Bearded Gypsy Band

The Bearded Gypsy Band is a group from Adelaide whom compose and perform their own style of eclectic gypsy music with folk, jazz, celtic blues and roots influences.

Biography

554776 522594954432700 915332075 n — The Bearded Gypsy Band at the Governor Hindmarsh in Adelaide.

The Bearded Gypsy Band began while still at high school in 2007 where they were thrown together to play some Celtic music for an end of year school performance. This original line-up consisted of Tom Boehm (Violin/Mandolin), Kiah Gossner (Bass) and Tom Kneebone (Guitar). The group continued to perform with gigs becoming more frequent and regular during 2009. In November of that year they had the opportunity of supporting David Ross McDonald (The Waifs) who dubbed them, "The Too Young For Their Talent Band". In 2010 they were invited to play at Higher Ground's Shimmering West Music Festival at the Adelaide Fringe.

About a month before they recorded their first album in June 2010, they asked Max Tulysewski to join the band on drums. They recorded their first album in a mammoth 16 hour all night session followed by a full days filming with the '6 on the street' crew. By the end of 2010 they had played at the Human Rights Arts & Film Festival, the Semaphore Music Festival, the Adelaide Convention Centre, at Radio Adelaide's Live Music Fest 2010, at Nexus Multicultural Arts Centre, the SA Folk Centre and at World Beard Day on The Gov's mainstage with The Beards, A French Butler called Smith & Adam Page. They had also supported interstate bands The Woohoo Revue, The Snowdroppers, Vardos and The Rooftops while also continuing to play gigs in the Adelaide Hills.

During 2011 the band played a swag of gigs around Adelaide and also started to branch out interstate doing some shows in Melbourne and performing at a couple of festivals; namely Cool Summer Festival (Mt Hotham,Vic) and the Snowy Mountains of Music Festival (Perisher, NSW). In late 2011 the band was picked up by the US based booking agency Fleming Artists, the Melbourne branch of which is run by John Sinclair. In 2012 they toured up and down the east coast of Australia multiple times as well as performing at music festivals including WOMADelaide in their home town and Harvest festival in Melbourne. The almost constant touring became very difficult for Max (also doing year 12 at school) to continue with the band. After their performance at WOMADelaide and a trip to Melbourne, Max left The Bearded Gypsy Band.

“The Bearded Gypsy Band were pretty bloody quick to command the room...a really impossible-to-top, five-star performance” - Matt Lee (Metro 2013 with The Cat Empire)

Kyrie Anderson has since become their drummer and the band has continued to tour and perform frequently. In 2013 they won 'Best Roots Artist' at the Fowlers Live Music Awards. In 2014 they underwent their first international tour, a small tour of Canada, in the wake of the release of Leaving Town.