Airbourne

Arriving at the venue, I see the usual suspects hanging around the front of the HiFi Bar taking a smoking break from the inside entertainment. Since all venues became smoke free, this is not an unusual sight at places such as this. What I didn’t know at this stage was that they were probably also trying to escape the excruciating heat of inside… Something for which this venue is notorious. The overwhelming heat is nothing new. So it didn’t take me long to feel it once inside from the lack of aircon, people packed to the rafters and the band onstage.

The Shine was finishing off their set as I made my way down to the front and what a great intro to what was to come next. These guys really know how the heat up a stage. As they completed their last song, ‘heads are gonna roll’, the crowd gave them a rousing round of applause. But we all knew for whom we had come to see.

At this stage and to be expected, Airbourne were already late to come on. Such is an internationally successful band’s prerogative I guess… So as I waited in the hot and sweaty pit that the HiFi was becoming, with sweat running down the back of my legs, the roadies started to make their move to set up the stage for the headliner. The more distant crowd, up until this point smart enough not to join the sweaty throng down front until absolutely necessary, had certainly taken notice and were starting to migrate to vantage points around the stage. From the brisk movement, I anticipated much shoving when the band came on and possibly a moshing type of deal as well. This was not the type of crowd to leisurely sway to the music, nor was this that type of band. I had picked out my own vantage point earlier on and moshing was not something to which I wished to be involved, especially with the sweat now forming on all parts of my body, let alone at any other time! So I was glad I had picked out a safe spot early and had remained there.

The chanting began about halfway through set up and the air became even harder to cut with a knife when awesome amps, an amazing array of guitars and a six pack of beer hung over the drum kit. These were all met with resounding ‘Wayne and garth’ we’re not worthy bowing and cheering attached. Which was not unexpected, from metal heads, but the crowd itself was a little unexpected. As it really began to swell around me, I noticed something different than I had expected, there were a huge amount of surfie types! Only cementing to me that Airbourne had reached more people than it had anticipated also. Though it’s move to the US, should have alerted us all to this bands’ appeal to all and sundry a while ago, it was still surprising to me to find copious amounts of billabong and Quiksilver mixed in with Metallica and the new York dolls.

But black eyeliner and board shorts had become one at this gig, we were all here to do the same thing, experience some serious rocking out. And Airbourne did not disappoint anyone! These boys were ready to rock… Infused with beer swilling, hair flaying and amp jumping, it was a show that was worth all the sweat making my tee stick to my back.

The intimacy of the relationship they had with the crowd made it feel like they were playing in their back garage, jamming with their family but with an air of professionalism that reeked of 2 successful albums having come out of that garage. Airbourne were the epitome of metalhead Bogan bands, rolled up into a neat little amplified package full of long hair, VB and grit. It has been said, that they do not want the pub band to die and I can tell you, if they have their way, it ain’t over til the fat lady sings.

Songs from both albums were thrown in, ‘fat city’, ‘cheap wine’, ‘girls in black’, ‘Too Much, Too Young, Too Fast’ to name but a few, but this night was mostly about leaving their mark on Melbourne and kicking all our asses before they go off on their overseas adventure. And that they did… We all went home awash with beer, sweat and bogan as luminescent all over us as if we had washed in pure pub scent! Now who would have thought that 4 boys from Warrnambool – population: 32,000, would be re-instating the cultivation of Melbourne’s old school love of dirty ass pub rock. Why any good bogan, of course! More power to them. Good luck overseas boys… Show ‘em how it’s done!

“All right people/Welcome to the show/Are you ready to rock?/Are you ready to go?/Now we’ve got what you want/And we’ve got what you need/So get your ass down here/And let your ears bleed.”

Stand Up For Rock’N’Roll

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