ICEHOUSE is excited to announce that the band’s good friends Eskimo Joe will be joining them for the rescheduled Great Southern Land concerts.
At Melbourne’s Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Saturday February 11, ICEHOUSE and Eskimo Joe will welcome iconic Australian indie darlings Frente and the anthemic alt-rock quartet Motor Ace as part of the line-up while Blues and Soul powerhouse Karen Lee Andrews opens the show at Brisbane’s Riverstage on Saturday February 18.
ICEHOUSE: Great Southern Land – The Concert Series
- Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne
- Saturday February 11, 2023
- ICEHOUSE
- Special Guests Eskimo Joe + Frente + Motor Ace
- Brisbane Riverstage, Brisbane
- Saturday February 18, 2023
- ICEHOUSE
- Special Guests Eskimo Joe + Karen Lee Andrews
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“After what has been a very concerning few months since I contracted Covid-19 and lost my ability to sing for several weeks, I’m pleased to say that my voice has returned,” says Iva Davies.
“The ICEHOUSE band members and I are looking forward to performing in Melbourne and Brisbane in February with such special guest artists. We thank the thousands of ticket holders who retained their tickets for these shows for having faith in us. These will be exhilarating shows for us all.”
A welcome addition to the bill, Eskimo Joe’s storied career has seen them bring home 3 International Song-writing Awards, 8 ARIAs and 11 WAMi Awards, with 11 of their songs featuring in Triple J’s Hottest 100 countdown including ‘Black Fingernails, Red Wine’ which landed them in 2nd place.
Fresh from celebrating the 30th anniversary of their era-defining record ‘Marvin the Album’ and its string of hits including ‘Ordinary Angels’, ‘Accidentally Kelly Street’ and ‘Labour of Love’, Frente join the Melbourne line-up alongside Motor Ace who also returned to the live scene in 2022 celebrating their own anniversary, 20 years on from the release of their debut record ‘Five Star Laundry’, the landmark album that catapulted them on to the global music scene.
And finally, a unique and gifted performer with a deep and undeniably soulful voice Karen Lee Andrews and her band will open the show at the Brisbane Riverstage, performing a selection of her blues-infused rock anthems and heartrending soul numbers.
Originally scheduled for East Coast performances at the end of 2022, the ICEHOUSE Great Southern Land concerts had to be postponed to 2023 due to Iva Davies contracting Covid-19.
The Melbourne concert has been rescheduled to Saturday February 11, 2023, and the Brisbane show rescheduled for Saturday February 18. Original ticket purchases will be valid for the new date without the need for exchange.
‘Great Southern Land’ was first released in August 1982 as the lead single from ICEHOUSE’s multi-platinum second studio album, ‘Primitive Man’. The song debuted at #5 on the Australian Singles Chart and made its debut on triple j (2JJJ as it was known then).
‘Great Southern Land’ has been a part of almost every Australian’s summer soundtrack for the past 40 years and in 2014, it was inducted into the National Film and Sound Archive’s Sounds of Australia registry. It’s also been remixed a number of times, most notably Bill Laswell’s The Great Southern Mix, clocking in at almost 16 minutes, and the Byrralku Dhangudha remix from 1994 which features Indigenous musicians playing and singing the chorus in their own language. Its message is as current and relevant today as it was when it first appeared.
The writing of Great Southern Land was triggered when Iva became incredibly homesick during the first ICEHOUSE overseas concert tour.
“I recall the lightbulb moment when I was flying from east coast Australia to the west, falling asleep over inland desert and waking several hours later still over desert — for the first time, the continent’s vastness really hit home,” he said.
For complete tour, ticket and VIP Experience information, visit: livenation.com.au.
