Slash and his merry men (Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators) are back in Australia, it’s been a while so tonight we are ready for a fun night of rock and roll!
Rose Tattoo open the show and are ripping it up with basically a best of set. This is Aussie rock and roll and done well. It was short and sweet and everything you want it to be. They sound great and it’s always awesome to see these legends up there.
Now you all know how much I love The Struts. But seeing them support means their game is turned up, they’re here to impress, and that they will. Opening with ‘Primadonna Like Me’ what a choice!! They are firing and with that one as the opener I can tell this is going to be special, ‘Body Talks’ is next and it’s just going to be a reintroduction to the band after many years away. After a rockin’ outro we get ‘Fallin With Me’ which gets people involved and then ‘Too Good At Raising Hell’ hits and what a choice this early on. They’re just bringing out the bangers tonight as expected. ‘Kiss This’ is next and with each song the crowd warms more and it’s amazing to see, as was the title track to their new album ‘Pretty Vicious’ which went down a treat. Getting the crowd involved with some “oh yeahs” for ‘Put Your Money On Me’ and dividing the crowd up was awesome as they just continued to win the crowd over. ‘Could Have Been Me’ closes their set and I could see many loving what they just saw. “Ladies and gentlemen remember the fucking name. The Struts.”
Here we go, time for Slash. Straight into ‘The Rives Is Rising’ and it’s been a while so you almost forget just how good Myles Kennedy’s voice is. Man this guy has the chops. Not only are his chops good, this band is on fire. That’s how you start a show, and without missing a beat the take us straight into ‘Driving Rain’ and this is great. Slash starts ‘Halo’ which keeps things rockin’ along and when ‘Too Far Gone’ kicks in and the crowd love it you know that these guys have already won everyone over. What a track, and as Slash solos you just think man this guy is just where it’s at. Going all the way back to the first Slash record with ‘Back From Cali’ and some amazing harmony vocals from Todd Kerns really make this one pop. That was a treat. ‘Whatever Gets You By’ has a killer heavy riff and that was outstanding. Easily the best track so far; that was awesome. Slash throws on a Flying V and gets the talk box out for ‘C’est La Vie’ and again, this is killer. What a groove. Cowbell ringing in ‘Actions Speak Louder Than Words’ was amazing and then as Myles hands the mic over to Todd for ‘Always On The Run’ yes, that ‘Always On The Run’ by Lenny Kravitz that Slash helped pen, so hearing it tonight is pretty damn awesome. That was great. Excellent choice for the set.
Myles returns to the stage for ‘Bent to Fly’ and they loved that one as they did with ‘Mind Your Manners’ which is a frantic little tune and I dig it. Some fun crowd participation helps this one tick along. ‘Spirit Love’ gets trippy before rockin’ out then some deep cut Guns N Roses with ‘Bad Apples’ brings Todd back to front and presumably for the first time ever they belt it out like they’ve been playing it every night for years with an amazing guitar solo from Slash sent that one over the top. ‘Starlight’ gets Myles back and this slower one lets him sing and sing it so well. That was a highlight. ‘Wicked Stone’ keeps things upbeat and moving along and as the (second) best guitarist in the band throws on a guitar, Myles is chunking out some rhythm to fill this one out. An extremely long outro seeing the band just jamming and it’s so good to see but it’s still going.
Straight into ‘April Fool’ then a song from the newest album ‘Fill My World’ is easily one of the catchiest, hook laden tracks in the bands catalogue and my new favourite of the night. Todd is back on vocals for ‘Dr Alibi’ from the first Slash record which was unexpected and awesome. Getting towards the end of the set, ‘You’re A Lie’ is up and its heavy riff really owns it here tonight. That track has always been one of the best in their catalogue. ‘World on fire’ closes out the main set with a crowd singalong and the world’s longest band introductions before closing the song out as the band leave the stage for a quick rest.
Returning and shaking things up majorly with Slash on a lap steel, Fitz on keys for a cover of the Elton classic ‘Rocket Man’ which is a bold and amazing choice. Myles surely can sing anything and he nailed it. Closing out the set with ‘Anastasia’, Slash starts it solo before the band joins in and they close out the show with a bang. The band are jamming and Slash is just doing what he does best. That was an impressive set covering the bands catalogue with a few surprises thrown in, and if you just need an amazing night of live rock and roll, look no further than Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators.
Essential Information
Venue: The Hordern Pavilion
Date: February 24, 2024
Presented by: Destroy All Lines, TEG MJR
Supported By: Rose Tattoo, The Struts
Website: http://www.slashonline.com
Set List:
The River Is Rising
Driving Rain
Halo
Too Far Gone
Back From Cali
Whatever Gets You By
C’est la vie
Actions Speak Louder Than Words
Always on the Run
Bent to Fly
Mind Your Manners
Spirit Love
Bad Apples
Starlight
Wicked Stone
April Fool
Fill My World
Doctor Alibi
You’re a Lie
World on Fire
Rocket Man
Anastasia
