After a jam-packed six years together, The Good Ship have made the decision to chart their journey's end marked by two farewell shows.
The Good Ship is a dynamic septet from Brisbane with a rich, musical history including 3 albums, 10 singles and more than 150 shows. The band are known for having developed their own genre, PoCoFoCa – porno-country-folk-cabaret, and have explored this theme in songs such as: '6000 Cocks', 'These Are A Few Of My Favourite Flings' and 'Don't Kiss Me With Your Lips'.
{youtube}DdK7aVxzAsU{/youtube}
John Meyer, Geoff Wilson, Brett Harris, Janey Mac, Kat Cooke, James Lees and Kat Ogivlie are the seven, talented performers that make up The Good Ship and who have all mutually and amicably decided to call it a day. “Look, there was no big hissy-fit. There was no massive tantrum. There was no Fleetwood Mac-style complications in the band. It was much simpler than all that,” begins James Lees.
“It was just about recognising that a lot of things in life have a beginning, a middle and an end. Things start and things finish. After making the decision to discontinue as a band, The Good Ship decided it would only be right to have a farewell show. “We had to make a decision to do a farewell show at all and it was the unanimous decision that we absolutely had to [do it] to finish off ... It would just feel really unresolved and it would just be a snub to the audience to not do that.”
{youtube}_oXKKgT3n9A{/youtube}
Dubbed 'La Petite Morte', the name of The Good Ship's farewell show is a typical double entendre, which says a lot about the show. “In The Good Ship we have a long tradition of double entendres – I guess this fits the bill. It is French of course ... It's also got to do with death a little bit. And it feels like the band is sort of a little death to all of us. But it has another quite different meaning as well. In French, 'la petite morte' means orgasm ... So there's a good-old Good Ship double entendre for you.”
James describes the two farewell shows as the biggest and best Good Ship shows yet. “We're looking at having a few, special guests, who we have worked with in the past, join us on stage, and maybe a slightly different kind of setlist to maybe play a few songs that we've rarely played or maybe never played – just to acknowledge every facet of the band.”
One of the bands joining them on stage are The Bon Scotts. “They're great friends of ours and they're a band that we love. We've done many many gigs with them,” James says. “I feel like both of our bands have really complemented each other a little bit when we've played on the same bill [in the past].”
{youtube}ozZIaLw5gts{/youtube}
The Good Ship haven't spent too much time thinking about life after the band. “It's not something we've discussed so much because I think we're just really focused on the rest of the time that we've got together, and we love being together, so we're just going to try and enjoy and make the most of the time that we've got as we wind the project up.”
The Good Ship have put a lot of work into this show, so it is as satisfying for not only themselves, but also the audience. “I want them to feel that we've acknowledged their love and support of us, that's how I'd like them to feel. I'm sure, for the people who really love the band, it's going to be quite a bittersweet experience, and for us as well, so I guess we'll be sharing that with the audience.”
The Good Ship say farewell at The Zoo, 23 May.
