Blur pulls out of Big Day Out after spat with organisors

Brtipop legends Blur have pulled out of the Big Day Out.

In a statement today on its Facebook page, band says:

Devastated to report that Blur won't be performing at BDO in 2014. It’s a shock that it has come to this.
Only 8 weeks to go, the band feels that with the constantly shifting goalposts and challenging conditions of the organisers, they can't let it drag on any longer and want to make this announcement, to be clear to Blur fans that they won't be there. We've done our very best to work with the organisers and considered every option to make it happen, but they’ve let us down and let everyone else down too.

Blur - widely regarded as superior to Britpop contemporaries Oasis - were set to headline the Big Day Out series of concerts longside Pearl Jam, Snoop Dogg and Arcade Fire at all six of the events in Australia and New Zealand.

In a message posted to Twitter soon after Blur's Facebook post, local promotor Campbell Smith said "The Blur announcement a total surprise to me. I had no idea."

Also taking to social media, Big Day Out investor AJ Maddah tweeted he was not sure why Blur festival organisors where been blamed when "all everyone here has done is kiss their ass." He added, "The only things that BDO have said 'no' to is when they asked to swap positions with AF [Arcade Fire]."

Mr Maddah also tweeted, "Once we have announced the replacement(s) we will provide option for refunds to those not satisfied."

The Auckland leg of the Big Day Out series is being held on January 17.

Mr Smith, who promotes the NZ leg of the Big Day Out, said the 2012 event would be the last in Auckland. Only 8000 turned up, compared with crowds in earlier years of 40,000.

But in April Mr Smith announced the one-day festival would be returning to the city, with a change of venue from Mt Smart Stadium to Western Springs.

NBR Staff
Mon, 25 Nov 2013

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Blur pulls out of Big Day Out after spat with organisors