A pair of performances in the coming days are set to offer Wimmera residents a chance to celebrate live music.

Country music singer Don Costa will play a two-hour show at Warracknabeal Town Hall tomorrow from 10am, while eclectic duo Sam and Sam will appear at Horsham’s Maydale on Sunday, playing a four-hour show from 2pm to 6pm.

Sam and Sam, a duo consisting of singer-songwriters Sam Ludeman and Sam Russell, will make their first appearance in Horsham during a career that includes a performance of the Australian national anthem in front of more than 90,000 MCG patrons at an AFL final.

Mr Ludeman said the pair was excited to visit Horsham for the first time ahead of the launch of their new single, One More Song.

“We do a bit of a mix of original music, which I’d consider in the country and pop-rock realm, and then we do a lot of covers as well,” he said.

“A lot of the covers are fan favourites from the livestreams we did during lockdown that a lot of people know us for.

“We’ve got quite an eclectic setlist, so we play a lot of music, young and old. 

“We always want to get people singing along and dancing, so that’s the vibe we go for.”

Mr Ludeman said anticipation for the show had been growing.

“We’ve been trying to get around to a lot of country towns where we know we’ve got a following, but not a lot of musos tend to go,” he said.

“We find that sometimes the smaller towns are the ones that really turn up for us. 

“We’ll sell out shows more easily in a place like Horsham than we will in Melbourne, which is sometimes mindboggling considering the populations of each of them.

“When there’s live music on like this, it often seems a lot of the country towns come out and support original Australian music.”

Tickets for Sam and Sam’s Horsham show are $34.95 for adults and $21.95 for children, and are available at rocktix.com.au/shows/19120.

People can visit their website at www.samsam.live for more information.

Mr Costa’s show in Warracknabeal tomorrow is the brainchild of Horsham-based Alana M Music Promotions and Management owner Alana Morrow.

Ms Morrow said she organised regular live-music performances in Horsham and was hoping to establish something similar in Warracknabeal.

“Warracknabeal was my home town, so it made sense to go back home and support the community where I grew up,” she said. “Seeing the joy and happiness music brings to people’s lives is just the best reward, one of the main reasons I do what I do.

“If it takes off and Warracknabeal and surrounding towns support it, then I’d like to do it on an ongoing basis, if that’s what people want. 

“I would also love to see all the local businesses benefit from this by bringing people to town.

“So far ticket sales are going really well and the support has been overwhelming, so I’m really appreciative of that – we only have limited tickets left.”

Tickets for Mr Costa’s show are $25 and are available online at www.trybooking.com/CZQKC or in store at Feet First Footwear Warracknabeal.

– Colin MacGillivray

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