In 1972 a gangly paceman by the name of Bob Massie took 16 wickets in his test debut at Lords; 18 months later, Massie couldn’t get a game in the West Australian state team. In 1985, Bruce Lindner, a talented half-forward from West Adelaide, arrived at Geelong to try his luck in the big league; nicknamed The President on account of his self-confidence, more cynical Geelong fans suggested The Candidate was a more appropriate description of Lindner’s contribution.
In 2005, Airbourne was on the verge of greatness with a five-album deal with Capital Records; within a couple of years, Airbourne was just another band that had almost, but not quite achieved commercial greatness. 2013 brings Airbourne’s third album, Black Dog Barking.
To describe it as a linear progression is to both indulge in euphemism, and damn with faint praise. As a reflection of the band’s influences, it’s on point: more riffs than crushed beer cans at the Bondi Lifesaver in 1979, enough screams to fill a B-grade slasher flick and a fanatical devotion to the pub rock cause that walks the line between passionate and tragic. Ready To Rock is everything its title suggests it’s going to be, and then some, Animalize (not to be confused with the Kiss album) strays ever so slightly for the formula, but not enough to lose the faith and the double entendre of No One Fits Me (Better Than You) might make Bon Scott blush.
And that’s, largely, the track upon which the rest of the album stays: Back In The Game is ’80s LA power rock, Live It Up (again, a possible Kiss reference point) sniffs at the ground upon which The Who stood in the early ’70s and Woman Like That is a trip back into the gender politics of rock’n’roll of yore. Hungry has a hint of Morricone in its blood; the title track is a simple, and sufficiently satisfactory end to festivities. For what it’s trying to be, it’s fine; pushing the envelope, it certainly isn’t.
BY PATRICK EMERY
Best Track: Ready To Rock
If You Like These, You’ll Like This: AC/DC, ROSE TATTOO, LOBBY LOYDE, DEVIL ROCK FOUR
In A Word: Rock
