Australian rock band Airbourne have many gigs under their belt all over the world, but this didn’t stop them from putting on another fantastic performance at the Manchester Academy on Saturday night.
Founded by brothers Joel and Ryan O’Keeffe in 2001 in Warranambool, they have evolved into the four-piece we see today, having been joined by Justin Street in 2004 and Jarrad Morrice in 2022. Their sound is described as hard rock and heavy metal, with some of their influences being AC/DC and Motörhead, the latter of which they have supported at shows before.
The Academy welcomed the opening act Black Spiders
Singer Pete Spiby asked the audience to put their middle fingers up, which seemed to be something they do at most of their concerts as some people already had them up. The band would shout ‘fuck you Manchester’, and the crowd would retort with ‘fuck you Black Spiders’. This was funny to watch and great audience participation.
To end their set, Black Spiders riled up the crowd with promises of Airbourne coming out, then shouted ‘see you later motherfuckers’ as they left the stage.
Then it was time for Airbourne. Spotlights illuminated the massive Marshall speakers on stage, and the band ran out to screams and applause from the fans. Joel was topless and already sweaty as they played ‘Ready to Rock’, which was the perfect song to begin with, being energetic and lively.
People began throwing their drinks towards the stage, which caught Joel’s attention, who in turn grabbed two water bottles and launched them into the rowdy audience.
Airbourne really hyped up the crowd at the Manchester Academy on Saturday and left a great impression on me. As someone who wasn’t a fan before, I definitely am now!
