Geoffrey O’Connor Shares I Love What We Do (Live At Norla Dome) + Concert Film For Christmas
by Dinosaur City Records · SCOOPNaarm/Melbourne suave art-pop savant Geoffrey O’Connor embraces the gift of giving this season, sharing Love What We Do (Live at Norla Dome) this Christmas (Thursday, December 25) via Dinosaur City Records.
Geoffrey’s latest offering comprises ten tracks from his fourth studio album (and first for Dinosaur City), I Love What We Do. It was recorded live at Norla Dome (of course), in Docklands, and since Geoffrey was so enamoured with the place that he filmed the whole thing, the entire concert will also be available to view on YouTube.
Released on Valentine’s Day this year, I Love What We Do was celebrated by Rolling Stone AU, The Big Issue, RUSSH, Beat, The Sydney Morning Herald, and Double J, with ABC praising O’Connor’s ability to “render heartbreak and love anew.” Hailed as his “sunniest” and most collaborative work to date, the studio album features harp, flute, singing saw, cello, viola, violin, choral harmonies, and duet vocals (starring Emma Russack and Sarah Mary Chadwick, among others).
In contrast, this live edition is sparse and stripped-back – just Geoff, a nylon string guitar, a room microphone capturing the performance, and the occasional audible footsteps of strangers wandering through the giant Norla Dome (an absurd 100-year-old gymnasium originally built for seafarers). For two songs, he is joined by Hank Clifton-Williamson on flute.
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
Geoffrey shares, “I dread Christmas. I dread the sun, the decorations, the laughter on the streets, the whole thing. To console myself, I recorded a stripped back, unamplified live version of the album.
I first got the idea to record in the Norla Dome when I was filming a music video for someone there earlier in the year. I noticed that when you stand in the centre, your own voice becomes completely incomprehensible, and when you stand near the wall, it has the strangest and most beautiful acoustics I’ve ever heard.
The Norla Dome is part of Mission to Seafarers, and the whole complex stands like a bizarre relic of a future that never arrived, which is exactly where I want my music to be. When we shot it, there were people wandering in and you can hear their footsteps creeping in and out on the recordings, along with the creepy Docklands ambience.”
Setting aside his holiday cynicism to embrace the festive tradition of giving, Geoffrey has made I Love What We Do (Live at Norla Dome) available to purchase as a ‘name your own price’ download (starting from $1) on Bandcamp. It is also available on Nina Protocol and across all streaming platforms.
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading