GONG
The Fleece,
Bristol, UK

2nd July 2026

Lineage:
Sound Professionals SP-CMC-9 cardioids > SP-SPSB-20 > Edirol R-07 (@24/96) > Cool Edit Pro 2 > CDWave > TLH
Recorded at the front rail house left

Recording, transfer and artwork by boombox

Openers, Chasing Dolls, were also recorded, but are not included here.

Setlist:
1. Intro Tape
2. Dream Of Mine
3. Kapital
4. Mantivule
5. My Guitar Is A Spaceship
6. Rejoice!
7. Tiny Galaxies
===SPLIT FOR ENCLOSED ARTWORK===
8. My Sawtooth Wake
9. Lunar Invocation
10. The Wonderment
11. Master Builder
12. Stars In Heaven
13. You Can't Kill Me

boombox's notes july 2026:
Losing Daevid Allen to cancer in 2015 was, to me, one of the hardest hitting musician deaths I have ever experienced - up there with Jerry Garcia, John Lennon and Paul Kantner. However, before he took his last teapot taxi, he gave his blessing for the band as it was then to continue, with guitarist Kavus Torabi becoming the new front man. Since then, the band have carried on the legacy, both live and in the studio, releasing four studio albums, the latest of which, 'Bright Spirit', is being promoted on the current tour. Do I wish they would play more old school Gong? Of course, but the post-Daevid material is very good too, combining elements of the band's heyday, but with often a more contemporary edge. Unbelievably, this was Gong's first ever appearance at the venue (though I did see Daevid's University of Errors there opening for The Electric Prunes in the early 2000s). The setlist featured a broad selection of the post-2016 output and four tracks from the latest album, before going way back to 1971's 'Camembert Electrique' for the encore. Their 90-minute set went by all too quickly and needless to say, was very much appreciated by the three quarters full Fleece crowd.

The Fleece is not the best venue for filming and recording live gigs - lighting is very hit and miss and the sound is often very dull and bass-heavy. Despite being recorded from the front rail, right in front of Ian, the instrument mix was pretty good, and with a bit of EQ, my pull came out very well, requiring only a bit of applause reduction, repair of a couple of very minor mic bumps and bringing up of levels overall.

If you enjoy this, please go out and support the band on tour, buy the (very reasonably-priced) merch and definitely try out the new album, which has everything which made Gong great, but also combines elements of Syd Barrett and even 70s mainstream prog.

Images for all shows as well as full size images for this show.

Images for this show: