By Pia Bobeff and Nurul Azhar
Photography by Anushkaa Ahuja and Laudine Cao
On Thursday 7 May, the Interhall Arts Committee (IAC) hosted Big Night Out (BNO), the ANU’s ultimate battle of the bands competition.
The theme BNO-TV was out on full display, with plenty of doof-sticks in the audience, festival and band-inspired costumes, and irresistible sing-alongs. The ambience and energy were felt all the way to Ainslie, with one parent complaining on the Facebook Canberra Notice Board Group that their two 6-month-old babies couldn’t sleep by 10 PM.
From ABBA to Doechi, High School Musical to Fleetwood Mac, the setlists were as diverse as the colleges, and one could not help but sing along.
Observer spoke to one of the BNO directors, Aiden, who highlighted how the camaraderie, fun, and variety of good music made BNO important to the ANU.
Volunteers and colleges alike all found events like BNO to be important to the college community. Johns stated these events “really, really brings the college community together”, allowing all the colleges to “appreciate each other”. Green room assistant Emily stated that BNO is “a great opportunity to interact with people that you wouldn’t normally [interact with] otherwise”.
The atmosphere before the show was a mix of excitement and suspense as the bands prepared for their performances.
Yukeembruk were hoping the audience would feel “the energy that [they] bring” from their “heavy in-your-face set” by performing Doechii’s ‘Denial Is A River’ and Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Busy Woman’.
Wright expressed their desire to “try [their] best to connect with the audience and create a good sense of community that Wright Hall has”, whilst making their hall feel proud of them as “it’s a good showcase of all the effort [they] put in.”
They decided that the all-time classics, such as Grover Washington Jr.’s ‘Just the Two of Us’, The Cranberries’ ‘Zombie’, and Beyoncé’s ‘Crazy in Love’ would bring this connection to reality.
Meanwhile, Burton & Garran (B&G) gave us a sneak peek into their gothic set, with inspiration coming from their hall’s redback spider and black & red colours and including “[a] song that’s popular from being in Twilight”.
Fenner, however, based their inspiration on a “Pinterest board and a dream”, initially pining for 90s grunge. Instead, opting for a “2000s, Y2K, Gwen Stefani inspo. Chrome. Glitter. Rihanna” vibe.
As Ursula prepared to take the stage, they looked forward to the audience “[getting] really hyped from it” and “[having] a great time and [getting] involved, appreciating the set as much as [they] do”.
The crowd certainly went wild, dancing along as they delivered their take on Bruno Mars’s ‘Runaway Baby’ and The Black Eyed Peas’s ‘Pump It’.
Whilst the music could be heard over 3 kilometres away, nothing came close to the experience of being within close proximity, with Burgmann reporting that the audience made their performance “electric”. Fenner stated that they “[couldn’t] do anything without anyone from Fenner” and that the “fennergy” was palpable and something they were able to feed off.
As audience members, the colleges’ performances were enhanced not just by the bands’ musical talent but by their stage presence. From bubble guns being squirted into the audience by YKB, Lodge’s use of a toy car, and John’s High School Musical-inspired costume change, there was something in each performance that made them memorable.
Audience excitement was at a high, reflected in the high levels of screaming and cheering. From the way audience members actively got around each hall’s performance from participating in chants, clapping along in time, and even just dancing, you wouldn’t have known it was only five degrees outside.
For Bruce, the band was hoping that the audience “had an experience where they could sing with everyone next to them and dance with everyone around them and just feel the love” whilst also feeling the gratitude they possess “for the audience and for our college”.
For Griffin, last year’s winners and the self-proclaimed “Justice League”, their performance was “immaculate, epic, [and] emotional”. When asked if they believed they could win once more, they claimed, “Griffin Hall wants it, so come and get it”. This was a premonition which ultimately came true.
In what was a very close scoring BNO, with only 0.5 points separating second and third place, the top five bands were:
- Griffin (105.5 points)
- Bruce and Burgmann (100 points)
- Wright and Wamburun (99.5 points)
7 May 2026 won’t just be remembered for being the coldest day of the year to date, or the night that Julie Bishop resigned, but rather for the night that raised the bar for BNO 2027. A night filled with immense talent, props, mashups and guest appearances.
So in the immortal words of ABBA: We say thank you for the music.
Disclaimer: Pia Bobeff is a resident of Bruce Hall and Nurul Azhar is a resident of Griffin Hall.
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