We'll be covering the Big Day Out this Friday with regular updates, blogs and photos throughout the day at nzherald.co.nz/bigdayout.
Send in your photos of the event and be in to win a PDA worth $750!
KEY POINTS:
Rage Against the Machine
Playing on the Blue Stage from 9.20-10.30pm
Rage Against the Machine formed in Los Angeles, California in 1991. Their powerful heavy metal, punk and hip hop mix propelled them into stardom from the outset. The band comprises Zack de la Rocha (vocals) Tom Morello (guitarist) Tim Commerford (bassist) and Brad Wilk (drummer).
Trivia: The band's first "gig" was in the living room of one of Tim's friends in Huntington Beach, California.
Bjork
Orange Stage, 8pm-9.10pm
Bjork was born in Reykjavik, Iceland and is one of the world's most eccentric singers. She's known for her alternative vocals and her wide genre of music including rock, jazz and pop.
Trivia: Bjork made headlines around the world in 2001 when she wore a white swan dress to the Oscars.
Arcade Fire
Orange Stage, 6pm-7pm
Indie rock band Arcade Fire hail from Montreal in Canada and is made up of Win Butler, Regine Chassagne, Richard Reed Parry, William Butler, Time Kingsbury, Sarah Neufeld and Jeremy Gara.
Trivia: The track Rebellion (Lies) made Blender Magazine's list of "500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born."
Scribe
Boiler Room, 7pm-8pm
Scribe (Malo Luafutu) is from Canterbury and is widely regarded as the country's leading rapper. His debut album The Crusader shot up the charts in 2004, and won him critical acclaim in both NZ and Australia.
Trivia: Scribe's Not Many is the official theme tune of Celtic Crusaders rugby league club in Wales.
Dizzee Rascal
Boiler Room, 3.45pm - 4.30pm
London born Dylan Mills is known in the music world as Dizzee Rascal. His music consists of a medley of rap, UK Garage and drum 'n' bass.
Trivia: At 19 years of age, Dizzee Rascal was the first rapper to win the impressive Mercury Music Prize. The producer of LCD Soundsystem is American born James Murphy. His mix of dance, punk and disco has handed him many awards over the years.
Trivia: The track Daft Punk Is Playing at My House is a favourite video game soundtrack and has featured on SSX on Tour, Forza Motorsport 2, Burnout Revenge, and FIFA 06.
Liam Finn
Essential Stage, 1.15 - 1.45pm
It's all about the guitar for Liam Finn who moved to New Zealand as a child but was born in Melbourne, Australia. The son of Crowded House frontman Neil Finn, Liam plays a combination of experimental, pop-infused rock 'n' roll.
Trivia: Liam first played at the Big Day Out when he was 16, with his band Betchadupa.
Opshop
Blue Stage 1.45pm - 2.30pm
Opshop was formed by Jason Kerrison (vocals/guitar) who was raised in Christchurch. The solo artist soon branched out and the band grew to include Bobby Kennedy (drums) Matt Treacy (guitar) and Clint Harris (bass).
Trivia: Jason met former bass player Ian Munro at university where they both studied ethnomusicology.
Tiki Taane
Green Stage, 1.45pm - 2.30pm
Solo artist Tiki Taane (ex member of Salmonella Dub) hails from New Zealand. His move away from the band after 11 years now sees him experimenting alone with reggae, dub, drum 'n' bass and hip-hop.
Trivia: He dedicated a song on his new album Past, Present, Future to the events of the Boxing Day tsunami in 2004.
Supergroove
Green Stage, 10.45pm - 11.30pm
The sound of a generation, New Zealand's own Supergroove consists of Che Ness (Che Fu, vocals) Joe Lonie (bass, vocals) Tim Stewart (trumpet, backing vocals, percussion) Ben Sciascia (guitar backing vocals) Ian Jones (drums, percussion) Nick Atkinson (saxaphone, keyboards, backing vocals) and Karl Steven (vocals, keyboards, harmonica). Their sounds are predominantly hip-hop, rock, soul, rap and funk.
Trivia: Supergroove generated six top ten hits in New Zealand throughout the 90s - more than any other Kiwi band.
Carl Cox
Boiler Room, 10pm - 11.30pm
Carl Cox, the English born Techno and House DJ is still considered one of the best in the world. He burst into the rave scene in his 20s with the acid house sound behind him and never looked back.
Trivia: Cox can play three turntables at once instead of the standard two.
Katchafire
Local Produce Stage, 9.30pm - 10.30pm
The reggae/dub group Katchafire from Hamilton, New Zealand were originally a Bob Marley tribute band who started to write their own material. Band members include Tere Ngarua, Jordan Bell, Jamey Ferguson, Haani Totorewa, Logan Bell, Grenville Bell and Leon Davey.
Trivia: The name Katchafire comes from Bob Marley and The Wailers album Catch A Fire.
