Following the news Eskimo Joe will return to Perth for the biggest outdoor rock concert homecoming of the year with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra this December, the excitement continues with the release of the album Live At The Perth Concert Hall.

To celebrate their 21st anniversary as a band, Fremantle trio Eskimo Joe embarked on one of their most rewarding projects to date: reimagining key moments from their rich catalogue for performances backed by the country’s finest orchestras. Eskimo Joe frontman Kav Temperley holds clear memories of stepping on stage for the first of these orchestral shows, performing with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in front of a sold-out audience in February 2018. 

“The first time we stepped on to the stage at the Perth Concert Hall and sang with the full weight of the orchestra behind us, it was near impossible to wipe the smiles off our faces,” Kav says. “To see and hear our songs reimagined into orchestral form was a truly unique way to be able to reflect on a career that has taken us from jamming in our bedrooms to playing our music internationally.” 

Eskimo Joe & WASO’s Live At The Perth Concert Hall is set to be released on CD and digital services on Friday 30 August, providing fans the chance to hear 13 songs recorded on the special evening. Months spent subtly modifying arrangements paid off in spades for the band, with tracks revealing exciting new facets in their orchestral forms.

“Reimagining our songs as orchestral pieces was such a uniquely inspiring undertaking,” guitarist Stu MacLeod says. “The arrangements came up beautifully. Songs like Running Out Of Needs, Comfort You and Childhood Behaviour, which may have been previously overlooked as album highlights, took centre stage, with incredibly rich dynamics and exciting crescendos.” 

Conducting the performances was award-winning composer Iain Grandage, who has previously worked with artists including the late Dr G Yunupingu, Kate Miller-Heidke and Tim Minchin. Despite hours of rehearsals with WASO, Eskimo Joe guitarist Joel Quartermain admits a tense energy permeated the performance.“In spite of being on stage with a symphony orchestra full of incredibly talented musicians and Iain Grandage providing the musical link between orchestra and band, it felt like it could all fall apart at any stage,” Joel says. “I believe that visceral feeling, the adrenaline that charged the band and the elation of actually pulling off a great performance, can all be heard on this album. We're very excited to share it with you.”

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For WASO’s Special and Commercial Programs Manager Natalie De Biasi, the concert was a dream project, “the orchestra felt proud to play a part in revealing ‘the Eskies’ in all their orchestral glory. We’re thrilled that Eskimo Joe fans across the country and around the world can now relive these magical nights at Perth Concert Hall.”

Eskimo Joe’s achievements over the past 21 years include an impressive 35 ARIA Award nominations and sales in excess of 750,000 albums, but the band is unified in naming Live At The Perth Concert Hall one of their favourite moments to date.“We feel so privileged to have had the chance to showcase our songs like this and it will remain, for years to come, one of the highlights of our career,” Kav says. 

I can't wait to have this album in my hands,” Stu adds. “It's one of my favourite projects we've ever worked on and I'm super proud of it.”  

Live At The Perth Concert Hall tracklisting:

  1. Comfort You
  2. New York
  3. Older Than You 
  4. Planet Earth
  5. Liar
  6. Come Down
  7. From The Sea
  8. Breaking Up
  9. Childhood Behaviour
  10. Running Out Of Needs
  11. Black Fingernails Red Wine
  12. Foreign Land
  13. Sky’s On Fire

Live At The Perth Concert Hall is available Friday 30 August and available for PRE-ORDER NOW

Don’t miss the one night only concert reunion this December!

Eskimo Joe with WASO
Sunday 1 December – 5:00pm
Kings Park and Botanic Garden

Tickets at https://www.waso.com.au/concerts-tickets/whats-on/concert/eskimo-joe

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