are on flickr - or Facebook if you know who I am.
this is a really bad video.. i was trying to just hold the camera to film it without actually watching it through the camera.. hence the heads being cut off and the jerky movements. but .. it's not as bad as the habit video.
Thoughts and observations on Pearl Jam, Big Day Out 2014.
I must say I was really excited to see the Jammers again for the first time since 2009, in fact the whole day at the BDO was pretty damn great. saw a few cool bands leading up to PJ's headlining set, NZ's 'the Naked And Famous' were good, a very polished live act. A mate and I waited in a que for beers for about an hour while Primus played the Main Stage, we waited so long for the drinks that we missed the start of 'The Hives'. Have seen these guys last time they played the BDO back in '05, so didn't want to miss them as I knew they were awesome live. Made it down to the main arena area for the majority of their set and it was brilliant. That band know how to rock out and the front man, Pelle is very funny! Telling the crowd they were the best looking bunch of Hobbit's he'd ever seen, and when some huge bouncing balls with the MTV logo on them were bouncing on the crowd he said - "This set is sponsored by MTV!", very tongue in cheek. Their whole set was very enjoyable.
Next we went to another stage over the hill to see Mudhoney. First time seeing these legends live, and wow they didn't disappoint, some very brutal rock riffing from these guys. I didn't know most of the songs they played, but liked every song, good to see a band keeping pure, punk rock alive, plus they played the stupendous 'Touch Me I'm Sick', fantastic! Then it was back tot the main stage to see Arcade Fire, I was really looking forward to seeing these guy's as I have a few of their albums and 'Funeral' is a bonafide classic. Ten people on stage is impressive and the fact a few of them swapped instruments means they a real muso's with immense talent. The tracks they played off the new album were mostly great, a couple were kinda dull though. But, really great to hear 'Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)', 'Rebellion (Lies)' and 'Wake Up' live, superb!
Then it was time for the main event, the legends themselves....Pearl Jam! The crowd was huge for their set, I'm sure a lot of people were off seeing other acts, Snoop Dogg, Deftones etc, but it seemed the vast majority were here to see PJ do their thing. They opened with 'Release' and it was obvious from the start Eddie's voice is still a massive asset to this band, he showed his voice's real power straight away. They then hit us with some of their best tracks, 'Go' then 'Corduroy' which was huge, followed by 'Lightning Bolt', a song that could easily become a new classic. I was very happy to hear 'Brain of J' live, such a cool song! Then followed by a primo version of "Even Flow', sounding better live than ever before! I'm not a fan of 'Sirens', so that kind of bored me, though the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
'Let The Records Play' and 'Imfalliible' followed next, two very good songs off their latest album. The crowd around me seemed to get a little restless during 'Imfallible', but I thought it was great, maybe because it's mid-tempo it didn't grab the audience. 'Unthought Unknown' was really good too and then nice to see a rather over looked song with 'Save You' appear in the set. The next number was the highlight for me, 'Habit' the fast, in-you-face song off 'No Code' was a real winner, plus having Liam Finn arrive to sing it was very cool. He reminded me off his uncle Tim with his manic energy circa 1979 as he ripped into this punk-rock gem. 'Betterman' was ok, lots of people around me getting into it, singing away, though it's never been a fave of mine so I went to get some more drinks.
After the short encore they played 'Footsteps' which was pretty rad, then 'Small Town' and one song I really can't stand 'Nothingman' yawn! "Daughter' came next and that lifted things up again for me, this sounded amazing live and when they went into that breakdown part, wow, this was when Pearl jam really showed their true class, sounded effortless and probably was for them, brilliant! Then 'Why Go' was played and that rocked hard too, such awesome energy to this one, boom! The final song 'Baba O'Reilly was treat too, Pearl Jam making the riff their own as Eddie swung from some dangling lights out over the front of the crowd, cool! All in all Pearl Jam brought it, can't wait until next time!
Observations on the band members:
Mike - That guy is incredible, the way he put's his head back as he unleashes one of his solo's, it's like he is being hit by lightning as he just stands and delivers. A true genius!
Jeff - Rocking a very large greying goatee and a cool 'The Cult' t-shirt, you could tell he was enjoying every moment up there.
Matt - Mr Reliable, does this guy ever make a mistake, like ever?! So solid at the back.
