THE SOUTHERN RIVER BAND (Live)

at The Think Tank, Newcastle, U.K., November 22, 2024

THE SOUTHERN RIVER BAND (Live at The Think Tank, Newcastle, U.K., November 22, 2024)
Photo: Mick Burgess

They may have been left hungry by a long and fruitless wait for food in a local Thai restaurant but not only did this seem to fire the Aussie rockers up even more but provided a great source of banter from the stage throughout their set.

There’s something undeniably lovable about Aussie rock ‘n’ roll. It’s fast, it’s furious and the simplicity of it is totally addictive but above all, it’s just good fun and that’s what music is all about, having fun and this evening, there was a lot of fun to be had.

“Cigarettes (Ain’t Helping Me None)” kicks things off in rambunctious style with lead singer/guitarist Callum Kramer, he of the flying mullet and fine tache, an absolute firestorm of rock ‘n’ roll energy and a star in the making.

The slower Boogie of “Watch Yourself (You’re Going To Get Hurt)” gave a moment to catch the breath before the onstage banter came thick and faster and came back from the crowd too much to the clear delight of Kramer. When bassist Pat Smith asked in bafflement why Newcastle is called “Newcastle-upon-Tyne” and then suggested that Newcastle in Australia should be called “Newcastle on the Beach” it was a moment of genuine hilarity in its timing and delivery. If the door to the delights of rock ‘n’ roll slams shut, there is surely a place in the world of comedy for these affable chaps.

Such was the connection between band and crowd, a punter walked through the packed venue with a tray of Fireball shots for the band and proceeded to drink a toast with them on stage.

It wasn’t all jokes and banter though as were plenty of seriously hot rockin’ tunes to keep the temperature at boiling point with “Let It Ride” and an absolutely frantic “Stan Qualen” sending the rockometer through the roof.

“Vice City II” with its nice Lizzy-esq harmonies took the show into the final straits while “Chimney”, a song about smoking and drinking, delivered the rock ‘n’ roll coup de grace. Catch these guys while you can as they won’t be inhabiting small, sweaty clubs like this for long.

Author

  • Mick Burgess

    Mick is a reviewer and photographer here at Metal Express Radio, based in the North-East of England. He first fell in love with music after hearing Jeff Wayne's spectacular The War of the Worlds in the cold winter of 1978. Then in the summer of '79 he discovered a copy of Kiss Alive II amongst his sister’s record collection, which literally blew him away! He then quickly found Van Halen I and Rainbow's Down To Earth, and he was well on the way to being rescued from Top 40 radio hell!   Over the ensuing years, he's enjoyed the Classic Rock music of Rush, Blue Oyster Cult, and Deep Purple; the AOR of Journey and Foreigner; the Pomp of Styx and Kansas; the Progressive Metal of Dream Theater, Queensrÿche, and Symphony X; the Goth Metal of Nightwish, Within Temptation, and Epica, and a whole host of other great bands that are too numerous to mention. When he's not listening to music, he watches Sunderland lose more football (soccer) matches than they win, and occasionally, if he has to, he goes to work as a property lawyer.

    View all posts

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.