Plenty of Canberrans will be heading up the road this weekend to hang out at Sydney Olympic Park and 60,000 of their best friends. It’s that time of year again, where The Big Day Out juggernaut roll into the Big Smoke for its annual extravaganza.

This year there is great danger of the BDO crowd hitting an older average demographic than ever before. With The Arcade Fire, Pearl Jam and (originally) Blur headlining this year’s festival, there’s every chance the person standing next to you has been to a Big Day Out and watched Nirvana.

We’ve just returned from the Gold Coast show, so here’s what the oldies on the Goldie were there to witness.

Pearl Jam (Blue Stage: 8.00pm – 10.30pm)
What more can be said about this iconic Seattle band? Once the ‘poor man’s Nirvana’, they have had a stellar career that has always put the fans first. They may not have had a big hit for over a decade, but we’re willing to bet you can happily join in the chorus of at least half the songs. With a mammoth 2 hours and 30 minutes scheduled for their set, that may not be enough – we’ve had word that a condition of their involvement was ‘to play until we’ve decided it’s enough.’ That could make for a very Big Night Out.

What we loved: The energy and intensity of both sound and voice and almost full renditions of albums TEN and Black over the course of the set (oh, but Eddie, perhaps you should leave the rope swinging to Pink!)

Arcade Fire (Orange Stage: 6.30pm – 8.00pm)
Love them or loathe them, it’s hard to argue against the skills of Canada’s masters of the concept album. After a three-year hiatus, they returned last year with not only a double album (who does that these days?) but also a single, Reflektor, sprawling over six and a half minutes with David Bowie on guest vocals. Astounding.

The good news is this little indie outfit has a great stadium sound, so expect a lot of demand for the ‘D’ as their set nears.

What we loved: It seemed there were a hundred people on stage that took up new positions after every song. An amazingly energetic performance.

Primus (Blue Stage: 3.30pm – 4.30pm)
Another oldie. The best bass player in the world? Songs about beavers…? These guys have been nuts since the late-80s and hit their peak in Australia when singing about Winona Ryder’s crotch and an album called Pork Soda. Clearly it’s advisable to expect the unexpected.

Never heard of them? They wrote the South Park theme song.

What we loved: Main man Les Claypool can do ANYTHING with a bass guitar – while strangely moving out of rhythm at the same time. It’s weird to watch but wonderful to hear. Those with a technical appreciation of music will be blown away.

Awesome random find: RÜFÜS
It’s the best part of any festival, discovering cool little acts that you never expected to fall in love with. This year it was was no exception, and if you find yourself with a spare moment during the day, you could do a lot worse than popping in to see RÜFÜS. This relatively new Aussie outfit brought the party to the Boiler Room and left with a legion of new fans. You should definitely give them a go.

As with any Big Day Out, there are heaps of new bands carving out their career in the hope they too will be around in 20 years (Flume, anyone?). Have a great time, play safe and have fun making your musical memories.

Tickets from $185.00 are available here.