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This January, Dan Parsons and Steve Grady embark upon 50 First Dates, a road trip with a difference which will see the pair abandon the typical hipster haunts in favour of lesser known halls and public bars in 50 of Australia's more mysterious and far flung towns.
50 First Dates is not just about playing shows and finding fans, it's about discovering the nooks and crannies of life, the failures that are starkly presented to you at the very moment they occur and firewalking, time to think about things on that long drive after a show. Bands will often drive 10 hours between capital cities to play a show, but to drive 10 hours due west to Cunnamulla, half way to the dead centre of Australia, well, to do that you have to be looking for something more.
While the tour is called 50 First Dates, and both artists involved have released their debut albums in 2010, this is far from the first time Parsons and Grady have found themselves working together. They met at university, both turning up to a band rehearsal with acoustics at which point Dan was shunted to electric. Since then they have been strong influences on each other's music - Parsons teaching Grady finger style guitar and getting him into country music while Grady introduced Dan to pop artists that had been previously outside his sphere of influence.
The eventual conclusion has been a role reversal with Dan's debut album Firestarter being recorded with producer John Castle (Washington, The Bamboos) and The Boat People's James O'Brien and, thus is steeped in sounds much closer to Death Cab than ‘Big Yellow Taxi’.
Meanwhile Steve recorded his debut, Youth Skin (out January) with producer Shane Nicholson (himself a convert from indie rock to the country/roots landscape) with backing vocals from musical/life collaborator Kasey Chambers.
Steve and Dan have not only influenced each other musically, but also have also found themselves discovering books at similar times - books such as On the Road which played no small part in prompting the pair to play such a large run of regional shows. While Steve is the instigator of this, he is quick to acknowledge he sees Dan as the Dean Moriarty of the pair.
Parsons and Grady both admit memories of disastrous first dates in their personal lives, allegedly driven by self sabotage via intoxication, so it is perhaps surprising they have chosen to subject themselves to 50 of them. On closer inspection though, it is in fact the potential for disaster, and the vertigo that causes making your life more difficult to appear so attractive, that led them to embark upon such a challenge.
50 FIRST DATES TOUR
DAN PARSONS & STEVE GRADY
FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT OF DATES
...FINAL DATES TO BE ANNOUCED EARLY JANUARY
JANUARY
Thursday 6 | The Joynt, Brisbane
Free show
Saturday 8 | Club Hotel, Glen Innes
Free show
Sunday 9 | Tenterfield Tavern, Tenterfield
Free show
Thursday 13 | Imperial Hotel, Gatton
Free show
Saturday 15 Carrolee Hotel, Kingaroy
Free show
Sunday 16 | Billy’s Hotel | Gympie
Free show
Thursday 20 | Country Life Hotel, Kin Kin
Free show
Friday 21 | Commercial Hotel, Biloela
Free show
Saturday 22 | Albert Hotel, Monto
Free show
Wednesday 26 | Australia Day Event, Mt Morgan
Free show
Friday 28 | Lucky Australian, Mackay
Free show
Saturday 29 | Nebo Hotel, Nebo
Free show
FEBRUARY
Friday 4 | Cobb & Co Hotel, St George
Free show
Saturday 5 | Cunnamulla Hotel, Cunnamulla
Free show
Thursday 10 | Post Office Hotel, Moree
Free show
Friday 11 | Tattersalls Hotel, Narrabi
Free show
Saturday 12 | Shamrock Hotel, Muswellbrooke
Free show
Sunday 13 | Longyard Hotel, Tamworth
Free show
Wednesday 16 | Brass Monkey, Cronulla
Tix: $7 pre www.gobookem.com / $10 door
Thursday 17 | Lizottes, Central Coast
Tix: $8 pre www.gobookem.com / $12 door
Friday 18 | Oriental Hotel, Springwood
Free show
Saturday 19 | Clarendon Guesthouse, Katoomba
Tix: $15 door
Sunday 20 | Fitzroy Hotel, Windsor
Free show
Wednesday 23 | Pot Belly Bar, Canberra
Free show
Thursday 24 | Romano’s Hotel, Wagga Wagga
Free show
MARCH
Thursday 3 | Jack Ryan’s Irish Pub, Sale
Free show
Friday 4 | Kay St, Traralgon
Tix: $8 pre www.gobookem.com / $10 door
Friday 11 | Barwon Club, Geelong
Tix: $8 pre www.gobookem.com / $10 door
Saturday 12 | Baby Black Café, Bacchus March
Tix: $7 pre www.gobookem.com / $10 door
Sunday 13 | Great Ocean Hotel, Apollo Bay
Free show
Thursday 24 | Armidale Club, Armidale
Free show
Friday 25 | Tatts Hotel, Lismore
Free show
A limited run, collaborative CD will be available at the shows and will, despite their previous involvement in each other's projects, be the first time that Parsons and Grady have released something together.
