E&OE
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC PERTH DRIVE WITH GARY ADSHEAD
FRIDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2025
Subjects: Freo.Social funding, Revive Live, live music
GARY ADSHEAD (HOST):
Now, speaking of into the weekend, if you want to catch a gig at what is no doubt an iconic venue down Fremantle, way Freo.Social, then you’ll be happy to know that it has a new lease on life, the sort of pressures being taken off. Let’s go to Josh Wilson, the member for Fremantle federally, who joins me on the line? G’day, Josh.
JOSH WILSON:
Hey, Gary, how are you?
ADSHEAD:
Yeah, good. Now let’s just go back through some of the history here, because, of course, Freo.Social came under some pressure in and around, issues of noise and concerns about that. So it’s been under pressure. You’ve, the government have announced a $150,000 grant, which is under a program called Revive Live. Tell us about it.
WILSON:
Yeah. Well, Revive Live is, as the name suggests, the way in which the Albanese Government’s going to support live music, and particularly live music venues. Such a critical part of our social and cultural life, and it’s been a massive part of life in Freo for a long time. I think Freo is one of the great kind of cradles of original and live performance music Australia wide. And as you said in your intro, you know what was the Fly by Night musicians club for a long time, and is now Freo.Social is just one of those iconic venues, and it came under a bit of pressure just because there’s some good things happening in Freo, you’re seeing some new developments. And next door, what was the old Freo Police Station has been reborn as a pretty fantastic looking new hotel. But when you get the proximity of hotel accommodation or high density residential, you know, becomes a challenge to manage noise and residential amenity, and in this case, there’s a happy solution with the investment of $150,000 to improve the insulation and acoustic treatment of what is a heritage building, in the what was the old Drill Hall. And then you get, then you get this great combination of a great new hotel that will enable people to come and visit Freo and stay in Freo, and I’m sure a lot of them will go next door and have a cold drink and enjoy fantastic Australian live music at Freo.Social.
ADSHEAD:
What would have been the outcome if, if it couldn’t come to a standard that would allow for the music to be, you know, suppressed in some way, was it going to be a sticky situation for them?
WILSON:
Well, it was something that needed to be managed. To be honest, I always had faith that between the different operators and in the local government and all of us in that community, there would be a way through it. There almost always is when there’s when there’s goodwill and a kind of an application of everybody’s energy and kind of spirit towards a constructive outcome and that’s where we’ve got to. But in this case, clearly, when live music venues have been under pressure, COVID was a really tough time for culture and the arts and for live music. Sometimes it’s not an easy thing for a venue operator to fund the kind of change that’s happening in this place, and that’s why Revive Live exists. And, you know, in round one of that program, Mojo’s, which used to be The Stoned Crow when I was a kid in North Fremantle, that benefited under round one with $60,000 to do some similar upgrades. So it’s a really good program, and I know it’ll be welcome down my part of the world.
ADSHEAD:
Now, listen here, Josh. Now a little bit of history here is that, you know, you not only grew up around it, of course, but your father was himself involved in the Fly by Night. Is that right?
WILSON:
Yeah, my dad had a lot of involvement in arts and culture, usually just as a contributing to the governance of organisations like Fly by Night club and the AWESOME festival and Barking Gecko and a few things. But one of the things that my dad was part of, that I think of again, in this sort of vein of how you face emerging problems with creative solutions, was back in the 90s, and the Fly at that stage was under a bit of pressure, and they took up the chance to apply for and receive funding through the Quit program that existed in the 90s that was trying to move towards. And I remember that, I would have been in my probably early 20s, and the idea that a live music venue where a licensed live music venue would go completely smoke free, did seem like a pretty big move and there were a lot of people who said, if you try and make a live music venue that serves drinks smoke free, that will be the death knell. That will be the death knell. But the people who ran it, and my dad wasn’t the only one, he was the chair of the board at the time, but the board as a whole, and other people involved said, you know what, we reckon the world is ready for this shift. And they received that Quit funding, and I’m pretty sure they were the first licensed live music venue in WA to go completely smoke free, and the community embraced it. Now, we would look back and say, you know, the idea that you would have smoking inside at a live music venue would strike us as being bananas. But yeah, that’s an interesting chapter in the story. I guess.
ADSHEAD:
Do you pick up an instrument mate? I mean, you know, given that sort of heritage.
