99X: You Call That Big?

Since I misplaced my CD case in the middle of last week, and as I'm possible the only liberal-leaning, college-degree-holding twentysomething in all of Georgia that doesn't own an iPod, I spent an inordinate amount of commute- and lunch time listening to the radio.

The first thing that struck me is that there is a cosmetic surgery center that specializes in varicose vein reduction/elimination. They're called Vein Solutions and this name is spoken without a hint of irony or shame or anything on their radio ads.

The second, and larger point, is that I think 99X, the station that was #1 on my radio preset (kids, ask your parents/older siblings) throughout high school (and its predecessor Power 99 before it), well, WNNX seems to not have the pull it once did.

Why?

Check out the line-up for the reconstituted Big Day Out.

Needless to say, it's not on my list of concerts to attend.

I remember attending the last Big Day Out I attended, back in the fall of 1998, at the Conyers Horse Park, and it had multiple stages and included everything from radio-friendly (and still played even on Star94) fare like the Goo-Goo Dolls to underground-faves-turned-one-hit-wonders like The Urge, and of course Fuel, which it should be noted to any budding biographers was my favorite band at the time (pretty much from the first time I heard the demo/Porcelain version of "Shimmer" on).

Other years included big-time names like Beck and 311 (on the same bill no less, and after Odelay had been released), and the last Big Out I attended, while back at lakewood, still had a second stage (Linkin Park and Incubus and Disturbed all played the second stage) while Green Day and Stone Temple Pilots hit the main stage.

So color me underwhelmed with Chris Cornell and Interpol and...who cares really. I keep hoping at least a side stage will be added (side note: my first time seeing LFT live was at that massive two-stage Lakewood BDO.)

I guess I'm a bit sad too. I had many great times (not all of which I can easily remember) at BDOs of years past. The whole thing started after 99X more or less broke Silverchair to US audiences (one of the DJs picked up an EP with "Tomorrow" on it in Austrailia and played it.) I don't think Silverchair's US live debut was at the first American Big Day Out (it's been the Coachella/Lollapallooza of the outback for years and years), but that first BDO, waaaay back in 1995 was my first festival show. It was good. The other BDOs were good. The current one...well...maybe cutting ties with Clear Channel has drawbacks beyond the freedom to replace Jimmy Baron with a clone that sounds just like him and the freedom to old Nirvana songs at a frequency dangerously approaching 96 Rock's tendancies towards old Ozzy songs...