Artist:  Airbourne & Skirtbox

Venue: The Corporation, Sheffield 

Date:  16 February 2008 

After grabbing a copy of the new Airbourne album, 'Runnin’ Wild' and reviewing it just a matter of days previously, I was going to see the band live at last.  Now Sheffield has a few hotels, but this gig being on a Saturday, it seemed it was only the high end of the market were available, but after trawling t’internet I was booked into The Harley.  For anyone looking to stay overnight in Sheffield in the future, avoid this hotel.  DJ’s play techno until 3am, not good when trying to sleep. 

I digress, I’ve been looking forward to seeing Airbourne since coming across them  last December.  There’s a massive buzz around this band, they’ve supported Motley Crue in their homeland,  Rock City Basement was sold out on a Monday night! and a pair of £6 tickets for King Tuts in Glasgow were going on ebay for £130!.  You might say this was a gig not to be missed. 

As a venue, the Corporation is great for bands, although the liquid refreshment ain’t that grand.  So I decided to imbibe a few beforehand and it was 8.15 pm before my female companion and I entered the venue.  We had missed the first band completely, (sorry guys) and second support Skirtbox, were already well into their set. 

The venue was packed to the gills, we grabbed a couple of drinkie poos and fought, and I do mean fought, our way nearer the front of the stage.  Now I had deliberately decided not to review the gig, just wanting to enjoy the music and atmosphere, so didn’t take any notes.  I didn’t catch any song titles from the Skirtbox set, but they were energetic with the two guitarists sharing vocal and lead duties.  The bass player looked like he should be in a pop-punk band but was wearing a Whitesnake t-shirt and gave it his all during the few songs we caught.  Judging by the females surrounding the band afterwards Skirtbox seem to be making a few ripples.  Wouldn’t mind catching em’ in future. 

And so to the main event, more people have joined the masses already assembled and I noticed there was a good proportion of females in the crowd, always a good sign that the band must be good.  Now the CD runs in at just over 36 mins and it suddenly occurred to me that we may be in for a few extended versions.  The AC/DC comparisons are obvious on CD and looking at the stage we have 4 Marshall stacks and an Ampeg bass rig, very similar to when I first saw Angus & Co back in ’77, yes I am an old git and damn proud of the fact.   

The lights dimmed and the crowd raised a cheer, but it was a false alarm.  A few minutes later the band ambled onstage, they grabbed their instruments, Joel introduced 'Stand Up For Rock’n’Roll' and we were off and running, literally!  They played the song at breakneck speed, sweat immediately flying into the crowd.  There was to be no finesse about tonight’s show, just straight forward, in your face rock n’ roll. Then it was straight into 'Hellfire', a favourite of mine, and once again it was full throttle.  This song clocks in at 2 mins.19 secs on CD but seemed to last about 1 min. 30 sec.

At this point, I thought the gig would be over in 30 mins, but I didn’t care, heads were banging on and offstage, the fun of rock n’ roll taking over the crowd, and the sweat soaked rock n’ roll continued.  The band played every song from 'Runnin’' and I could have sworn I could hear the crowd singing the chorus to 'Diamond In The Rough'.  We got 'Too Much, Too Young, Too Fast', 'Fat City', 'What’s Eatin You', 'Girls In Black', 'Heartbreaker', 'Cheap Wine & Cheaper Women', 'Runnin Wild', 'Blackjack' and a couple of new tunes, 'Let’s Ride' and another whose title I didn’t catch. 

David Roads on guitar was an absolute maniac, he only stopped moving long enough to contribute backing vocals, Ryan O’Keefe just pounded the drums and barely seemed to come up for air.  I did get a tad worried for Justin Street on bass, as his cheeks glowed red (blood pressure problems at such a young age?) throughout the gig, but he pummelled his bass into submission on every song.  That stage must have been drenched in sweat and beer. 

The crowd lapped up every last chord, a few people were raised on shoulders, hair flailing all over (yes I do miss mine), sweat flying everywhere and every song voraciously applauded.  Joel even left the stage at one point, very Angus, and went to the bar for a drink, returning with a two pinter, which he shared with his band mates.  The band played for just over an hour, a guitar-fuelled, foot-stomping, sweat-soaked, beer-drenched, full throttle, hands held high, night of rock n’ roll!!  

In a world where you can now pay nearly £40 to see a band put on an indifferent display, tonight was an absolute corker and a bargain at only £6!!.  To all those who didn’t manage to catch the band on this little jaunt to blighty, make sure you get a ticket next time, cos it’ll be dearer and they will be playing bigger venues.  They may not be original but music is all about fun and tonight was a huge amount of fun.  The campaign to get them on Maiden’s Twickenham bill starts here!! 

Just to finish, the band came out after the show to chat and sign stuff for the fans.  My female companion managed to get her ticket autographed and couldn’t believe how young Justin Street and David Roads looked.  She also pointed out to me that Joel must be a size zero (he is rather on the skinny side, jammy git!) and has no arse!!

*Review by Brassy

All content copyright of The Mayfair Mall Zine unless otherwise stated.