WILSON:
Yeah, my family, like my dad, was involved in RTRFM and community radio. He’s a massive music lover. My brother is a musician. I am probably the least musical. I was taught the mandolin by a member of the Nansing Quartet, another famous Freo band, The Jam Tarts, and the Nansing Quartet, Adam Gare, who’s a family friend of mine. You know, did his best to help me play a few tunes on the mandolin once upon a time, but I would never be caught. You know, I might, I might strum quietly to myself for a bit of musical therapy, but I don’t think I’d subject anyone else to it.
ADSHEAD:
After a bad week in Canberra, so you don’t, you won’t be playing a gig, then down at the Freo.Social to celebrate this 150 grand grant?
WILSON:
I don’t think that would be welcome or thoughtful. But no, look, I love going there. It’s got a lot of personal history for me, but I do think, we’re lucky, you know, we have so many venues in and around Perth that have character, whether it’s Red Hill Auditorium or, Belvoir or the Rosemount or the Fremantle Arts Centre. And certainly, you know, I think of Mojo’s and and Freo.Social in that vein, and I try and get there as often as I can, not as often as I’d like, but every year there’ll be a few gigs. I went and saw The Paper Kites, they’re a fantastic Melbourne band, in the course of this year. I reckon that would be close to one of my live music highlights for 2025 and it’s just a magic place.
ADSHEAD:
Well, it’s no doubt that it’s important to keep it alive, because too many have gone by the wayside. We all know that. It wouldn’t have hurt, though, that the Prime Minister himself is a music junkie. Maybe he could pick up the guitar and play a few gigs there one day.
WILSON:
Well, I don’t know how musical the PM is. I don’t know. I don’t know whether he’s got any musical instrument talent.
ADSHEAD:
He can. Be careful, Josh. Jeez, mate. Crikey, you’re on very dangerous ground there.
WILSON:
This is going to cost me my career. I’m having a nice chat with you. And you know headlines, Assistant Minister for Climate Change gets in hot water underestimating PM’s musical talent.
ADSHEAD:
I can recall when he was a opposition spokesperson, and I’m trying to think at the time and frame it would have been, probably in the days of, I’m trying to get my right Prime Ministers. I reckon it probably was Howard. And I met him to do an interview with him down towards Fremantle, and we were sitting there, and he looked over and he saw some bloke strumming a guitar, and he literally said, hang on a minute. And I had a photographer with me, so he wasn’t silly. He could see an opportunity. And he said, hang on a minute. And he walked over and he said, Would you mind, mate? And he knew what guitar it was, and he started strumming a few chords. So I’m not saying he was making wonderful music, but he could certainly handle it.
WILSON:
Well, he’s turned out his DJing skills. I know that he’s done that, and that’s kind of notable. He’s a big time music lover. Whenever I catch up with him, I do sneak a bit of a look at some of his vinyl. He’s got a good vinyl collection. And Tony Burke, as the Minister for the Arts, is also musical, and does play the guitar and the piano and a few things. And I’ve seen him perform with his band of parliamentarian friends. So yeah, but look it’s good. It’s what life’s about, isn’t it? It’s these things are not they’re not peripheral. They’re not added extras. Cultural life, whether it’s literature, theatre, visual arts, performing arts, live music. It’s what we live for. And I think Australia has such an amazing, rich history of producing that. From our First Nations kind of artistic heritage all the way through. And it’s it is important to keep it alive, particularly as things change, because the challenges keep coming, and that’s certainly the truth in the 21st Century, with you know, streaming of music and challenges like COVID and all of those things. So we try and be as dynamic as we can in responding to that and protecting the things that we love.
ADSHEAD:
Indeed. And long may it last at the Freo.Social. Now I really appreciate you joining us. I promise not to tell the PM that you said he couldn’t play an instrument. Promise, guarantee. Keep it between you and me.
WILSON:
Keep that between you and me, and it’s a little quiet chat that we’re having.
ADSHEAD:
All right, Josh, thanks for that.
WILSON:
Okay, thanks, Gary.
ADSHEAD:
Josh Wilson there, the member for Fremantle, talking about Freo.Social and the funding it’ll get to help it deal with this issue of acoustics and keeping the sound of it coming a bit suppressed because of other interests around there, and hopefully it all works out.
ENDS
Stay connected with Josh’s latest news and events.