Boy & Bear Regional Victoria Tour Diary

So it’s time to go back on the road as we embark on our first regional tour in some years…

After meeting at our lock-up and rehearsal studio in Marrickville, Sydney, we loaded the van with all our gear and headed to the airport.

It was nice to see all the crew again and meet some new team members.

We flew to Melbourne and stayed at the airport overnight before driving to Castlemaine the next day for the first show of the tour. Being the first show, we also did a production rehearsal to get everything dialled in nicely.

Castlemaine is a beautiful town with lots of gold history. We stumbled on a sweet little cafe with a garden courtyard, the perfect place for lunch and a chance to enjoy the warm spring weather before a stroll around the town.

After lunch, Tim, Killian and I went for a drive to a nearby reservoir. Tim has decided to bring along a travel fishing rig on this tour, so as he was chasing the fish, Killian and I chased some nature…after finding a great spot to cast in, unfortunately, Timmy forgot one of the important parts of the reel, so there was no fish on the menu.. luckily the beautiful folk at the Regent Theatre made us delicious pizzas for dinner, seriously tasty…

The gig was great, a beautiful old country town theatre and a great audience... we were now underway!

After a quirky stay in a converted school from the 1800s, we jumped back in the van and headed to Traralgon in Gippsland: another fine spring day and a pretty drive.

The hotel we stayed in had access to the local aquatic centre, so I took myself over for a swim and some exercise... after the swim, I noticed a big kids’ water slide, so I asked the lifeguard if they could open it up so I could have a spin!.. It was way faster than I thought it would of been and got the adrenalin going.

We had another band dinner, this time at a local Vietnamese restaurant, and it was really good! Delicious pho.

Tonight’s show was in a newly built arts centre—really state of the art with all the mod cons, so it was a nice place to play.

The next day, we headed to Frankston... Everyone was in need of a bit of a rest, so we all took it pretty easy. I squeezed in a long walk along the waterfront, finding some local fish and chips for lunch.

It was our first time playing in Frankston, and the crowd had great energy, and we had a great gig…

We just had to dodge the resident flock of seagulls that guarded the load in/out area with great force.

Next stop, two nights in Torquay! It’s great when we get two nights in one place as we get more time to explore and see things.

The folks at the Torquay Hotel really looked after us with some great meals and accommodation on site.

Being so close to the ocean was great as we all love a swim and Tim, a fish! After exploring the local lookout on the nearby surf coast, a dip in the drink was superb.

The next day, we made a drive to check out the famous Bells Beach, and the swell was pumping. Great to see so many people out riding the waves…We drove on further to the lighthouse near Anglesea for some great views and then onto Lorne for lunch. Nice to drive up and down the Great Ocean Road. Beautiful coastline.

We had two great shows in Torquay. In fact, all the shows and venues and everybody working on the shows this weekend were a treat—great way to get back into regional Aus.

Feeling happy to be back out on the Road.

Boy & Bear’s regional tour continues in WA.

BOY & BEAR

2023 REGIONAL AUSTRALIAN TOUR

Friday, 6 October - The River, Margaret River (WA)
 Wednesday, 11 October - Seabreeze Hotel, Mackay (QLD)
 Thursday, 12 October - Magnums, Airlie Beach (QLD)
 Friday, 13 October - JCU Uni Bar, Townsville (QLD)
 Saturday, 14 October - Tanks Arts Centre, Cairns (QLD)
 Thursday, 9 November - Kings Beach Tavern, Sunshine Coast (QLD)
 Friday, 10 November - Burleigh Bazaar, Gold Coast (QLD)
 Saturday, 11 November - Empire Theatre, Toowoomba (QLD)

Tickets are available via the band’s website.