The Hoodoo Gurus are kicking off the new year by bringing their show ‘Back to the Stoneage’ to Geelong for one night only.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of their first album, the Australian rock band will play 1984’s Stoneage Romeos in its entirety alongside their other hits at Deakin University’s Costa Hall on January 23.
Dave Faulkner formed the band in 1981 and said he was looking forward to returning to Geelong with a “power-packed show”.
“We just come alive on stage as people and that’s what we’ve always done, it’s what we love to do and is something that is still our passion,” he said.
“When you go out on stage, it’s almost like being set free. That’s a part of your psyche that you don’t get to indulge in often, and it’s kept locked up.
“This time, we get the chance to play the more obscure songs that we don’t get to play so often, and some of our personal favourites are the more ugly songs that other people may not like to hear.
“‘In the Echo Chamber’ is a song we love playing because… it’s very psychedelic and slow and obnoxious. It goes into weird chords that jar people, so we like that ugliness.
“It’s a bit like food; you got to have your veggies before you can have your ice cream. So for us, that song is ice cream, but for other people it might be more like cauliflower or broccoli.”
Faulkner said the Hoodoo Gurus had experienced changes over 40 years, including a split in 1998 before the band reformed in 2003.
“How many young fans there are is something we didn’t expect, and they’re all singing along and knowing the words to all our songs, not just the obvious ones,” he said.
“We haven’t lost anything other than our boyish good looks, but we weren’t known as that sort of band. We weren’t sold on our image but more on our music and the energy we put out and that’s still true.”
Visit Geelong Arts Centre’s website for more information and tickets.
