In 1986 and at the age of sixteen, Melbourne musician, Victor Stranges discovered Elvis Costello while playing drums with his punk band, Drunk ‘n’ Disorderly. Stranges was drawn to the music of the London-born musician, sparking his interest in guitar, song writing, and a vibrant UK music scene featuring The Specials, Stiff Little Fingers, and The Clash.
“Playing in a punk band I realised that I could play guitar too. I mean three chords… how hard could it be?” he jokes. Stranges found himself onstage regularly playing Costello’s hit song, ‘Oliver’s Army’ and so he began thumbing through his songbooks. A 2009 interview with Dave Griffiths from Buzz Magazine revealed, “I grew up eating the ‘Elvis Costello Singing Dictionary’, both volumes, for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
In the following three decades Stranges performed in other bands, played, recorded and produced other artists’ work, ran an independent record label and has even had time to release two of his own albums. It begs the question, why perform Elvis Costello songs when you can write your own material?
“I never pictured myself playing Costello songs live but a few years ago, I relented and started playing them for fun. When a friend told me the show was a real indulgence for him, I knew I was onto something that could resonate with audiences.”
Stranges initially played the show solo, debuting it at The Brunswick Ballroom in January 2019, and eventually put together a whole band. For three years now, Victor Stranges and his band, The Futurists have regularly played sold out shows as they faithfully interpret the studio recordings of Costello’s first twenty years of making music from ‘My Aim Is True’ (1977) to ‘All This Useless Beauty’ (1996).
The line-up comprises of Victor Stranges on vocals/guitar, Mike Dupp (Adele Show) on keyboards, Frank Scalzo (Secret Agents) on drums/backing vocals and Dave Leslie (Baby Animals) on bass/backing vocals. If you didn't catch Elvis Costello in Melbourne recently, this show is not to be missed.
VICTOR STRANGES & THE FUTURISTS will be playing the hits and obscurities of ELVIS COSTELLO at Sooki Lounge in Belgrave on Sunday 26th May. The venue is a vibrant hub for live music nestled in the arts and social scene in the hills, Dandenong Ranges, Melbourne.
The band will perform for almost two hours, presenting two sets of music including the beloved radio hits, 'Alison', 'Watching The Detectives', 'Oliver's Army', 'Pump It Up', 'Everyday I Write The Book', and 'Veronica', alongside lesser-known album tracks.
· Tickets for the Sooki Lounge show: shorturl.at/ilGU6
· Artist Website: victorstranges.com
· Watch ‘THE SONGS OF ELVIS COSTELLO’ show reel: youtu.be/zr-_sm4gtL8
“Close your eyes and you'll swear you're at an intimate Elvis Costello gig. Open them and you'll see a spirited performance by Victor Stranges and The Futurists.” (Anthea Palmer - jimmyhornet.com)