An artist who needs little in the way of an introduction, Gavin Friday is perhaps best known as the founding frontman of cult Irish post-punk outfit Virgin Prunes.
His career as a genre-hopping, award-winning songwriter, composer, actor, visual artist, and creative director has spanned four decades and has seen him collaborate with everyone from his childhood friends in U2 through to Colin Newman, Laurie Anderson, Sinead O’Connor, Scott Walker, The Fall, Quincy Jones, and many, many more.
He has scored music for Academy Award nominated films such as In The Name of The Father and In America (earning Ivor Novello and Golden Globe nominations for his work on the latter), and his artistic contributions extend to visual arts, with several exhibitions showcasing his work, as well as collaborating and performing on-stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company. The last year also saw the release of the animated film Peter And The Wolf, which featured scoring and narration by Friday, as well as the recent reissuing of classic Virgin Prunes albums and EPs on vinyl.
Driven alternately by thundering electronics that recall the power of the Prunes and exquisite acoustics that reflect the beauty of his most recent solo work and soundtracks, his most recent work ‘Ecce Homo’ is an ecstatic and unbound expression of anger and independence, of severing oneself from stereotypes of what you’re supposed to be while also acknowledging that our hardest battles are often our collective ones. Amongst this compelling suite, there are love songs and fight songs, reflections on loss and reveries of nostalgia, anthems for solidarity, and excoriations of the powerful. Produced by Soft Cell’s Dave Ball and Michael Heffernan, the record was his first since 2011’s “Catholic”. Friday thinks it’s the most honest album he’s ever made; it is also his most riveting.
Due to perform tracks from this remarkable release at a handful of live shows in 2025, Friday is delighted to confirm today that he will be supported at his London EarTH date by special guest Lesley Wood.
The frontperson, singer, songwriter and guitarist of The Au Pairs, Wood formed the iconic band in Birmingham back in Winter 1979, with their 1982 album ‘Playing with a Different Sex’ recognised as a seminal work and post-punk staple.
While the original line up parted ways in 1983, Wood has since rekindled their legacy, signing the band to BMG for the re-release of their 2 studio albums in 2025.
Performing intermittently since 2020, she has rediscovered her live zeal with performances in support of the Chameleons and Lena Lovich, while also performing at Rebellion Festival, Grauzone festival in the Hague, and the Female Empowerment Festival in Berlin.
Under her current guise Lesley Wood’s Au Pairs, she has also just released a new 4-track EP “In The Fade” and is currently writing new material for an album, due to be released by end of 2025/2026.
A unique opportunity to see two masters of their craft at work, GAVIN FRIDAY + LESLEY WOOD will be performing at EarTH, London on Sunday 6th April 2025.
FINAL TICKETS ON SALE HERE:
https://earthackney.co.uk/events/gavin-friday-6th-apr-earth-london-tickets-ryvrpy/