Eddie - That was some bottle of red he brought on stage, never seen a bottle of wine so large! I think he drank t all too, good effort! Great story telling too, the one about when he got saved at a beach here back in 95' was awesome, you can tell the man love's NZ.
Stone - Seems like a very laid back dude, smiles a lot on stage and just cruises around strumming away happy as Larry.
doom_pony hi I was the women in the front who held you Banner thank you so much for giving my son the pick he was stoked I was gutted I had to get pulled out but the crushing was so bad I couldnt breath. so happy you got to go up the front and got something for your awesome banner. hope to see you again at the next NZ concert
Anyway, now that I've had a day to compose myself...
The only band to have a delay coming on stage - it was a really weird way to start. Normally with BDO the acts start a minute after the band on the opposite stage finishes, but we were standing there confused for 15 minutes!
The setlist was unreal. I say this as someone who has now seen 3 shows - for me, seeing Release, Go, Habit, SOLAT, Nothingman, Save You, Baba and Footsteps was like a dream. Nothingman made me tear up. Footsteps was gorgeous. That version of Black we got was amazing (and unlike last time I was fully present and not screaming inside my own head). To finally hear Release live after almost 20 years of loving this band was amazing.
Liam Finn was a welcome addition to the stage - a shame Neil couldn't be coaxed out despite Mike's best efforts.
The highlight for me was relating to the dorky banner I took in - because.. it seemed like the right thing to do.
Mike asked for it quite early on and there was some hand gesturing between us to determine when he would take it. After a while he got my attention again and made a "I'm going to sign something for you" motion. Well! He also let me know what I looked like singing along by pointing to me and then mimicking me, eyes closed, head wobbling, pretending to sing along in blissful joyousness.
At the end of the show he came back on stage with his setlist with a little note on it for me and sent it down to me in exchange for the banner. Thankfully the guy behind me told me that the setlist had McCready picks stuck to it or I might have lost them. He was rewarded with a pick that security had given me. Then I had a spare which I gave to the son of the woman who agreed to hold up the banner for me when I thought I was going to be stuck in the second row all night. Thanks to the nice people around for making the experience fun. You're all good eggs.
Once again, Mike McCready made the experience. I didn't think he could get any cooler than he was in 2009 in Auckland, but I can't thank him enough for all the interactions and my little surprise gift at the end. I even had a kiss or two blown to me.
My photos are on flickr - or Facebook if you know who I am.
Oh hi! Thanks so much for getting the banner up for me. Sucked that you guys all had to get out but your son was an excellent rail buddy. Glad I could give him a pick.
Oh hi! Thanks so much for getting the banner up for me. Sucked that you guys all had to get out but your son was an excellent rail buddy. Glad I could give him a pick.
Hey Doom Pony, nice work with the banner and Mike! and awesome photos! I don't suppose you videoed Footsteps? That was my request and I would seriously love to get video of the song!
Oh hi! Thanks so much for getting the banner up for me. Sucked that you guys all had to get out but your son was an excellent rail buddy. Glad I could give him a pick.
Yeah It sucked waited for 10 hours to get that spot but on the good side my son is now as addicted to PJ concerts as I am and I still got to enjoy the show from the side and I got to meet awesome 10C members.
Feel the path of every day,... Which road you taking?,...
Breathing hard,... Making hay,... Yeh this is living,...
Oh hi! Thanks so much for getting the banner up for me. Sucked that you guys all had to get out but your son was an excellent rail buddy. Glad I could give him a pick.
Hey Doom Pony, nice work with the banner and Mike! and awesome photos! I don't suppose you videoed Footsteps? That was my request and I would seriously love to get video of the song!
1996: Paris/2006: Paris/2007: Werchter/2010:Werchter/2012: Amsterdam 1 and Werchter/2014: Amsterdam 1&2 and Werchter/2018: Amsterdam 1&2 and Werchter/2022: Werchter and Amsterdam 2
Comments
Did the crowd there have a good vibe?
LIVEFOOTSTEPS.ORG/USER/?USR=435
article about the Black dedication. Naww.
