The Steve Hillage Band
Gong Unconvention Amsterdam 2006
G-Wave/Gonzo Multimedia
2012
I bet most of you will agree that watching a live show on a DVD is better than just listening to it… especially if the show has something to offer stylistically. The Gong Family Unconvention at the Melkweg club in Amsterdam in November 2006 was a unique three-day event in which all the original members of the legendary psychedelic band Gong came together and performed their own individual sets.
Guitarist Steve Hillage was part of the original Gong line-up of 1973-75, so he felt right to perform some of his own songs from his 70s solo albums. Of course Steve has also been member of Arzachel, Khan, Mirror System, National Health & System 7. Along with Steve on stage are his long-time musical partner Miquette Giraudy on synthesisers, Gong’s bass player Mike Howlett who played on Steve’s “Fish Rising” album in 1975 and Gong’s drummer Chris Taylor who started playing with the band in the 1990s. There’s a guest appearance by Basil Brooks on synth, who played in Steve’s band in the ‘70s.
The CD has 4 exclusive bonus tracks from Steve’s 1970’s back-catalogue. The songs: “Palm Trees”, “Unzipping the Zype” & “Healing Feeling” were recorded live at Amsterdam’s Sonesta Koepelkerk on Dec 14th 1979 just a few days before the 1970’s Steve Hillage Band stopped touring. The track “Solar Music Suite” is an early version of one of Steve’s “Fish Rising” classics performed before it was recorded with the band Gong. Those 4 bonus tracks can only be found on the CD and not on the DVD though.
The bonus material on the DVD is an extensive interview with Steve and Miquette, and background clips from the Gong Melkweg event. The audio for the CD and DVD was mixed by Steve in his A-Wave Studio. The video was edited and authored by long-time friend and Gong family member Harry Williamson in his Spring Studio in Melbourne Australia. The artwork was created by Z3 who has also done the artwork for Steve and Miquette’s dance music project System 7.
Both the CD and the DVD are very enjoyable… offering a wonderful visual & audio experience of the show that took place almost 6 years ago. Moreover, this re-release, with the support of Gonzo Multimedia, will give a better distribution to all the territories for the band.
Guitarist Steve Hillage was part of the original Gong line-up of 1973-75, so he felt right to perform some of his own songs from his 70s solo albums. Of course Steve has also been member of Arzachel, Khan, Mirror System, National Health & System 7. Along with Steve on stage are his long-time musical partner Miquette Giraudy on synthesisers, Gong’s bass player Mike Howlett who played on Steve’s “Fish Rising” album in 1975 and Gong’s drummer Chris Taylor who started playing with the band in the 1990s. There’s a guest appearance by Basil Brooks on synth, who played in Steve’s band in the ‘70s.
The CD has 4 exclusive bonus tracks from Steve’s 1970’s back-catalogue. The songs: “Palm Trees”, “Unzipping the Zype” & “Healing Feeling” were recorded live at Amsterdam’s Sonesta Koepelkerk on Dec 14th 1979 just a few days before the 1970’s Steve Hillage Band stopped touring. The track “Solar Music Suite” is an early version of one of Steve’s “Fish Rising” classics performed before it was recorded with the band Gong. Those 4 bonus tracks can only be found on the CD and not on the DVD though.
The bonus material on the DVD is an extensive interview with Steve and Miquette, and background clips from the Gong Melkweg event. The audio for the CD and DVD was mixed by Steve in his A-Wave Studio. The video was edited and authored by long-time friend and Gong family member Harry Williamson in his Spring Studio in Melbourne Australia. The artwork was created by Z3 who has also done the artwork for Steve and Miquette’s dance music project System 7.
Both the CD and the DVD are very enjoyable… offering a wonderful visual & audio experience of the show that took place almost 6 years ago. Moreover, this re-release, with the support of Gonzo Multimedia, will give a better distribution to all the territories for the band.