Your favourite Big Day Out memory? Man, it would probably still have to be the very first one in Auckland in '94, because there was a lot less people there than in later years, so you could actually walk around and watch bands on the main stages from the moshpitand it was pretty comfortable. Plus it was the year that Soundgarden, Smashing Pumpkins, and the Breeders all played. Soundgarden were great that day (although their show at the Powerstation the night before was jaw-droppingly amazing) and the Breeders were brilliantly ramshackle and a lot of fun (and seeing the Deal sisters stumbling around backstage, holding each other upright and laughing hysterically was a personal highlight).
But it was the Smashing Pumpkins who did the best performance of the day. Headless Chickens played on the main stage just before them, so I got to watch them from about 6m away at the side of the stage as all those great songs from Gish and Siamese Dream blasted out across the heads of 20,000 people all moving like one big organic entity; quite spectacular and the first time I'd ever played at, or even been to, a big stadium gig like that. Oh, and that BDO was also the last time Straitjacket Fits played before they split up and they were in spectacularly ferocious form.
Playing any other summer music festivals? No.
Are you more the BDO, Winery Tour, Laneway, or Splore type? I'm not really that fond of big outdoors events with thousands of people but since I've been to about six BDOs (usually because I've been playing at them), then I'll have to go with the Big Day Out.
LOWDOWN
Who: Chris Matthews of Children's Hour (and Headless Chickens)
Where: St Jerome's Laneway Festival, Aotea Square, Auckland
When: 31 January, 1:45pm Penny Lane
