I was lucky enough to meet Joe and Imogen on the Newcastle leg of their Mountains to the Sea Tour and they kindly invited me to cover their Sydney Gig at The Corner Store. Imogen Clark & Joe Mungovan are not a duo, they are two equally talented, good friends sharing the bill and touring together.
This was my first time at the Corner Store and I was really impressed with the Venue, it’s on the ground floor of the Imperial Hotel in Newtown. The room itself has a great ambiance about it, the sound on the night was brilliant, lighting was reasonable and a comfortable crowd made for a great night. My only complaint was that parking was an absolute bitch.
The night was broken down into four sets, with Newcastle Band theWhite Walkers opening for Imogen and Joe, what a fantastic set. The White Walkers are one of my favourite young Newcastle bands at the moment with Nick Connor’s haunting Vocals, Nick Cox on lead with that beautiful Rickenbacker and a tight rhythm section with Liam Beckon Bass and Lachlan Bone on drums. This band has a unique sound coupled with Nick Cox’s guitar work, front man Nick Connor’s stage presence and his strong song writing skills, I would expect there will be big things to coming for this band.
Joe Mungovan hit the stage next with a killer set showcasing a number of tunes from his new EP June + July; my personal favourites were the title track June + July and Face in the Crowd. It’s hard to believe this 19 year old Kiama artist has only been playing guitar for a few short years, Joe started his musical career as a drummer, it wasn’t until after a serious skateboard accident that left him with two broken legs and wheel chair bound for three months that he picked up a guitar and taught himself to play.
Imogen Clark was up next with an equally hot set, Imogen’s original material is fantastic, her song writing and class on stage is well beyond her 19 years, and I’m now a huge fan of her work. Imogen played a number of tracks from her new and third EP, Stories from a Porcelain City, the stand out for me being Ceaseless Goodbye. I listen to the EP in its entirety over the weekend, well I actually haven’t stop playing it, if you are a lover of good honest song writing and great vocals I would highly recommend Stories from a Porcelain City.
The fourth and final set was a pearler with Joe joining Imogen on stage for a few covers, the last two had the crowd rocking when they ask theWhite Walkers back on stage for The Old Crow Medicine Shows,Wagon Wheel then Joe and Imogen doing an encore with a fantastic cover in their own style of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zero’s,Home.
Friday night is why I love doing what I do, and what it’s all about for me, getting to see new and talented artist such as these guys, is such a buzz and a breath of fresh air, I have still got a smile on my face three days later. Joe and Imogen’s Mountains to the sea tour is coming to a close, they have one more gig at Yours & Owls, 95a Crown St, Wollongong with special guest Lily Louiseon Wednesday the 12th of February, so if your down that way drop in for a great show.
