The Clash: Did anyone miss the Big Day Out?

Swedish band The Hives perform at the 2014 Big Day Out, Western Springs, Auckland. Photo / Natalie Slade

Opinion

Did the lack of a Big Day Out festival go unnoticed this year? Or were you in a puddle of tears come January 16? Chris Schulz and Lydia Jenkin share their thoughts.

Chris Schulz says:

The day passed unnoticed. No tears were shed, no grief was shared, no outrage was caused. Two weeks ago, Friday came and went as an uneventful end to a perfectly average working week.

Why should there have been any kind of kerfuffle? Well, Friday, January 16 would have been the day when 40,000 people showed up at Western Springs ready to party. Yes, it should have been time for the Big Day Out - an event that is usually one of the highlights of my year.

Only it wasn't. This year's Big Day Out was cancelled amid financial concerns. The festival's new owners have promised it will return in 2016. But if it doesn't, does it really matter?

Don't get me wrong - the more shows the better, I say. If the Big Day Out had been here this year, I would have been there, loving every second of it. It came back with a serious bang in 2014, with a new look, new venue and new attitude.

But this year there's been more than enough going on to keep us busy. We're not even at the end of January and I've already seen some incredible acts - from Run the Jewels and Joey Bada$$ getting sweaty in The Studio, to Odesza's sun-drenched show at the King's Arms, and Nas playing Illmatic in full at the Powerstation.

And there's plenty more to come, including Drake, the Foo Fighters, Soundgarden and Faith No More in the next six weeks.

This may just be because of the afterglow from Monday's career-best effort at Laneway, but if the Big Day Out doesn't return, it seems like everything might just be okay after all.

Lydia Jenkin says:

Maybe the day passed unnoticed for Chris, but in my world, Friday, January 16 was filled with people mourning the lack of Big Day Out this year. Facebook posts, tweets, general email banter, comments made in person even - we were all sad not to be dancing round on the lush grassy grounds of Western Springs enjoying the likes of Snoop Dogg or Arctic Fire, Major Lazer or The Phoenix Foundation.

Pearl Jam performing at the 2014 Big Day Out, Western Springs, Auckland. Photo / Natalie Slade

Sure, the first few weeks of 2015 have seen quite a few international acts running through town - but you might've noted from Chris' list above, they were all hip-hop/urban acts. Don't get me wrong, I like hip-hop, and I'm sure most of them were great shows, but there hasn't been all that much on offer for fans of other genres.

Which is where Big Day Out was always so successful - a great merry-go-round of acts that went from massive international rockers to eccentric indie pop acts, perhaps a veteran "heritage act", some crazy, hyperactive DJs, and even a good dose of hip-hop. As the old adage goes, there was something for everyone.

It was a great platform to see Kiwi acts with massive production on a stadium-sized stage. It was an annual celebration that was something of a rite of passage for young Kiwis and with its new home at Western Springs it seemed like it had a whole new lease on life.

Laneway was a great day, but its urban concrete jungle vibe is so different to the festival that BDO had become, it's definitely not a replacement in my eyes.

There's more than enough room for two large-scale summer music festivals in Auckland and I dearly hope that we can have the Big Day Out back for 2016, once again spread across Western Springs for a kick-ass day of many magical musical moments.

* Did you miss the Big Day Out this year? Post your comments below:

- TimeOut