This was big. This was bigger than big. This was without question the biggest rock music festival ever to hit Australia. Over 70,000 rock fans made way to Sydney Olympic Park on Sunday for the annual Soundwave Festival, this year headlined by Metallica and featuring a lineup as impressive as any one day event you’d see anywhere in the world.
With such a mammoth lineup came more demand, and with more demand came the need for bigger venues. So in Sydney, this meant incorporating ANZ Stadium into the mix for the first time, as has been done for Stereosonic in the past. This placed the two main stages in the confines of the country’s biggest stadium, another two on the Showgrounds, where the main stages normally are, and about five more scattered around for good measure. With a healthy distance of 500m separating the two stadiums, this meant a hell of a lot of walking, but surprisingly, this is where the complaints of the setup start and end. I was expecting the worst, but the day, and the layout, seemed to run relatively smoothly.
Yes, there were apparently some flares, and I know it was a pain to get in and out of ANZ Stadium, which filled to capacity once Linkin Park took to the stage, but when that happened they simply opened up the top seating area. I didn’t hear of anyone not getting to see a band because of layout issues or the like, and for that the festival organisers have to be commended. Beer lines were long in some areas, but you’d walk around the corner and there wouldn’t be any lines at all. Same went for food and toilets. It was so spread out that you never had a problem getting what you needed, when you needed it. Again, credit is due! But alas, we’re here to talk about the music… so let’s begin.
With the sun out and about after a horrible storm the previous night, Mike Patton’s 43rd project Tomahawk was the first act I caught at this year’s Soundwave. Unlike his other projects, I’m completely unfamiliar with the music here, but it’s totally a blast to watch the well seasoned performer in any setting, let alone at Soundwave, an event with which Patton is quite familiar. The music featured some incredible guitar effects, and as such was arguably one of his more indulgent projects – but that comes a little surprise given the calibre of the other musicians on stage – Duane Denison, John Stanier (Helmet) and Trevor Dunn. The group played tracks off their new release Oddfellows, as well as some older favourites, and Patton was his usual charming self, humourously mentioning that “we are one of the few bands at the festival who are playing with their original drummer”. I also enjoyed his comment when the rain started up: “I thought we’d stopped the rain? I thought there was a ray of sunshine in a sea of tattoos.”
The rain continued as I made my first of many voyages in said sea of tattoos from one stadium to the other, to see Flogging Molly. Unfortunately they were one of the bands whose equipment was caught up in the flash floods between Brisbane and Sydney overnight and their gear didn’t arrive on time. When they did eventually take to the stage, it would be as a three piece, playing acoustically, and quite briefly. With just two guitars and one violin, they jammed out incredibly powerful acoustic versions of songs like “If I Ever Leave This World Alive” and “What’s Left Of The Flag”. It was arguably the highlight of the day, simply due to how spontaneous and unexpected a performance it was – no doubt for the band themselves, too!
Billy Talent were as solid as always, as the set times resumed to their original schedule, but I thought I’d make my way to check out Kyuss Lives; this was, after all, their reported “final tour” under this guise. I stumbled across Puscifer on the way, Maynard’s other, other project, which was the “special guest” performance of the day. Like Tomahawk, I wasn’t familiar with this project musically, but loved every minute of it, as they showered the audience in peanuts and played tracks like the phenomenal “Dozo” and the popular “Telling Ghosts”.
It was a total shitfight to get in to see Kyuss Lives, and by the time I got in I already had to leave to head up into the Channel V “Elevator”, where I watched the solid group Stone Sour play to a massive crowd. Kyuss, meanwhile, failed to impress me – and having expected to see Oliveri gracing the stage (he was on the posters for the sideshows, after all), perhaps that was what let me down.
Back at the other stadium after (literally) hanging over the main stadium with Channel V and Stone Sour, Sum 41 had well and truly filled the stadium, playing all their hits and even a cover of Queen’s “We Will Rock You”. We all got our high school punk nostalgia on with songs like “Still Waiting” and “Fat Lip”, which ended the set. Cypress Hill followed and though a they felt like the odd men out on the lineup, the crowd ate them up, with tracks like “How Could I Just Kill a Man” and of course “Insane In The Membrane” getting everyone jumping.
