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Feature: Neil Robinson - One Big Day

Author: Chris Young

The clock struck 11am and it was time to go on stage; this was it, our first performance at the BDO. It was a great success, despite Hayden's broken finger, with the crowd really getting into us. Lots of people already seemed to know our single The Epic Battles of Jude and his Monkey (named after the previously mentioned friend), despite the fact that it wasn't released to radio until February. The Electric Confectionaires had kindly lent us some gear so I felt like a real nob when, near the end of our set, I blew their Fender Twin amp. With that we thought we had no way to play on so Josh left the stage. Somehow we managed to get the guitar working again so I led the crowd in a sing along of a song I wrote at the age of 15, called Pop Sensation. It surprised me how many people seemed to know it and as the song came to a close so did our set.

The rest of the day was just mind blowing. Lily Allen confirmed my suspicions that she and I are meant for one another, the Vines were fantastic and Lupe Fiasco was just enthralling. I deliberately stayed well clear of My Chemical Romance (wouldn't want to catch that emo thing that seems to be going round) and didn't make an effort to go see Tool - I just find them pretentious and annoying.

Best act? Well that's a close call between Muse and The Streets. As the two clashed I ended up going to see both for 45 minutes each and let me tell you now, it was certainly one of the best hour and a halfs of my life. Both acts played blistering triumphant sets which truly were the highlights of the day as far as I am concerned. Mike Skinner certainly knows how to work a crowd these days. Matt Bellamy was pretty much God on the main stage and with 30,000 adoring fans singing every word of his songs back to him, he certainly must have felt like it. Shapeshifter ended my BDO experience perfectly with their awe-inspiring set in the Boiler Room really setting the tent alight.

The time until we departed for Christchurch on Sunday is a bit of an exhausted blur. The preceding day was unparalleled, one of the best of my life, so its aftermath mostly consisted of aches, pains and a good lie in.
Saturday night we ventured into Auckland's centre only to get turned away from most clubs by uptight bouncers on power trips, keeping us out for any reason they could possibly find.

So with all the crazy and amazing experiences of attending and playing at the BDO 2007 we headed back to our normal lives in Christchurch, satisfied in the afterglow of a life changing event and hoping for a repeat next year.

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