Aussie rockers Grinspoon will embark on a national 'Easy Detention' tour beginning late October, celebrating the release of their seminal albums 'Easy' and 'New Detention' on vinyl for the very first time.
Written and recorded between 1998 and 2002, 'Easy' and 'New Detention' represent a tumultuous period of development for Grinspoon heavily influenced by their gruelling North American tour supporting Anthrax."Overall, ['Easy' is] very fragmented and it's a very angry little album in many ways about our American experience," frontman Phil Jamieson told us for our June cover interview.
"I probably antagonised more than I entertained the North Americans on that 18-month tour, which was partly because they were dickheads or partly because I was, who knows. So, that was 'Easy' in a nutshell."
Where 'Easy' earned Grinspoon wider industry recognition/ infamy, 'New Detention', released in 2002, propelled them from suburban grunge outfit to certified rock band.
"We ended up writing 50 songs for 'New Detention', demoing and demoing and demoing. . . it was a long, drawn-out process of finding the songs," Phil says.
With 'Easy' and 'New Detention' to be released on vinyl, Phil along with guitarist Pat Davern, bassist Joe Hansen and drummer Kristian Hopes will tour nationally October-November with shows scheduled in Gold Coast, Hobart, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Sydney, Newcastle and Perth.
"We're delighted to be hitting the road again later this year, I'm so enjoying putting together the set list for these shows," Jamieson says. "We'll be throwing in some songs we've never played live, believe it or not."
As for the secret to the band's longevity? "Absence makes the heart grow fonder and familiarity breeds contempt, so I think one of the smartest things we did in 2013 was go away," Phil laughs.
"We'd been ubiquitous on the fest scene since 2000, even if you didn't want to see us at a festival, you were probably lining up for MGMT at Splendour and there we were!
"It was very healthy to take a break from touring and writing, but that's not a secret, a lot of bands have done that.
"We came back in 2017 and did our 'Guide To Better Living' tour and when we came back, we didn't realise the affection the Australian public had for the band, and that was overwhelming and very assuring and felt like a very nice warm hug.
"So from that it made us take the group a little more seriously and has made sure we are not only delivering the best shows we've ever done, but better than the '90s; arguably the '90s are a little bit patchy for us!"
Joining the tour will be Melbourne punks Private Function and Byron Bay rockers Cupid & The Stupids.
'Easy' and 'New Detention' will be released on vinyl 8 September, 2023. Pre-order it.
Tickets on sale from 9am (local time) on 2 June.
Grinspoon 2023 Tour Dates
Sun 29 Oct - Miami Marketta Laneway (Gold Coast)* sold outFri 3 Nov - City Hall (Hobart)* final tickets
Mon 6 Nov - Forum Melbourne* sold out
Fri 10 Nov - The Fortitude Music Hall (Brisbane)* sold out
Sat 11 Nov - Hindley Street Music Hall (Adelaide)* sold out
Fri 17 Nov - Enmore Theatre (Sydney)* sold out
Sat 18 Nov - NEX (Newcastle)* final tickets
Thu 23 Nov - Astor Theatre (Perth)* new show
Fri 24 Nov - Astor Theatre (Perth)* sold out
Fri 22 Dec - Forum Melbourne* new show
Sat 23 Dec - Adelaide Entertainment Centre* new show
