Back on the cans, back on the road: The Externals return to WA
On the back of last September’s album launch at The Leopold and a run of shows supporting the Cosmic Pyschos, The Externals have announced their return to WA in 2025.
The band will perform at the Leopold Hotel in Bicton on Friday, May 2, and The River in Margaret River on Saturday, May 3, with Black Buzzard joining them as special guests for both dates.
The Externals launched their new album, Back On The Cans, to a sell-out crowd at The Leopold last September. It was the band’s seventh record and arrived 30 years after their first, highlighting the unlikely longevity of a group formed in the elite SAS Regiment based in Perth over three decades ago.
“We’re just a bunch of blokes who enjoy a beer, rock music, and each other’s company,” said vocalist/songwriter Harry External. “Actually, I would say we are more of a small community, and all of us get along like a house on fire despite having been playing together for over 30 years.”
Harry and co-founder Matt External started the band in 1991, and notwithstanding that, both have served on some of the most elite teams and in the most dangerous environments in the world. Between them, the pair have served on nearly two dozen combat deployments across 60 years of service.
“Harry and I both love our rock music, and over the journey, as we have met different musicians, we have invited them to play with us, members of the SAS and civilians alike.” Matt said. “Anyone who loves good Aussie indie rock essentially… Celibate Rifles, Cosmic Psychos, The Oils.”
“Matt and I met for the first time on a ‘Resistance to Interrogation’ course in 1991,” Harry reminisced. “I had to get up and sing a song to the audience. I was naked with a pillowcase over my head and holding a toothbrush, and I sang the Hawthorn Football Club song. It’s fair to say I nailed it,” he said. “Even Sinatra hasn’t played a gig like that one. ”
“That is where the seed was first planted, I reckon, and since then I have written the songs and poured the beer, while Matt has built the relationships and managed the band. He is definitely the mature and grown-up one of us both.”
The Externals play the Leopold Hotel on Friday, May 2, and The River on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Tickets are on sale now from oztix.com.au