| Forty years on, and with their messages of positive engagement in Indigenous rights and environmental protection more relevant than ever, GOANNA have today announced an extensive national tour to commemorate and celebrate 40 years of their acclaimed, multi-platinum debut album Spirit of Place and the album’s truly iconic first single Solid Rock. They have announced the tour following a celebratory performance at WOMADelaide over the weekend and are one show down in a three-show run as special guests of old mates Midnight Oil on their farewell tour. These Goanna shows are the group’s first full-band shows in over 20 years. The 40th Anniversary tour will kick off in June and go through to December. It will take in all capital cities and major regions, from the Top End to Tassie – currently around 25 shows with more to be added. In the early ‘80s, during Australian rock’s golden age, Goanna came out of Victoria’s surf coast and helped forge a new national identity. Before Midnight Oil and Paul Kelly addressed similar issues, the iconic Solid Rock stoked a fire for Indigenous rights that hasn’t gone out, while the latter anthem Let The Franklin Flow was a call to arms for the emerging environmental movement. Soulful, lyrical, brimming with musicality and creative volatility, Goanna mixed classic folk song craft with spirited and rootsy rocking, helping to establish a musical thread that remains vital and ubiquitous in Australian music today. In 2022, the core trio and ever-beating heart of Goanna – Shane Howard, Rose Bygrave, and Marcia Howard – together with Spirit of Place guitarist Graham Davidge and several special guests, embark on a new journey, paying homage to their classic songs and reigniting the Goanna spirit once more. |
