25th January Sydney Big Day Out
Went down early to the Essential Stage where Kate Nash again called me up to sing A New England. It works much better this time with me on acoustic guitar, allowing her band to play the song their way rather than accompanying me as they did at the club date a few nights ago.
Then it’s down to the Lilyworld for our pageant to mark Australia Day. My mad plot, hatched in the Coolangatta airport departure lounge, was that we Brits should stage a re-enactment of the discovery of Australia by Captain Cook, except that I would be dressed as Captain Hook. Shannon had excelled herself in the 48 hours since we first came up with the idea, finding not only a Capt. Hook costume, but also a crocodile outfit, a Queen Elizabeth I get-up and a Tinkerbell costume for herself. With a few other bits and bobs picked up at a costume shop we passed on the way to the gig, we really looked the part.
In the true spirit of the Lilyworld stage, the audience didn’t really know what the fuck was going on, but eventually got into the spirit of things. The plot, such as it was, followed the traditions of pantomime with Queen Elizabeth acting as narrator, Hook comes ashore with his pirate crew and Tinkerbell, they have a short discourse on the nature of fairy powder then Hook proceeds to declare Australia Terra Nullis – empty land. This was the legal argument that the British used to justify their invasion of the continent. Claiming that there was nothing here, Hook asks the boys and girls to tell him if they saw any animals or people. Cue pantomime crocodile and indigenous warrior. Crowd shout ‘behind you’. This goes on for a few minutes until an aboriginal activist appears to make a brief speech about Invasion Day. Exit omnes.
Slipping out of my false moustache and costume, I dashed across to the Essential stage to deliver a blistering set that went down a storm and came in on time. Brilliant. I think I might have worked out how to do this. Among those watching from backstage was Peter Garrett, former front man with Midnight Oil, now Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Arts in the newly elected Labour government here. Back in the dressing room we chat for half and hour, comparing notes on how to deal with the heightened expectations that follow the fall of a conservative administration such as that of Margaret Thatcher or John Howard.
A wonderful day was rounded of with a visit to the Boiler Room stage to see new chums LCD Sound System do a stonking set with includes the splendidly self-flagellating ‘North American Scum’.
2 Responses to “25th January Sydney Big Day Out”
By geoff on Jan 31, 2008
c’mon Grant, hoist the mailsail and scrub the poopdeck, where’s the footage? Haven’t you scurvy dogs been taught how to upload videos yet?
Aaaaaarrrghhhhhh me hearties!
By Squizy on Jan 31, 2008
OH to be a fly on the wall for the conversation between Billy and Peter Garrett.