PJ - Auckland 2009; Alpine Valley1&2 2011; Man1, Am'dam1&2, Berlin1&2, Stockholm, Oslo & Copenhagen 2012; LA, Oakland, Portland, Spokane, Calgary, Vancouver, Seattle 2013; Auckland 2014, Auckland1&2 2024
EV - Canberra, Newcastle & Sydney 1&2 2011
I got front row (by luck.. the crush forced me from 2nd row to front.. not that I'm complaining) and I went up to the front during Primus (at the end of it). Probably would pay to get there earlier than that as NZers are notorious for being casual. In fact, the people at the front looked to have been largely Australian from what I could tell.
The only band to have a delay coming on stage - it was a really weird way to start. Normally with BDO the acts start a minute after the band on the opposite stage finishes, but we were standing there confused for 15 minutes!
The setlist was unreal. I say this as someone who has now seen 3 shows - for me, seeing Release, Go, Habit, SOLAT, Nothingman, Save You, Baba and Footsteps was like a dream. Nothingman made me tear up. Footsteps was gorgeous. That version of Black we got was amazing (and unlike last time I was fully present and not screaming inside my own head). To finally hear Release live after almost 20 years of loving this band was amazing.
Liam Finn was a welcome addition to the stage - a shame Neil couldn't be coaxed out despite Mike's best efforts.
The highlight for me was relating to the dorky banner I took in - because.. it seemed like the right thing to do.
Mike asked for it quite early on and there was some hand gesturing between us to determine when he would take it. After a while he got my attention again and made a "I'm going to sign something for you" motion. Well! He also let me know what I looked like singing along by pointing to me and then mimicking me, eyes closed, head wobbling, pretending to sing along in blissful joyousness.
At the end of the show he came back on stage with his setlist with a little note on it for me and sent it down to me in exchange for the banner. Thankfully the guy behind me told me that the setlist had McCready picks stuck to it or I might have lost them. He was rewarded with a pick that security had given me. Then I had a spare which I gave to the son of the woman who agreed to hold up the banner for me when I thought I was going to be stuck in the second row all night. Thanks to the nice people around for making the experience fun. You're all good eggs.
Once again, Mike McCready made the experience. I didn't think he could get any cooler than he was in 2009 in Auckland, but I can't thank him enough for all the interactions and my little surprise gift at the end. I even had a kiss or two blown to me.
My photos are on flickr - or Facebook if you know who I am.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ratpony/sets/72157639890008384/
Still waiting for Youtube to upload some videos................i'll post em when they're done
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ratpony/sets/72157639890008384/
Nice pics, esp love the smiling Jeff pic... awww & great story, sounds like you had a blast
2007 • Wembley - London
2009 • Melbourne
2010 • Madison Square Garden
this is a really bad video.. i was trying to just hold the camera to film it without actually watching it through the camera.. hence the heads being cut off and the jerky movements. but .. it's not as bad as the habit video.
Eddie Vedder Tribute Videos - Playlist
The EDvolution of Dance: youtu.be/-HtF3gRYHnE
eddievedderhallpass.tumblr.com
Folks these days just don't do nothing simple for the love of it
Stick with it. The jumping does stop. Unfortunately the singing from me and the guy behind me doesn't. But I'm sure we'll get a bootleg right?
I must say I was really excited to see the Jammers again for the first time since 2009, in fact the whole day at the BDO was pretty damn great. saw a few cool bands leading up to PJ's headlining set, NZ's 'the Naked And Famous' were good, a very polished live act. A mate and I waited in a que for beers for about an hour while Primus played the Main Stage, we waited so long for the drinks that we missed the start of 'The Hives'. Have seen these guys last time they played the BDO back in '05, so didn't want to miss them as I knew they were awesome live. Made it down to the main arena area for the majority of their set and it was brilliant. That band know how to rock out and the front man, Pelle is very funny! Telling the crowd they were the best looking bunch of Hobbit's he'd ever seen, and when some huge bouncing balls with the MTV logo on them were bouncing on the crowd he said - "This set is sponsored by MTV!", very tongue in cheek. Their whole set was very enjoyable.
Next we went to another stage over the hill to see Mudhoney. First time seeing these legends live, and wow they didn't disappoint, some very brutal rock riffing from these guys. I didn't know most of the songs they played, but liked every song, good to see a band keeping pure, punk rock alive, plus they played the stupendous 'Touch Me I'm Sick', fantastic! Then it was back tot the main stage to see Arcade Fire, I was really looking forward to seeing these guy's as I have a few of their albums and 'Funeral' is a bonafide classic. Ten people on stage is impressive and the fact a few of them swapped instruments means they a real muso's with immense talent. The tracks they played off the new album were mostly great, a couple were kinda dull though. But, really great to hear 'Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)', 'Rebellion (Lies)' and 'Wake Up' live, superb!
