Tonight at the Royal Oak, Adelaide veteran songster Sean Kemp will open for music legend Jon Toogood of Shihad/Pacifier fame.

With doors open from 7pm, it’s a free gig showcasing the work of Toogood, who is an award winning musician, multi-instrumentalist, host of Planet Of Sound on Radio Hauraki, mentor and theatre performer.

Jon will play some of his favourite songs solo and acoustically with Sean Kemp supporting him.

Sean says he is stoked to be sharing a stage with the New Zealander superstar and will be playing a range of his best songs to complement the evening.

“Tonight, I’ll be playing an original set of songs which is kind of rare at the Oak because musicians that perform there usually play covers, which is great but it’s also a nice change to have an original night of music at this amazing North Adelaide venue. Nothing beats doing an international support show,” he says.

Jon Toogood is one of Sean’s influences and has inspired him (and his brother) in many ways.

“Jon Toogood is one of my heroes! Have seen his band Shihad many times and I actually own every album they’ve ever made. Back in the day, we’d go to all of their shows, even when they played in Victor Harbor,” he says.

“They introduced me to one of my other favourite bands, Weta, also from New Zealand. One time at Victor, we couldn’t find Drew, my brother (who also plays in my acoustic act). After a couple of hours, I asked the security to let me go backstage for a look. We found him drinking beers with Shihad.”

Sean reckons the lineup and the venue will make tonight at the Royal Oak a gig not to be missed.

“It’ll be amazing as Jon is a total legend, one of the great, classic songwriters penning tunes like ‘My Mind Sedate’, ‘The General Electric’ and ‘Home Again’. Anyone that has heard him sing or seen his band Shihad play will testify that Jon Toogood is one of the best and he’s also a really nice person,” he says.

“And the décor at the Royal Oak is something to behold. I love playing there. My last gig there with Thirsty Merc was magical. Can’t wait to sing on that stage tonight; fantastic acoustics.”

Coming up after tonight, Sean will resume rehearsals with his band Surviving Sharks ahead of an upcoming festival and future shows.

“I’ll be returning to my band ‘Surviving Sharks’ to perform at a festival in October but I’d really like to knuckle down and record some of my songs at Mixmasters Studio with my producer, who I feel I haven’t seen in a long time. Saying that, acoustic gigs pop up all the time and I’d really like to thank Noble Events and Touring for believing in my music and giving me all these amazing support shows. I’m a lucky man.”

By Libby Parker
Photo supplied