“If anyone had told me back in 1989 when I first jammed with Al Britton, Lez Karski and Ace Follington, that the band we formed would still be active well into the 21st century, I would have laughed my head off and had them committed. Yet here we are, 25 years later bloodied, but unbowed.
Quite a few have passed through the ranks, some fleetingly, some incredibly hard to get rid of, but all have made contributions one way or another. If pressed as to why the band is still around, I would have to say stubbornness is a major factor, as well as a strong work ethic (we toured nationally. And I mean nationally not just major cities, right from the start) and a real commitment to playing original material.
We have done this with very little mainstream media support, but one must doff ones cap to local and street press, the ABC and Community Radio. Despite this we can still out-draw high-profile acts in many areas, a fact of which we are quite rightly proud.
The music we choose to play is tricky to get a foothold with in Australia, but we have somehow managed to stake a place in an incredibly parochial and occasionally purist scene. We enter our quarter of a century still playing at a high energy level and possibly enjoying it more than ever…who needs a hit?”
These are the words of founding member, Shane Pacey, ahead of the 25 YEARS NO HITS tour and whilst there is in fact no breakthrough commercial success, the band is without doubt an Australian musical institution and 25 years deserves to be celebrated. It’s a milestone that the band have earned with grit, determination, humour, sheer bloody talent, great music, stellar live shows – and most importantly, with the support of the many, many fans who turn out to see them, year after year.
The Bondi Cigars perform at The Caravan Club on January 31, before their set at the 2014 Blues At The Briars Festival on Saturday February 1 at the Briars Historic Homestead, Mount Martha. Tickets are still available, for to grab yours or for any other info, head straight to www.bluesatthebriars.com. For more details on the band, head to www.bondicigars.com
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