Posts by Russell Brown
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I went (I think I saw you, Russell. Reddish t-shirt and a floppy grey hat?)
Nope. Greyish t-shirt and a floppy blue hat ...
The police just don't do anal-retentive at the BDO, seeming to treat it as more of a PR outing and an exercise in visibility-is-a-deterrent, so getting nicked for something means you really earned it.
Yes, quite probably. The Aussie cops, on the other hand ...
Gold Coast police superintendent Jim Keogh said police were not party-poopers but were determined to ensure the safety of patrons after a spate of drug overdoses at new year's dance parties in Melbourne.
"If they pass out from drugs in a big crowd, lives are at risk and we have to get them out," he said ...
... Supt Keogh said he was surprised by the number of people taking illegal drugs into music festivals despite the heavy police presence.
"Not only are they getting arrested and charged but they are also being evicted, so it turns into a very costly and disappointing day out," he said.
"I can't understand how they think they can get away with it and I hope they get the message for Good Vibrations and Big Day Out."
Well clearly, they didn't. The Gold Coast cops at the BDO got 120 people in a symbolic two-hour stretch and doubtless missed several tens of thousands of other punters. As a harm-reduction measure, it has some fairly obvious flaws.
Not least that this kind of be-very-afraid tactic runs a serious risk of nasty unintended consequences. How many kids necked their entire supply before going in? Or decided to risk buying drugs on-site?
And the idea that you're preventing harm by arresting people for marijuana possession at a music festival where alcohol is available for purchase is just silly.
Oh, and check this for a way to harsh the buzz: cops in commando gear toting guns and waving their fucking arms around while a dog sniffs some poor guy. How awful.
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For the record (I'm cooking dinner and I know I'm going to cock something up trying to express this) I have real concerns about domestic violence regardless of gender. I think that 16% from the Dunedin study is higher than a lot of people would expect
Quite, especially given that it's serious violence that that study was tracking. Then there's violence within same-sex relationships, which stays just as far under the radar.
As I noted, the "Are You Okay" website addresses partner violence largely in non-gendered terms, and I presume that's no accident.
But if you're running a big TV campaign, you kick off by addressing the big problem. Which, sadly, is men assaulting and intimidating women.
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It's inauguration week, and finally Barack Obama will be POTUS for real. Do please share here your comments and links, clips and tips …
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For those who missed Neil (or want to relive the experience), it looks like some nice chap has bootlegged the show.
Ah. Good old Kiwiconcerts ...
What a great show to get.
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I didn't hear the Cyndi Lauper but I tell you, I was too zapped to go to Prodigy after Neil but the ENTIRE 3 k walk back to my home I could hear them like I was inside the tent.
We remarked on that too. They seemed just as loud at the end of the road as they had right outside the gate.
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Oh, and I ran into Gemma from the Ukulele Orchestra yesterday, still buzzing from their completely jam-packed 12.30 set at Lilyworld. Wish I'd seen them ...
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Meanwhile, count your blessings that Auckland police are a bit more sensible than those on the Gold Coast.
In what looks like nothing so much as a police makework scheme, they made 120 drug possession arrests, 51 of them with the assistance of sniffer dogs stationed at the gates for the first two hours.
In Auckland, there was a total of three arrests.
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Great report as always Russell. I was so glad to finally see Neil live after years of near-misses. My report's on my blog,
Thanks Nik. I did see your blog but I ran out of steam on linking yesterday, so I'm pleased you've posted it.
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Not sure about the rest of the day. Having my lovely wife along, who is 6 1/2 months pregnant, we went later (4pm) and steered away from the crush of the Boiler Room. We stuck to the 4 main stages, and it was...okay.
Yes, take away the Boiler Room and you missed a bit -- Hot Chip were right up there with LCD Soundsystem's show last year. And if you didn't see the Ting Tings or Pendulum you missed two of the most fun outdoor shows.
But I gather the Dropkick Murphys pleased thousands of punters while Neil was playing. They mean pretty much nothing to me, but it's nice that they did it for their fans. Ditto for Fantomas and Serj Tankian, whose charms are similarly lost on me.
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Which isn't to say everyone didn't have a good time. It is just to say that thousands of people interested in music didn't go to this years BDO because they thought the line up was the minimum a complacent promoter thought he could get away with and still sell-out the venue.
Hate to be a bit of a curmudgeon, but this year the emperor had no clothes.
Really? Big call from someone who didn't even go, Tom.
Yup, I suspect that the reduced capacity was indeed making a virtue of necessity. Perhaps if they'd headlined with some machine-rock act that was big with the kids they'd have done better. But then it wouldn't have been such a good day.
And with tickets for the likes of Coldplay and Leonard Cohen topping $170 and The Who starting at $130 (and going up to $300), $130 for a truly brilliant Neil Young show plus whatever else you fancied seems a good enough deal to me.
As I said, I was actually really pleased with the quality of music I heard, and Neil Young was quite possibly the best show I've ever been to. I hope you had a pleasant evening at home.
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