By Abbey Cannan
After sellout shows across the country, Pseudo Echo is set to take Noosa locals to funkytown when they bring their Ultimate tour to The J Noosa on 15 April.
The tour coincides with the release of the Ultimate double album and DVD, chronicling their expansive, 40-year music career.
The Ultimate tour features a six-piece line-up, fronted by founding member Brian Canham (vocals, guitar, producer/writer).
Brian said the Noosa audience can expect to see a high-energy, retro show.
“It’s all our classic material. We try to scope across the whole catalog to grab bits from each album. We’ve got plenty of energy on stage. It’s something that I always look forward to,” he said.
Pseudo Echo pioneered the 80s with their avant-garde look and electro sound, introducing audiences to a new sound in an era of pub rock.
Brian said he’s always discovering new bands and artists who are continuing to create new sounds.
“I recently went and checked out Tame Impala and I love what they do,” he said. “I can hear a bit of an 80s influence in there and I do like that.
“The bands that are exploring new sounds and new ways of arranging material, I’m always impressed with that. They move away from the verse, chorus, verse, chorus, and add surprise elements in. My taste is so eclectic, it’s not funny. They’re all peculiar sorts of artists that aren’t pop artists. I hardly ever listen to pop music. Maybe because it’s something that I do for my work.”
Making history along the way, Pseudo Echo became the first unrecorded band to appear on the legendary Australian music show, Countdown.
Following the release of gold and platinum albums Autumnal Park and Love An Adventure, the band achieved world-wide success with the release of their international hit Funkytown, establishing themselves as one of the most iconic, multi-award-winning bands in the country.
As a 25-year-old, Funkytown is a childhood favourite from the classic movie Shrek, and Brian didn’t seem to mind.
“It’s a nice connection we make with the younger generation,” he said.
“We love when people can realise that it’s us and come and watch our shows. It’s a real score for us.”
Faithful to the original sound, the band will perform a hit-filled set, including classics from the Autumnal Park and Love An Adventure albums.
Also, for the first time since the 80s, the band will be performing feature tracks from the controversial, yet much loved stadium rock Race album.
With decades of experience, Brian has watched the way the music industry has changed over time, starting out selling their music through records and CDs, and now the band has millions of listeners on streaming services.
“I think that streaming is an incredible breakthrough, but there’s always two sides to a coin,” he said.
“You have to think of it from the business point of view as an artist, and then the pleasure point of view from the listener. They’re quite different view points. Myself, I can see the massive advantage of streaming music because I listen to so much more music than I ever did, prior to streaming. I love the freedom of being able to try different music out. But, sadly it has an impact on the livelihood of many musicians because the artist sees a fraction of revenue compared to when they used to sell a physical CD or album.
“You can’t fight technology. You can’t fight progression. You just have to deal with it and work out how it works in with what you do to make a living. I’m never going to fight against it. I embrace the technology.”
To see Pseudo Echo bring their Ultimate tour to The J Noosa on 15 April visit thej.com.au/pseudo-echo/
