QUDOS Bank Arena, Sydney
Saturday 15 February 2020
Reviewer : Grant Ottley
Photographer : David Youdell
On my way out to Qudos Area at Homebush, I realised that it had slipped my mind that Queen were playing next door at ANZ Stadium tonight, there were certainly far more people on the train to Olympic park than I expected. And many of them certainly didn’t look like they would be lining up to watch the ritual guillotining of a 70+ year-old golf devotee.
I had decided, not having seen Alice live before, that should I get another opportunity I definitely wasn’t going to pass it up. Once inside Qudos Arena, it seemed that many people had thought the same and it was a great turnout in its own right. Given that the last Sydney show in 2017 was at the Hordern Pavilion, and the Enmore before that, this certainly seemed to be a step up. A good number of people turned out in variations of “Ol’ Black Eyes” make-up, from some really professional efforts, to some father & son efforts, to those who looked like they daubed on some shoe polish on the way out the door. It was great to see, and the people watching definitely added to the sense of spectacle.
MC50 kick off to the sound of the iconic JC Crawford intro to ‘Ramblin’ Rose’, with singer Marcus Durant (Zen Guerrilla) joining in the speech at the end before tearing into the song itself. Although it’s not until ‘Kick Out The Jams’ ignites that the crowd really start to pay attention. The towering Durant does a great job on vocals, while Kim Thayil of Soundgarden and Billy Gould (getting his road legs in advance of the upcoming Faith No More tour) stood either side bringing the noise, while Fugazi Drummer Brendan Canty whaled into the drums in back. However it was Brother Wayne Kramer doing the rabble rousing, and he managed to get the half full Arena well & truly behind the band by the time they finish with “looking at you” and a hearty middle finger toward the US president. It’s MC5, you’d expect nothing less.
Big Intro music, Big Lights, Big Amps, Big Sound, Airbourne are in the house!
I have to say that I’m always a bit sceptical of people not named ‘Iggy’ starting their set shirtless, but Joel O’Keeffe is certainly no poser, and the lights onstage could roast a chook! You would never accuse Airbourne of being a groundbreakingly original band, but you would go a long way to find a harder working one! I could not imagine these guys turning in a dud show, they play each song as if it’s the last one they’ll ever do. The guitarist & bass player sprinting across stage switching places each song, and the singer running about the floor of the venue. Joel recounts the first time the band played in Sydney in the early 2000’s… I was at one of those early shows, they were so loud that my mate was stuffing toilet paper in his ears. Over the years, the band haven’t turned down a notch, or chilled out at all at all, and Sydney love them for it. Extra props to Joel for shouting out the Alice Cooper road-crew as well, you don’t hear that enough.
The curtain finally drops and we’re in the Alice Cooper show. You learn during the opening song ‘Feed My Frankenstein’ (when a giant Frankie staggers across the stage) to expect anything throughout the set, as anything can (and probably will) happen. Frankenstein makes a couple of appearances, as does a giant baby, a couple of stray selfie takers are dispatched, a catapult slings glitter into the crowd, and of course, the guillotine. The show is perfectly choreographed, seamlessly staged and never drops off for a minute.
The set is a real ‘greatest hits list’ drawn fairly evenly from old stuff up to the most recent album Paranormal. Notably, during almost every song, Alice had a prop, whether it was a cane during the early songs, a crutch (for no apparent reason), Maracas (and a shimmy, shimmy, shake) during ‘Muscle of love’, a sword, a matador’s cape (I half expected a bull) and a riding crop, and of course a fake head later in the set.
Alice has assembled a fantastic line-up that really puts a rocket up these songs. Nita Strauss is not known as Hurricane Nita for nothing, she doesn’t stop the entire show, spinning and high kicking while peeling off furious leads, and great backing vocals. Ryan Roxie & Tommy Hendriksen also do a fantastic job. This guitar trio seems really tight, and has great variety, which is shown off during the guitar duel / jam later in the set. Bassist Chuck Garric & drummer Glen Sobel also shine during solo spots later in the set (aka Alice’s breather).
There’s no need to pick out specific songs when the whole set is highlights. But after the reappearance of the Frankenstein, and the giant baby who has been creepily peering through a window all set the main set comes to a close. The inevitable encores of ‘Dept of Youth’, and ‘School’s Out’ with Joel O’Keefe guesting send everyone out on a high.
As we walked by the Stadium back toward the train, Queen were just launching into ‘Tie your Mother Down’. I realised that, as they were at least a ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ away from finishing, I wasn’t going to need to do battle with hordes of people on the way home on the train which was worth a shimmy, shimmy, shake of my own. Great night all round!
ALICE COOPER
AIRBOURNE
MC50
