With or without a Storm, Altona can expect to be Dancing down at Logan Reserve on February 9th, when the Summer Sounds concert series welcomes Australian music icons, Boom Crash Opera to the stage. After almost 35 years in the industry, and countless smash hits, the seasoned performers know how to work a crowd.
When original lead singer, Dale Ryder moved on in 2016, the remaining band members knew exactly who to call upon to fill the void – Andrew De Silva.
De Silva has been around almost as long as the band themselves. Starting out as one part of Aria Award winning Melbourne-based R&B group, CDB, back in 1991. Health issues saw the young singer take a step back from the industry, only to return with a vengeance in 2012, as winner of Australia’s Got Talent. Life as a solo artist saw De Silva tour the country alongside Mariah Carey, as well as headlining a Prince Tribute Show – The Purple Revolution.
With so much experience, it is little wonder the band were so keen to lock down their new front man. De Silva’s versatility finds him working simultaneously – slipping seamlessly between CDB, The Purple Revolution and Boom Crash Opera. With a passion for pop, R&B, soul, funk and rock – it really is a case of De Silva having his cake and eating it too, “Music is music. It’s a feeling – an expression – and expressions aren’t always the same.”
De Silva attributes the band’s ongoing success to one simple thing – great music, “That catalogue is always going to be there . . . when people see live shows of bands from the 80’s and 90’s, they realise they could be witnessing a dying art form – that raw entertainment.”
With no need for special effects, or countless costume changes, Boom Crash Opera are happy to take the audience on a journey back to simpler times – offering a little nostalgia, in a world that is endlessly surging forward. Regardless of the ever-evolving music industry, these Aussie legends are still thoroughly enjoying what they do, “the passion is still there and the songs are there – if a band doesn’t have passion, they’ve lost it.” It’s clear, listening to De Silva talk, that there is no passion lost here.
With a reputation for experimentation, Boom Crash Opera are enjoying what De Silva offers – encouraging him to ‘bring that funk.’ “The guys realise that I come with history . . . They’ve been really respectful of me, which is a beautiful thing – that’s why it’s been working, I think.” And working, it is!
Hobsons Bay continues to attract fantastic live entertainers to the region, providing locals and visitors alike, with an outstanding program of free summer entertainment. So, ‘Get Out of the House’ on February 9 and be ready for a brilliant evening.
Check out the full Summer Events schedule at https://www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au.
Melissa Longo
*Photos provided by Penney & Logan and InkCloud
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