Essendon Airport (Late Matinee)
with Jeremy Dower Live + DJ Bridget Small between sets
Northcote Social Club (Northcote, VIC)
Sunday, 23 November 2025 4:00 pm
Australian post-punk icons Essendon Airport launch new limited edition vinyl album MOR with an afternoon matinee show at Northcote Social Club, with support from Jeremy Dower (live) and DJ Bridget Small.
“Essential illogic and quirked delight from one of the treasures of the post-punk era.” — Simon Reynolds
Essendon Airport began as a duo in Melbourne in 1978, formed by David Chesworth on Wurlitzer electric piano and Robert Goodge on guitar, accompanied by a home-made drum machine. Their music embraced minimalism, repetition, irony, and experimentation. 1979 debut EP Sonic Investigations of the Trivial exemplified their approach, described by the band as ‘songs which combine many of the most facile and insipid kinds of music in a redeemingly dignified manner’.
Their duo's earliest appearances were at the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre (CHCMC)—an emerging hub for experimental sound, performance, and film—before taking their distinct minimalism to Melbourne’s emerging inner-city post-punk venues such as the Crystal Ballroom. They collaborated with vocalist Anne Cessna for a now-feted single Talking To Cleopatra in 1980, then expanded to a more energetic live four piece, releasing their quintessential album Palimpsest in 1982. Soon they grew again to a five piece, embracing funk and becoming one of inner city Melbourne’s premiere live attractions before disbanding in 1983. More than four decades later, Essendon Airport's 21st century incarnation features original collaborators David Chesworth and Robert Goodge, early 80s bandmates Paul Fletcher (percussion) and Barbara Hogarth (bass), plus pedal steel guitarist Graham Lee (The Triffids, KLF).
For new album MOR, this quintet re-engage with their early minimalist work, revisiting songs from and around the Sonic Investigations era in expanded full band arrangements. They also offer up one newly composed track Malibu. The result is elegant, full of atmosphere and melody, but also imbued with the band's trademark off kilter sense of experimentation and wonder.
THIS SHOW IS STRICTLY 18+
Northcote Social Club strives to create a safe space that everyone can enjoy.
Crowd surfing & dangerous behaviour will result in removal from the venue.
Full conditions of entry | Accessibility Info
Can't make the event? Sell your tickets fast and fair through our resale partner Tixel!
“Essential illogic and quirked delight from one of the treasures of the post-punk era.” — Simon Reynolds
Essendon Airport began as a duo in Melbourne in 1978, formed by David Chesworth on Wurlitzer electric piano and Robert Goodge on guitar, accompanied by a home-made drum machine. Their music embraced minimalism, repetition, irony, and experimentation. 1979 debut EP Sonic Investigations of the Trivial exemplified their approach, described by the band as ‘songs which combine many of the most facile and insipid kinds of music in a redeemingly dignified manner’.
Their duo's earliest appearances were at the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre (CHCMC)—an emerging hub for experimental sound, performance, and film—before taking their distinct minimalism to Melbourne’s emerging inner-city post-punk venues such as the Crystal Ballroom. They collaborated with vocalist Anne Cessna for a now-feted single Talking To Cleopatra in 1980, then expanded to a more energetic live four piece, releasing their quintessential album Palimpsest in 1982. Soon they grew again to a five piece, embracing funk and becoming one of inner city Melbourne’s premiere live attractions before disbanding in 1983. More than four decades later, Essendon Airport's 21st century incarnation features original collaborators David Chesworth and Robert Goodge, early 80s bandmates Paul Fletcher (percussion) and Barbara Hogarth (bass), plus pedal steel guitarist Graham Lee (The Triffids, KLF).
For new album MOR, this quintet re-engage with their early minimalist work, revisiting songs from and around the Sonic Investigations era in expanded full band arrangements. They also offer up one newly composed track Malibu. The result is elegant, full of atmosphere and melody, but also imbued with the band's trademark off kilter sense of experimentation and wonder.
THIS SHOW IS STRICTLY 18+
Northcote Social Club strives to create a safe space that everyone can enjoy.
Crowd surfing & dangerous behaviour will result in removal from the venue.
Full conditions of entry | Accessibility Info
Can't make the event? Sell your tickets fast and fair through our resale partner Tixel!