Hi Kids,
It's been a while since I updated this lovely blog... I have moved to London and am now writing for the Australian Times - a free tube paper. They got me to do an interview and review with Gurrumul which you can check out below.
Cheers.
Gurrumul Finds New Territory.
By VIVIENNE HILL
FOR a blind and extremely shy, non-English speaking Aboriginal to travel all the way to Europe to share his story with the world, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunipingu deserves everything the world has to offer.
The Australian Aboriginal artist formerly of Yothu Yindi fame conquered the ARIA Awards last year, winning Best World Music Album and Best Independent Release and has excelled himself with a trail of other awards and accolades along the way.
With the aid of Gurrumul’s translator - manager and close friend Michael Hohnen - The Australian Times was able to get an insight into the journey that brought him to the other side of the world, and a glimpse into the mind of one of Australia’s most unique artists.
Michael Hohnen has worked with Gurrumul for many years and believes people are drawn to him as an artist purely because of his distinctive musical qualities. “After speaking to a lot of people I have found that when they put his music on, they suddenly say, ‘wow I love that beautiful sound and voice’,” he said.
“We have recorded it acoustically and have made it sound really beautiful, warm and as approachable as possible. People don’t realise that Gurrumul is blind if they hear his music for the first time, they just want to go and buy the album.”
Gurrumul’s music is almost solely sung in the Yolngu dialect and his lyrics centre on his life story, family and experiences whilst growing up on Elcho Island, off the coast of Arnhem Land, Northern Australia.
Michael said his limited English skills add to his introverted temperament.
“He is really good at understanding what people are talking about in English,” he said.
“If he listened to this interview he would understand quite a bit of it but he would fall apart if you asked him to speak. His confidence speaking English in public is non-existent.”
Gurrumul’s musical popularity has surpassed his acute shyness and Michael said he has come a long way from his performances with Yothu Yindi.
“He has come into his own. He was always treated as a talented backing singer, keyboardist, guitarist, and drummer,” he said.
“We explained to him that people weren’t hearing who he really was and how special his voice sounds. I don’t think he had much faith because he told me that he liked his music but he didn’t think other people would like it because it was so stripped back compared to anything he had done before.”
Gurrumul’s calculations for the success of his solo career have excelled all of his predictions.
The release of his first solo album in Europe has been received to great acclaim reaching the second spot on the album charts in Germany and achieving great success in a number of other countries.
“It’s sort of happening country by country,” said Michael.
“Gurrumul is very private and doesn’t have much to do with anyone that we deal with let alone the press but he does respond to key people. He has a unique intuition for people’s personalities.
He can pick something up about a person early on. He knows how many people are in a room and what sort of people they are straight away.”
Gurrumul shows are far removed from a common touring artist, as he uses his instincts to gauge the crowd when on stage.
“He knows how popular he is by how big the crowd sounds,” said Michael.
“There is not a lot of audience engagement but what happens is that people just sit, glued to Gurrumul and watch for any tiny little things that he does. We also have a camera on him so even if he is sitting quite a way away you can see any subtle expression that he has.
In a strange way it is like going to see an opera singer, it is curious and emotional throughout the whole performance but you are just hearing someone sing ‘Arias from Ahrnem Land’ instead.”
Geoffrey ‘Gurrumul’ Yunupingu
Gurrumul Review 8th November @ The O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
By VIVIENNE HILL
When the Gurrumul crowd members were asked to take a seat instead of squeeze into an O2 Empire mosh pit, it sure seemed they were destined to witness an awe-inspiring event.
German/Australian trio Worldfly warmed up the crowd, lead Michael Maher taking charge on guitar and piano.
It’s rare to see a box drum and a cello fused together but these three seemed to pull it off seamlessly.
As Gurrumul prepared to take the stage, an audiovisual presentation from the depths of the Northern Territory Arnhem Land gave an insight into Gurrumul’s home and family history.
What followed was an extremely humbling experience.
,Gurrumul’s tales about animals, his ancestry and nature were accompanied by a string quartet.
Of particular note were his songs ‘Bapa’ and the finale ‘Gurrumul a History: I was born Blind’
Gurrumul’s voice had a timbre that emanated an ethereal inner peace.
The audience continued to marvel at him throughout the show, breaking their silence only to clap vigorously.
His close friend and double bass player Michael Hohnen provided banter between songs, with shy Gurrumul using his voice for singing alone.
The multimedia display with English translations of the Yolngu dialects magnified the meaning of his soulful words.
Some light comic relief was provided when the band flipped their instruments upside down and played them clumsily in reverse; an almost necessary break to the trance Gurrumul’s voice created. As Gurrumul prepared to take the stage
There is no doubt this man has a unique musical quality.
He is an Australian gem, helping to share Aboriginal culture with the rest of the world.
