Gong were formed in the late sixties in Paris by Daevid Allen following his enforced departure from Soft Machine. The band would wind its idiosyncratic way through the seventies adding and shedding members, all of whom would contribute to the vision that Daevid Allen had for the band. After leaving the band himself in the mid-seventies the band would continue following a different musical path throughout the seventies and beyond. In the mid-nineties Daevid Allen and Gilli Smyth once again took the chance to resurrect Gong and have continued to lead the band through various incarnations ever since.
Filmed at the Gong Family Unconventional Gathering at The Melkweg in Amsterdam in November 2006 some thirty-five years after its inception, we have the Gong UnCon performance. The DVD includes performances from Daevid Allen, Steve Hillage, Tim Blake, Gilli Smyth, Mike Howlett, Miquette Giraudy, Didier Malherbe, Theo Travis and Chris Taylor. The UnCon was the first time that Daevid Allen, Steve Hillage, Tim Blake, Gilli Smyth, Mike Howlett, Miquette Giraudy and Didier Malherbe had all been together on stage and performed since the legendary 1977 Gong reunion in Paris almost thirty years previously. The performance captured here is not only a stunning musical happening but also historical, and the cameras capture the moment beautifully. An absolute must for both fans who attended the UnCon and those who couldn’t travel to Holland to join in the celebrations. Gong Live At The UnCon will be a DVD you will want to add to your collection.
