Hello Gov Lovers,
Who needs mad March when you’ve got Outrageous October? The Gov has been going overboard with amazing shows this month.
On Thursday and Friday don’t fight it, come on get excited, for two huge nights with Ball Park Music.
Saturday morning the Gov’s crew will be at Parliament House at 11am to support the call to keep SA Nuclear Free, and in the evening we party with Aussie hip-hop legend Drapht with a bag of new rhymes fresh from his album Seven Mirrors.
And on Sunday, it’s Club Cool, a socially inclusive event for people with disabilities and their friends. It kicks off at 11am with entry by gold coin donation.
Next week kicks off with outlaw cowboy Kinky Friedman on Tuesday night. His show was re-scheduled from last week as Melbourne airport shut down due to storms and Kinky couldn’t get to SA.
As the icing on the cake of an already great week, The Gov has been nominated for Venue of the Year in the National Live Music Awards. We’ve loved seeing fellow nominees Bad // Dreems, Dusty Lee, The Grenadiers, Horror My Friend, West Thebarton Brothel Party and Ollie English here at The Gov, not to mention many of the nominees from other states. The fantastic list of nominees both in SA and across Australia reflects the high quality of live music in this country. Congratulations to everyone who made the grade.
Just announced:
RIKKIE LEE JONES - Saturday 8 April 2017
JAKE SHIMABUKURO- Sunday 9 April 2017
Coming up this week:
BALL PARK MUSIC - 13 Oct *Limited Tickets available!
w/ special guests The Creases & Sahara Beck.
It feels like a lifetime has passed since our last big Australian tour. We were lucky enough to devote a year to writing, relaxing, European touring, festivals spots and an unforgettable (well, actually, I can’t remember much of it) week in Austin, TX for SXSW.
Then we bunkered down to chip away at our new record, Every Night The Same Dream, which you’ll all get to hear soon enough. We’re stoked. Our hearts are going to burst. The response to Pariah and Nihilist Party Anthem has been mind-blowing.
We’re chomping at the bit to get back on the road and play a bunch of new material as well as all the old faves. Well, most of the old faves. A new record is great because it means you can take some of the old songs that you’re bored with to the back paddock and shoot them. Nah, just joking. Maybe. You never know. See you soon.
DRAPHT - 15 Oct
Fifth album Seven Mirrors continues the upward incline of Drapht’s artistic output, showing off even more songwriting flair and linguistic dexterity than ever before, inviting a host of Australian music royalty along for the ride including Hilltop Hoods, Dune Rats and Katie Noonan. And at the apex of this mountain of talent is Drapht himself, directing this cast of virtuoso musicians with a grand vision and fastidious execution. Seven Mirrors weaves colourful narrative and wit with the stern fabric of personal expression and catharsis.
Drapht delves deep and reveals a lot on Seven Mirrors . The album chronicles Drapht’s personal relationships – whether introspective, family, with partners or exes – exploring them through the concept of the Seven Essene Mirrors… the existential premise that our relationships reflect back upon ourselves. Perhaps the height of Drapht’s skill set can be seen in how masterfully subtle this narrative is throughout the album. There’s a concept album to explore if you want to get deep, but Seven Mirrors can also just be a bangin’ set of tunes if that’s what the occasion calls for.
“It was just song topic after song topic, just flying out of me. And now I’ve got 24 songs to cull back to 14 and I’ve never been in this position before, ever, and it’s probably been my most enjoyable record to date” says Drapht on the making of Seven Mirrors .
KINKY FRIEDMAN - 18 Oct - RESCHEDULED SHOW!
Legendary outlaw country singer/songwriter returns to Australia in support of ‘The Loneliest Man I Ever Met’
Nobody could invent a character quite like Kinky Friedman, the stogie-waving, black-hat-wearing Texas Jewboy singer, storyteller, tequila purveyor, animal rescuer and full-time iconoclast. Though renowned for penning some of outlaw country’s most outrageous songs, authoring bestsellers and running for governor of Texas, his 45-year career includes touring with Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue; recording with Clapton, most of The Band and Ringo Starr; appearing on Saturday Night Live and at the Grand Ole Opry; and writing one of Nelson Mandela’s favourite songs. He also became the protagonist of his own crime novels, because even he couldn’t invent a character that could out-kink Kinky Friedman.
A favourite of Australian audiences Kinky revisits our shores with a brand new album - his first in 39 years!! - ‘The Loneliest Man I Ever Met’, that may well be one of the longest-awaited follow-ups in recent memory. Not that fans have complained; the continued popularity of tunes such as “Sold American,” “Nashville Casualty and Life” and “Ride ’Em Jewboy” (the Holocaust-referencing song that soothed Mandela in prison) prove Kinky is that rare talent whose work withstands the test of time. Friedman still delivers those songs — interspersed with his inimitable blend of politically incorrect quips, jokes and tales both tall and true — to appreciative audiences around the world.
Filled with never-heard-before Kinky originals and beautifully rendered covers of such artists as Tom Waits, Warren Zevon and Willie Nelson, the new CD is all about Kinky’s ultimate ability to deliver much more than just a funny line or humorous tune. The spare, yet lush arrangements all point up Kinky’s unique talent as both a songwriter and interpreter of great material. Guest performers Nelson, Little Jewford and Mickey Raphael support but never override the simplicity and grace of the tunes and the artist.
