In the wake of massive structural change, Big Day Out was forced to skip the long-standing Auckland leg on the festival’s 2013 circuit but a recent announcement has confirmed that, come 2014, our Kiwi brothers and sisters will once again be feeling the BDO love.
The triumphant return will also see the event take place at a brand new gaff, booking Auckland’s Western Springs Stadium for the showdown. For 18 years the iconic festival had been ripping it up in NZ, and following last year’s nix of the show, New Zealand-based BDO promoter Campbell Smith commented, “We strongly felt that there was real desire for the event to return to Auckland.”
Organisers are also strongly emphasising that this isn’t a comeback, rather the start of something totally fresh. 2014 will see things stepped up a notch in the city. Rather than an Australian festival taking place in NZ, it’s going to be a New Zealand festival taking place in NZ, tailored specifically for the audience, though specifics are thin on the ground at this early stage.
The powers that be seem equally as thrilled with the news. Mayor Len Brown has explained the importance of such an event to the city:
“Any world class city has a constellation of events to cater for the tastes of all of its residents – young and not so young. Returning a Big Day Out to our calendar in 2014 would fill a huge hole and the proposed relocation to Western Springs would bring this significant music and culture event right into the city for residents and the thousands of visitors it draws to Auckland.”
Announcing the news so early and publicly is a good sign that next year’s Big Day Out will be an absolute doozy.
