Local band Kokomo has a bit of a penchant for notching up firsts on the Tauranga music scene. It seems hard to believe that 13 years ago, the local blues & roots band became the first group in Tauranga to release a CD (Remember when a CD was a novelty?) with their When In Rome Do Rome album.
Now the band have made history again with the release of the Bay of Plenty’s first full-length concert DVD - filmed, edited and produced entirely in Tauranga (It was manufactured in Auckland because there’s no DVD-pressing facility in the Bay).
The band describes DVD Kokomo À Gogo, released in May, as a companion piece to the CD of the same name released last year. But the DVD is “a lot more than just a repeat of the CD with pictures,” says the band’s spokesman, singer Derek Jacombs.
Filmed by Hugh Robb and a specially-assembled team of professional Tauranga cameramen during two concerts at Baycourt Theatre’s Exhibition Space, the Gogo DVD is “a full 102 minute concert experience,” says Derek.
Recorded in front of an intimate audience, the DVD features songs from each of the band’s seven albums, almost all in radical re-arrangements. It also includes a new song from Derek Jacombs called ‘Home of the Blues’.
Kokomo À Gogo shows the band at its best, working in what he describes as the “rootsy nexus where blues meets jazz and country.” The full range of Kokomo’s sound is on display, from the age-old washboard blues of ‘Strange Angels’ to the rockabilly jump of ‘30 Days’ and the playful version of Bill (Windy City Strugglers) Lake’s ‘Good Grief’. Other highlights include blues favourite ‘Rainy Night In Taupo’ and rocking country blues in the shape of ‘Freight Train,’ written specially for the band by fellow Taurangan John Terry.
The disc is packed with extras including the band’s two music videos and four featurettes. Kokomo À Gogo DVD also features the band’s entire first album (Audio only, recorded in 1992), which has never been released on CD. And like many music DVD’s, it has a full-length commentary track where band members discuss the origins of Kokomo, the songs, the filming, and more.
The band (with trumpet player Sonia Bullôt resting up after giving birth to baby girl) are taking a break from touring since Easter, when they played storming support set for the legendary Georgie Fame. But they’ve begun work on their next album at Boatshed Studio at Whakamarama.
Support local musicians! You don’t have to buy the Gogo DVD to do so – it is available for rental in Bay video stores. To purchase your own copy, head for Tauranga stores Jim’s Music Room in Grey Street or Traces in Devonport Road (Also available in good music shops nationwide).
For more information contact: Derek Jacombs info@kokomo.co.nz or 07-577 0969
