Steven Gates met Paul McDermott 20 years ago at the 1999 ARIA Awards. Paul (Doug Anthony All Stars) was hosting the event alongside Bob Downe, while Steven was entertaining the audience heavyweights with his band Tripod during the ad-breaks.<\/p>\n
The self-described \u201cmusic nerd\u201d, better known as \u2018Gatesy\u2019, says although it was the worst gig he\u2019s ever done, it\u2019s the night he was first acquainted with Paul.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe (Tripod) were quite new at the time. We were very young, very green, and we were invited to entertain the music industry to essentially keep the vibe alive,\u201d says Gatesy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were filming live to tape\u2026 it was hell \u2013 the worst gig we can say we ever did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having both performed as part of comedic trios, Gatesy and Paul developed a solid friendship long before deciding to take the stage as a duo.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was only five years ago we talked about singing together. A friend of ours was putting together the Ballarat Cabaret Festival. She wanted this show for the festival, so we used the songs we had up our sleeve to make it happen,\u201d says Gatesy.<\/p>\n
A one-off gig in 2017 saw the pair go on to entertain sold out crowds at this year\u2019s Melbourne International Comedy Festival.<\/p>\n
Despite being completely unalike to one another, Gatesy says he and Paul share a yin and yang kind of partnership.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s kind of hard. He (Paul) lives in Sydney, I live in Melbourne. We put songs together over Skype and send each other recordings and tapes. In the rare moments we are together, we lock things down,\u201d says Gatesy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve really come to terms with each other in how we work. The interesting thing about a duo is if you disagree, you don\u2019t have that third member to vote something in \u2013 it\u2019s really fascinating.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the dynamic Tripod have created over the last 23 years; that\u2019s kind of home, but it\u2019s nice to have a little fling\u2026 a little love affair with Paul.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gatesy and Paul\u2019s inaugural show, Go Solo, will form part of their act at this year\u2019s Queenscliff Music Festival.<\/p>\n
The duo recently released a single titled \u2018Stone Crows\u2019 under their new recording name, Bloody Lovelies.<\/p>\n
Stone Crows is a poignant ballad that pays homage to Gatesy and Paul\u2019s mutual friend Nerija Zemkalnis who died in 2008.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s (QMF show) going to be bits and pieces of everything really. I like a lot of the moments in the Go Solo show. We\u2019ve only got an hour in Queenscliff and about 20 pieces we can put together depending on how we feel. There\u2019s still more to come. Paul\u2019s constantly generating songs,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Catch Paul McDermott and Gatesy at this year\u2019s QMF (November 22-24). For more information, visit qmf.net.au.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Steven Gates met Paul McDermott 20 years ago at the 1999 ARIA Awards. Paul (Doug Anthony All Stars) was hosting the event alongside Bob Downe, while Steven was entertaining the audience heavyweights with his band Tripod during the ad-breaks. The self-described \u201cmusic nerd\u201d, better known as \u2018Gatesy\u2019, says although it was the worst gig he\u2019s […]<\/p>\n