| St Louis, 7 November 2008 |
| Written by Nick |
| Saturday, 08 August 2009 11:24 |
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Last night at The Fox was mind-blowing. Every year I've said that The Aussies have raised the bar and got even better, but this year is off the scale. They have created a show that is up there with the best of anything I have ever seen. The power and emotion of this performance easily matched any Floyd or Roger Waters show that I've been to, it left me in pieces.
The Fabulous Fox is an outstanding venue. The front of house is like the Albert Hall on steroids, all red velvet, carved wood panelling and beautiful lighting. Backstage every wall is covered with the signatures and drawings of pretty much everyone who has played there, from Stevie Ray Vaughan, Yes, Lynyrd Skynyrd to The Allman Brothers and Sammy Davis Junior. There is now an Aussies mural of Wall characters on one of the walls in the catering area, courtesy of Bryan. The Wall isn't one of my favourite Floyd studio albums, but live it is stunning. It binds the show into a cohesive performance in which everyone gets to play the various roles. It's the first Aussies show I've seen where the visual experience was dominated as much by the band members' performances as the lights and graphics. Ian is outstanding as Pink, he was born to do this, and he's a hell of a bass player too. Bobby Harrison, on his last two shows this tour, played like he'd been in the band forever - he's the most melodic guitarist, and his style fits the music perfectly. His solo on Mother and intro to Shine On were absolutely beautiful. Carl is a one man band, playing bass, percussion, acoustic guitar, clarinet and saxes. Bonney was back behind the drum kit, with Damian and Jason completing the lineup. Each of the girls got solo spots too, with Ola playing a magnificent hooker, Jacquie on Mother and Amy doing all of Great Gig. The solo in Comfy has got the biggest cheer at every Aussies show I've been to, and last night was no exception, another standing ovation for Damian. There isn't much more to add that hasn't already been written in other reviews. It is a long show, but the audience could have stayed there all night. It was one of the most appreciative crowds I've seen in a long time. Loads of people spoke to me during the evening to say how much they loved the band coming to St Louis each year. I've got to sit through it all again tonight. It's a hard life. Photos in the gallery at: |
