Dallas Crane

If you ask someone to venture out to the wrong side of the tracks late on a cold, windy and miserably wet Friday night to see Aussie rockers Dallas Crane playing in a little pub in downtown Newcastle, the response will invariably be full of negative excuses such as, "it’s hard, so loud, sweaty, sleazy, dangerous, and primitively debaucherous". If you asked any one of the faithful hundred or so punters at the Cambridge after hearing a hard arsed 90 minute set on Friday then chances are you would have heard a positive reply with those same adjectives used.

Ripping into the opening two songs from their latest release Factory Girls, the scene was set for a night of pure rock genius. Dave Larkine and the boys gave it everything and the crowd went wild for it. There was no letting up with the pace as they jumped from the past to present.

By the time the 'Crane' ripped out Lovers and Sinners, the Cambridge crowd was going hard. A mixture of economical arrangements, perfect build ups and unrelenting riffs and a pounding rhythm section just makes for perfect live rock n roll. Even a B side like Mine Mine Mine worked the steel town locals into frenzy with fists pumping and the old Hunter Street two step stomp was in full force.

Satchell is the perfect foil playing second fiddle to Larklin's front man antics. Pete cranks out those great riffs over and over whilst Dave hangs that big black Gretsch F Hole guitar, out over the heads of his followers and it's tantalizingly oh so touchable but not quite – it’s a tease and we loved being seduced by that phallic monster.

Pat Bourke energetically leaps around singing along to every song (off mike mostly), exuding a love for the songs he plays. Shan the muscle man pounds the drums, however he contrasts that by punching out some really beautiful high range back-ups. "It's all good" as they say in Newcastle.

Dave conducts the willing crowd to a responsorial during the frenetic Curiosity and it's obvious that this crowd have the new CD on high rotation in their V8 Commodores, screaming along with "she just a girl that you want" at the end of the song.

They leave the stage but the Cambridge wants a bit more tonight. The Crane are coaxed out from a well earned beer break to rev the mob up with an extended intro to the Sit On My Knee riff. Did we love it? You betcha! We got served up a big bowl of F*CK YEAH tonight and it left us feeling as full as a Big Day Out port-a-loo.

Dallas Crane is everything you've ever wanted from a rock band. Trust me - brave the conditions next time and don't make any excuses. I'll take my dose of rock'n sleaze and debauchery every time with DC - Tonight (there WAS a party going down!).

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