Then it was time for the main event, the legends themselves....Pearl Jam! The crowd was huge for their set, I'm sure a lot of people were off seeing other acts, Snoop Dogg, Deftones etc, but it seemed the vast majority were here to see PJ do their thing. They opened with 'Release' and it was obvious from the start Eddie's voice is still a massive asset to this band, he showed his voice's real power straight away. They then hit us with some of their best tracks, 'Go' then 'Corduroy' which was huge, followed by 'Lightning Bolt', a song that could easily become a new classic. I was very happy to hear 'Brain of J' live, such a cool song! Then followed by a primo version of "Even Flow', sounding better live than ever before! I'm not a fan of 'Sirens', so that kind of bored me, though the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
'Let The Records Play' and 'Imfalliible' followed next, two very good songs off their latest album. The crowd around me seemed to get a little restless during 'Imfallible', but I thought it was great, maybe because it's mid-tempo it didn't grab the audience. 'Unthought Unknown' was really good too and then nice to see a rather over looked song with 'Save You' appear in the set. The next number was the highlight for me, 'Habit' the fast, in-you-face song off 'No Code' was a real winner, plus having Liam Finn arrive to sing it was very cool. He reminded me off his uncle Tim with his manic energy circa 1979 as he ripped into this punk-rock gem. 'Betterman' was ok, lots of people around me getting into it, singing away, though it's never been a fave of mine so I went to get some more drinks.
After the short encore they played 'Footsteps' which was pretty rad, then 'Small Town' and one song I really can't stand 'Nothingman' yawn! "Daughter' came next and that lifted things up again for me, this sounded amazing live and when they went into that breakdown part, wow, this was when Pearl jam really showed their true class, sounded effortless and probably was for them, brilliant! Then 'Why Go' was played and that rocked hard too, such awesome energy to this one, boom! The final song 'Baba O'Reilly was treat too, Pearl Jam making the riff their own as Eddie swung from some dangling lights out over the front of the crowd, cool! All in all Pearl Jam brought it, can't wait until next time!
Observations on the band members:
Mike - That guy is incredible, the way he put's his head back as he unleashes one of his solo's, it's like he is being hit by lightning as he just stands and delivers. A true genius!
Jeff - Rocking a very large greying goatee and a cool 'The Cult' t-shirt, you could tell he was enjoying every moment up there.
Matt - Mr Reliable, does this guy ever make a mistake, like ever?! So solid at the back.
Eddie - That was some bottle of red he brought on stage, never seen a bottle of wine so large! I think he drank t all too, good effort! Great story telling too, the one about when he got saved at a beach here back in 95' was awesome, you can tell the man love's NZ.
Stone - Seems like a very laid back dude, smiles a lot on stage and just cruises around strumming away happy as Larry.
2007 • Wembley - London
2009 • Melbourne
2010 • Madison Square Garden
PJ - Auckland 2009; Alpine Valley1&2 2011; Man1, Am'dam1&2, Berlin1&2, Stockholm, Oslo & Copenhagen 2012; LA, Oakland, Portland, Spokane, Calgary, Vancouver, Seattle 2013; Auckland 2014, Auckland1&2 2024
EV - Canberra, Newcastle & Sydney 1&2 2011
BRAD- April 27, 2012 Seattle, WA
Pearl Jam- September 30, 2012 Missoula, MT
Pearl Jam- November 30, 2013 Spokane, WA
Pearl Jam- December 6, 2013 Seattle WA
I'm looking to buy a single ticket to Ed's Sydney Opera House show, PM me if you've got a spare! I don't care where the seat is!
Breathing hard,... Making hay,... Yeh this is living,...
Breathing hard,... Making hay,... Yeh this is living,...
1996: Paris/2006: Paris/2007: Werchter/2010: Werchter/2012: Amsterdam 1 and Werchter/2014: Amsterdam 1&2 and Werchter/2018: Amsterdam 1&2 and Werchter/2022: Werchter and Amsterdam 2
EV: 2012: Amsterdam/2017: Antwerpen/2019: Bruxelles