Big Day Out 2005 - Adelaide (Aus)

Australia | by Scott McLennan | 07 February 2005

Although it has figured prominently in such epic musical festivals as Glastonbury and Woodstock, rain is perhaps the least rock'n'roll of all weather conditions. As the Adelaide Big Day Out opens its gates for another year of the best live sounds the world has to offer, the morning's storm clouds begin to lift and the music takes over.

Gathering together more Slipknot fans than a crochet conference and more hot chicks than an egg incubator, the main stage fun begins before midday has even arrived. New Zealand's heavy rock villains The D4 are feeling a little worse for wear after their show at Enigma last night, but 'Rock N' Roll Motherfucker' shakes out the cobwebs before California's The Donnas bring their flailing hair, cotton tops and denim jeans to the adjacent Orange Stage. The sun breaks through for the first time as they launch into 'Gold Medal' tracks 'It's On The Rocks' and 'I Don't Want To Know (If You Don't Want Me)'. Shapely lead singer Brett Anderson commands her stage like a statuesque version of Christina Ricci, straddling the mic and making the crowd clap along to the newer tracks from their back catalogue. While some out of key vocals mar some of the newer songs and Anderson's brief meddling with the keyboards on 'Hook It Up' seems superfluous, the amusing rock pouts of drummer Torry Castellano and bassist Maya Ford and the hot riffing of guitarist Alison Robertson make up for the early fluffs. After the entendres of 'It's So Hard', Brett dedicates 'Who Invited You?' to the pizza chef who had made the band "the most delicious pizza ever" the previous evening, while '5 O'Clock In The Morning' is sent out in tribute to "our Godfathers Rob [Judas Priest] Halford and Rick [Superfreak] James". At the front of the assembled crowd, the Slipknot fans already gathering to ensure a prime position for Iowa's heavy metal act in five hours time seem perplexed by the dedication. "Who?" asks one teen in black Slipknot garb. "I think they're The Ramones", offers his pasty faced pal.

Graduating from the Green Stage in 2003 to the much larger Blue Stage in 2005, The Music show they've lost none of their musical chops (or, for that matter, gained any fashion sense) in the two year interim. Bass player Stuart Coleman tries to win over the crowd by donning a T-shirt featuring a distressed Aussie flag logo, but his deft guitar work on openers 'Take The Long Road And Walk It' and 'The Truth Is No Words' are more likely to impress this afternoon. Like lead vocalist Justin Hawkins from fellow Britons The Darkness (who coincidentally played on this stage at the same time last year) frontman Robert Harvey is a blur of constant movement, dancing around and making nutty faces throughout newer tracks such as 'Cessation' and 'Freedom Fighters'. His movements are so infectious that even System Of A Down's Serj Tankian, who has been watching from the back of the stage with a grin on his face, starts to bop along and mirror Harvey's movements. 'Bleed From Within' ends the set from the Leeds quartet with a percussive meltdown, with Harvey banging out a rhythm on a cow bell while guitarists Adam Nutter and Stuart Coleman put aside their instruments to join Phil Jordan on drumming duties.