Back at the main arena, Slayer were loud and brutal, but it was A Perfect Circle I’d rushed over to see, and they did not disappoint. It’s been over nine years now since their last record eMOTIVe, but given it is still technically their most recent, it was still the centrepoint of their set, with its opener “Annihalation” kicking things off, ahead of their well regarded cover of “Imagine”. As with Tool or the earlier Puscifier, Maynard stands at the back of the stage and gives as much limelight to the rest of the band as himself; he’s never been one to enjoy the limelight. Of course a highlight for many in the group is original Smashing Pumpkins member James Iha, who these days resembles more of an anime character, with big, puffy, silver hair, than a former member of the iconic rock group.
As someone who has been waiting countless years to see the group, it was a pleasure to see them give us so many crowd favourites, in spite of the fact they’re recording new material. Also on show was “Weak and Powerless” from the acclaimed Thirteenth Step, the incredible “Passive”, “Counting Bodies Like Sheep”, “The Package”, “When The Levee Breaks” and a new track to whet our appetites for the future. It has been too long since eMOTIVe, so I’m personally incredibly excited to hear what comes next.
Following APC, rather than get a spot for Metallica like many others, I chose to see three bands I hadn’t before, over one I had… well, that was the plan anyway. With the last minute cancellation of Garbage, I saw Linkin Park instead. “A Place For My Head” opened up the set, followed by “Given Up” and “New Divide”. I’ve never been a fan of Park, and seeing them live didn’t change that. But they are a solid live band and had the crowd in the palms of their hands. So surely I’m in the minority in that argument. So off to check out some local music it was! Sharks, who apparently were bumped earlier in the day, got to redeem themselves with an incredible spot, replacing Garbage in the second stadium. They naturally had a celebratory shot on Twitter:
We just got given this… Good news for anyone who was disappointed earlier… twitter.com/sharksband/sta…
— Sharks (@sharksband) February 24, 2013
But I’d already missed them by the time I arrived. So I caught a bit of Polar Bear Club instead, who really impressed me. The upstate New York five piece have been a favourite of the AU for years, and today was no exception. High energy, with exemplary craft for the genre. “Kilin’ It” was particularly rad, as was “See The Wind”, the first song off of Chasing Hamburg. Their lead singer, Jimmy Stadt, resplendent in a Descendants shirt, literally finished each song with a smile and a thumbs up. They were, suffice it to say, a friendly sort of hardcore band.
Then it was time to see everyone’s favourite band when they were in high school, Blink-182, who opened things up with “Feeling This” and “The Rock Show” opening up proceedings. Then there was the classic “What’s My Age Again”, which I honestly couldn’t hear over the crowd’s loud, impassioned sing along. It was an incredibly solid performance, with Travis’ replacement drummer Brooks Wackerman shining. The light show was phenomenal and overall it was simply a fun time. Mark and Tom continued with their famously infantile humour between songs; who needs to grow up, am I right? “Dammit” ended the set, with some bass solo action, though “Disaster” was probably my favourite moment of the night, and I have to make a mention of their brief Justin Bieber “Baby” cover, which was pretty hilarious. I’d waited a long time to see Blink live, and they didn’t disappoint.
I ended my night with The Offspring, another band who represent a good part of my youth, though surprisingly I’d never made any attempts to see them live. And boy, after this set do I regret that. The hour-or-so set was one of the most jam-packed-with-hits-and-singalongs hours I’ve ever experienced. The band were on fire, showing no signs of slowing down as they pulled out all their favourites, from “You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid” which opened up the night, to “Self Esteem” which closed things up. I honestly felt like I got to hear every song I’d ever wanted to hear from the band.
The 90s nostalgia continued as I walked out of the venue, where I could hear Metallica playing “Enter Sandman” playing to tens of thousands of fans in ANZ Stadium, as they kept the night going well beyond their allotted playing time, as Paramore did the same in the other stadium.
And so ended – considering the mammoth size of the event – one of the most impressive festivals Australia has ever seen. It’s a pity ANZ is designed as it is, as flow problems are always going occur in peak times – and it’s certainly a pity that Garbage cancelled (literally an act of god) – but the music I witnessed put the festival at a calibre unseen in Australia for a long time – and let’s face it – it’s gonna be a near impossible one to top, too, anytime soon.
