27 April 2012

A big big sound from Canberra Town?

| johnboy
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The GWS Giants have unveiled their Canberra theme song:

GIANTS Chief Executive David Matthews said the club wanted to recognise Canberra where the club will play four games a year for the next 10 years as part of its partnership with the ACT Government.

“We’ve had great feedback about the song since it was first released in February and we think this will resonate with fans in Canberra as well,” he said. “We consider Canberra an integral part of this club and want people to feel connected to it.”

Written and produced by award-winning Australian artist Harry Angus, of The Cat Empire, the song creates instant heritage, remaining true to the traditional AFL football song of the past, whilst still celebrating what is fresh and new about the GIANTS.

Thoughts dear readers?

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Kerryhemsley8:40 pm 28 Apr 12

Frustrated said :

Kerryhemsley said :

Obviously thinke we are a very gullible community. Canberra let’s rise up and stay away from this crap!

Really?

I am not sure if you are a Rugby code supporter, but may I remind some of you, especially recent blow-ins from the North, that this was once a proud Aussie Rules city and region.

The NSWRL got their team setup in this region first and its funny how the Canberra Raiders when they first started, were based out of Queanbeyan NSW. They didn’t have the support until they become succesful at the end of the 80s.

Memories.

Times change and pretending a team from Blacktown is local won’t bring it back.

Roundhead89 said :

Perhaps they should employ better recording technicians and post production people. I noticed that the section singing “from Canberra town” wasn’t as loud as the other lyrics meaning the drop-in part wasn’t equalised properly. Perhaps remixing it and passing the vocal track through a sound compressor might fix it up.

You forgot to mention that it is actually a different singer who sings the “from Canberra Town” bit. That’s why it sounds so odd. Maybe a complete rerecording of the vocals is in order for the Canberra version.

drfelonious said :

Gavin Atkins in the Australian nailed it as far as I am concerned:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/where-afl-is-about-to-be-taught-a-football-lesson/story-e6frg6zo-1226337483468

The AFL should just pile up $100 notes in the middle of the MCG and start a bonfire – it would be cheaper than continuing to subsidise the GWS in western Sydney. They seemed to have decided to start their new team there based only on the fact that western Sydney is the largest population centre in Australia not in the AFL, rather than being sensible about it and looking at areas that actually have some kind of minimal baseline interest in AFL.

Better option would have been to have a Canberra/Albury-Wodonga/Northern Vic/Riverina team.

Just his opinion and nothing more.

The numbskulls that mouthed off at me, when I was last in Sydney because I had a Giants sticker on the rear window of my car. Also get similar reactions from the RL blow-ins here in Canberra from time-to-time.

Kerryhemsley said :

Obviously thinke we are a very gullible community. Canberra let’s rise up and stay away from this crap!

Really?

I am not sure if you are a Rugby code supporter, but may I remind some of you, especially recent blow-ins from the North, that this was once a proud Aussie Rules city and region.

The NSWRL got their team setup in this region first and its funny how the Canberra Raiders when they first started, were based out of Queanbeyan NSW. They didn’t have the support until they become succesful at the end of the 80s.

Perhaps they should employ better recording technicians and post production people. I noticed that the section singing “from Canberra town” wasn’t as loud as the other lyrics meaning the drop-in part wasn’t equalised properly. Perhaps remixing it and passing the vocal track through a sound compressor might fix it up.

This is a gee-up, right? Can’t possibly be serious.

Gavin Atkins in the Australian nailed it as far as I am concerned:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/where-afl-is-about-to-be-taught-a-football-lesson/story-e6frg6zo-1226337483468

The AFL should just pile up $100 notes in the middle of the MCG and start a bonfire – it would be cheaper than continuing to subsidise the GWS in western Sydney. They seemed to have decided to start their new team there based only on the fact that western Sydney is the largest population centre in Australia not in the AFL, rather than being sensible about it and looking at areas that actually have some kind of minimal baseline interest in AFL.

Better option would have been to have a Canberra/Albury-Wodonga/Northern Vic/Riverina team.

Just back from the game. Good to see we managed about 1000 more punters than Blacktown.

Kerryhemsley12:38 pm 28 Apr 12

Obviously thinke we are a very gullible community. Canberra let’s rise up and stay away from this crap!

It’s all too easy to sit back, complain, say it’ll never work and take a cynical view of Canberra’s involvement. And at the end of the day it may not work! But I joined because you have to start somewhere. Canberra and Queanbeyan have a proud tradition of producing AFL players but it will never have its own team – and wouldn’t have any games at all – unless people who love the game are prepared to pay up and support it.

As an AFL supporter in Canberra you also have to have some perspective. We’re a very small market when you’ve regularly got well over 100,000 people turning up to the MCG over a weekend. And of course GWS are not going to win a premiership anytime soon. Plus it simply doesn’t make business sense to have the top teams play in Canberra, at least until such a time as GWS are truly competitive. But as I said – you have to start somewhere.

I love the song generally, and I do appreciate the gesture… but I can’t say it’s a big issue for me. I’m supporting a team called Greater Western Sydney; I can hardly complain when everything refers to that location, can I?

Oh Harry…

I can’t get the image of Benny Hill hamming it up with a footy out of my head now.

My daughter’s face when I played this was priceless. Ah the young folk today. No appreciation for that ‘instant heritage’ sound…

I’ve heard that also, that something like over half the GWS memberships are canberrans. Its quite sad, because although population wise we don’t have enough toi support an AFL team (in the AFL’s opinion), there are a lot of non NSW/Qlders in Canberra and they do support AFL.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the crowd average for GWS at Manuka is higher than the average at Blacktown, except for maybe a swans game there. That said I’ve found the additions to GWS to recognise Canberra as insignificant tokens. How bad would GWS be without the support from Canberra?

apparently Canberrans have been more enthusiastic on the membership takeup than western sydney siders.

CrocodileGandhi11:31 am 27 Apr 12

How are we connected to them in any way? They’ll spend less time in Canberra this year than Israel Folau will spend with his hands on the ball all season.

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