Tag: box set

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Icehouse Commemorates 40 Years

Listen up Icehouse fans! This one’s for you.

In honour of the band’s 40-year anniversary, a brand new box set called Icehouse – The Complete Collection, drops on February 17. The 10-album set features every Icehouse album ever release, from Flowers to Icehouse – In Concert. You can get a digital copy but any real fan is going to want the digipack CDs in the deluxe slipcase. You can pre-order them now from the Icehouse online store.

In addition, Flowers will be reissued on vinyl for the first time since its 1980 release. This landmark debut features amazing tracks like “Can’t Help Myself,” “We Can Get Together,” and “Walls.” It’s pressed on 180-gram vinyl and replicates the original layout and uncoated sleeve of the original. It’s also available for pre-order.

If you prefer streaming, you’re in lucky. Icehouse have now released their entire back catalogue to leading streaming services.

And if that’s not enough Icehouse news for you, remember the band is currently on tour! If you haven’t already organised tickets, make sure you snap some up.

28 January 2017 – Taupo Amphitheatre, Taupo
29 January 2017 – Whitianga Open Air Venue, Whitianga
1 & 2 February 2017 – Crown Theatre, Perth
9 February 2017 – Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide
11 February 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Old Mount Gambier Gaol, Mt Gambier
18 February 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Country Club, Launceston
24 February 2017 – Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane
25 February 2017- Tamworth Regional Entertainment & Conference Centre, Tamworth
11 March 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Mackay Park, Bateman’s Bay
12 March 2017 – A Weekend in the Gardens, Melbourne (with James Reyne and Clare Bowditch)
17 & 18 March 2017 – Wrest Point Entertainment Centre, Hobart
25 March 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Roche Estate, Hunter Valley
1 April 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Harrigan’s Drift Inn, Jacob’s Well
22 April 2017 – Red Hot Summer Tour @ Bendigo Jockey Club, Bendigo
23 & 24 June 2017 – Enmore Theatre, Enmore

Image used with permission from Ferris Davies PRM
Image used with permission from Ferris Dav

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Q & A with Reef’s Gary Stringer

After blazing up the charts with “Put  Your Hands On” in 1997, Reef seemed to disappear from view. But now they’re back with a brand new box set and an Australian tour. I caught up with the band’s lead singer Gary Stringer to chat about those Down Under dates, the retrospective package, and the band’s next chapter.

You’re heading Down Under soon for your first tour in 12 years. Have you missed us?
For sure. Oz was a much favoured destination on the Reef whirlwind and the fact that we’ve  been asked to come back some 12 years later is just amazing.

What are your fondest memories of your last Australian visit?
The people. For example, if we mentioned surfing to someone, we’d be around their house and the garage would be swung open and we could take our pick of boards and suits. Lush. Eating pies after surfing too. Proper job.

You’ll be here for a couple of weeks. Do you have any plans to do some sightseeing?
I want to go to the free trades hall in Melbourne.

You’re touring to promote your new box set which features all your previous albums. What was it like compiling it and looking back on your body of work?
Blinding. Me and Jack [Bessant] were touring with the StringerBessant Yard album until October last year so when  the chance came to put together the box set and tour it around, it seemed just like the right time. The music has held up well. Not so sure about seeing myself as a 20-year-old in the home movie bit mind. The book and 12″ vinyl are ace.

Do you have a favourite song from your back catalogue?
I have a few favourites: “Steal Away,” “Lucky Number,” “Stone for Your Love,” “Say What You Want.”

You reformed in 2010. What inspired you to get the band back together?
Chris Gilks [Reef’s manager].

You’re currently touring at home. How does it feel to be back together, playing these songs you wrote so long ago?
It feels like a party.

You’ve got a reputation as a really dynamic live act. What do you think makes your shows so special?
Well I think you are asking the wrong fellow for this question. We give it our all. I like to get lost in the music. I also like to try and harness the energy of the audience too, you know … get it going on.

Since reforming you’ve playing some major festivals like Isle of Wight and Glastonbury, and soon Lakefest. Are you surprised that people are still interested in what you do so many years later?
Yes. We must have done something right. BBB Radio 1 still play Reef.

Releasing a box set seems a bit like closing one chapter. What does the future hold?
All being well, we start work on a 2nd StringerBessant album in October, and hopefully Dom [Greensmith, Reef drummer] will come play on it with us. Yeah man!

Catch Reef Down Under at the following shows this June.

1 June 2012 – Metropolis, Fremantle
7 June 2012 – The HiFi, Brisbane
8 June 2012 – Billboard, Melbourne
9 June 2012 – The Metro, Sydney

Image credit: Steve Gullick

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Warner Remembers the Bee Gees with Box Set Release

Warner is preparing to release Mythology, the ultimate collector’s item for Bee Gees fans. The album celebrates the brothers 50th anniversary, with songs and a visual scrapbook. mythology

This boxed set features four discs, one dedicated to each Gibb brother. Each song was handpicked by Barry, Robin, Maurice’s widow Yvonne and their children, and Andy’s daughter Peta.

“These are pretty much our personal favourites,” Barry explains in the liner notes. “This is now the Bee Gees 50th anniversary. And by the Bee Gees, I mean all four brothers.”

“I always see our songs as ‘just us brothers’ having a good time,” adds Robin. “When I look back now, it is more about the journey, not the arrival.”

Along with all the old favorites there are a few new treats for fans, including previously unreleased songs from the late brothers Maurice and Andy. The scrapbook also includes family photos, including many that have never been seen before, and tributes from such luminaries as Elton John, Brian Wilson, and Graham Nash.

Mythology hits stores on March 12.

Image source: The Brothers Gibb