The date for the second Big Day Out 2014 lineup announcement has been set.
A second round of bands to join the Big Day Out 2014 bill, and the likes of triple co-headliners Pearl Jam, Blur, and Arcade Fire, is scheduled to be unveiled on Tuesday 19th November, to arrive via the Triple J airwaves during the Breakfast slot with Tom and Alex, as FasterLouder points out.
The second lineup announcement was originally scheduled to land in September, but was delayed following the news that the second day in Sydney for next year’s edition had to be scrapped owing to poor ticket sales.
Afterwards, Big Day Out CEO Adam Zammit indicated that the next round of bands would be announced in November, if “all going to plan… but nothing ever goes to plan.”
As for who to expect to be added to the bill alongside the likes of Snoop Dogg, Major Lazer, Tame Impala, and Flume, it’s highly likely that Brazilian indie outfit CSS – a refugee from AJ Maddah’s Harvest 2013 lineup following its cancellation – could end up on the bill given that the promoter has since bought a stake into the Big Day Out.
Don’t expect any ‘white whales’ the scale of Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, or Blur though, given that Maddah – who has just announced a massive second lineup for his own Soundwave – has already downplayed the second Big Day Out 2014 lineup, describing it as a “supplementary announcement.”
The current Big Day Out 2014 lineup contains 32 artists, but the final tally is “closer to something like 45 acts” according to festival co-promoter Ken West, who tells FasterLouder to likewise not expect “massive” artists. The current Big Day Out 2014 lineup contains 32 artists, but the final tally is “closer to something like 45 acts…”
The Big Day Out promoter also spoke at the Face The Music conference in Melbourne today (where Michael Gudinski slammed the Government for not supporting Aussie music), discussing the future of the long-running Aussie music festival now that he is passing the torch to “kindred spirit” AJ Maddah as “the logical choice” for the event as it enters the next generation.
Responding to the claims that big name festival players are feeling the squeeze of a market reset – that’s seen the cancellation of Homebake, Pyramid Rock, and the axing of Maddah’s Harvest Festival – West told the audience and fellow festival promoters at Face The Music that: “I don’t believe there’s a crisis on any level,” as The Music reports.
Speaking on the ‘What The Festival!’ panel alongside CampALowHum’s Ian ‘Blink’ Jorgensen (who believes that Maddah “should be locked up”), and promoters from Billions and Groovin The Moo, West said of the festival market: “It might be fragile, but generally the sales are all there… They’ve been reallocated for the time, we’re in a competitive business. But we just want to put on the best show possible, everybody.”
He did admit that “the bubble has popped” for the cost of booking artists however; “when festivals are bidding against festivals it’s an arms race.”
West also spoke about his relationship with Maddah, who holds an “equal” financial stake in the Big Day Out, coming on board from West’s insistence last September; a shock move considering the Big Day Out promoter had labelled Maddah a “financial anarchist” ahead of the 2012 edition of the festival, criticising him as having “done more harm to what was a reasonably stable business here [in Australia].”
But at Face The Music, West says his claim was an observation rather than a criticism, now saying they shared a lot of similarities.
“I like AJ’s craziness because it needs a little bit of calming,” he told the audience. “He’s not a bean counter – that’s probably the worst thing you can have, is another economic rationalistic approach coming in. It has to be about passion and he’s got all the passion in the world – managers and agents would call it something different to passion but that’s just the strength you need to deal with to go ‘I’m putting everything on the line, let’s go.’”
The comments come following rumours that the future of the Big Day Out was in a dire state after a Fairfax media article citing anonymous sources claimed the event was “tipped to lose up to $10 million, potentially making the event unsustainable in the future,” as well as refuting that West was still a working entity at the festival.
Following the report, Big Day Out CEO Adam Zammit lashed out at the Fairfax journalist and his editorial team for the article; “almost but not quite as many rumours bout further redundancies 4 bored journos at Fairfax!” said Zammit in a public spat on Twitter with Sydney Morning Herald music editor Peter Vincent and The Age writer Chris Johnston.
Zammit further spurned the writers for their unprofessionalism and holding a chip on their shoulder for missing out on previous festival coverage, while indicating among the war of words that booking of the Big Day Out 2014 lineup had begun, as well as a second round of bands for next year’s edition of the music festival.
Big Day Out 2014 Lineup
Pearl Jam * Arcade Fire * Blur
Snoop Dogg aka Snoop Lion * Major Lazer * Steve Angello (Swedish House Mafia) * Flume * The Lumineers * Tame Impala * Dillon Francis * Mac Miller * Ghost * Grouplove * Flosstradamus * Portugal. The Man * Toro Y Moi * DIIV * The Naked And Famous * Big Gigantic * PEZ * Mudhoney * Cosmic Psychos * Northlane * The 1975 * Loon Lake * Kingswood * Bo Ningen * The Algorithm * DZ Deathrays * Peking Duk * Ben Morris * Rüfüs
2nd Big Day Out 2014 lineup announcement on Tuesday 19th November.
Big Day Out 2014 Dates & Venues
Friday 17th January ~ Western Springs, Auckland*
Sunday 19th January ~ Metricon Stadium & Carrara Parklands, Gold Coast
Friday 24th January ~ Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne
Sunday 26th January ~ Sydney Showgrounds, Sydney
Friday 31st January ~ Bonython Park, Adelaide**
Sunday 2nd February ~ Claremont Showgrounds, Perth**
*For New Zealand Big Day Out 2014 lineup and ticketing details, please refer towww.bigdayout.com and choose AUCKLAND
**Subject to council approval
