Down Under rockers kick it up a few notches
Having the blood of outlaws and exiled criminals who first settled the Land Down Under pumping through your veins can breed some downright dangerous rock 'n' roll, as the four bands on the "Aussie Rock Tour" showed at Avalon last night. From the complicated psychedelics of The Vines, through the raw-riffed attack of Jet, and the impassioned rockabilly punk of the Living End, the night was an intense powerhouse of guitar feedback and torn up vocals that celebrated the genre in all its glory.
Headliners The Vines answered any doubts about the seriousness of its intentions, lingering since its last Boston performance erupted in a midset brawl between band members, with a set that was composed enough to let the songs shine, while still highlighting all of their quirky, free spirited power. Having shed his baby-faced, enfant terrible persona, singer/songwriter Craig Nicholls resembled a tension-wrought teenage Peter Pan, as he wrung distorted riffs from his guitar, tangling with his microphone repeatedly, but holding onto his remarkably arched falsetto vocals and Kurt Cobain styled yowls.
The band showed off its quiet-loud dynamic with the scratchy, hip-shaking guitar hook and sinewy vocals of "Ride" -- the first single from its second album, "Winning Days," due out next week -- the post-grunge guitar snarl up of "She's Got Something to Say," and the catchy vocal scrawl of "TV Pro." Nicholls closed the set in traditional rock fashion, by tossing his guitar and tearing down the bass drum. After a brief break, during which a faction of the crowd called out for Jet, The Vines delivered an encore including the guitar-washed "Mary Jane" and the band's breakout single, "Get Free," with its jaunty riffs and explosive chorus, both from the band's 2002 debut, "Highly Evolved."
While The Vines reveled in the messily nuanced diversity of its sound, Jet tore up subtlety in favor of a taut over-the-top rock tempest that was the night's crowd-pleaser. The band members sauntered onto stage, scruffy and puffing cigarettes. But they were all business as they launched into a poker-faced performance that began with an extended, heavy-hitting instrumental barrage of their trademark AC/DC-styled guitar riffs. The assault raged on during "Last Chance," with its venomous vocals and mortar blast of drums, and their strutting alternative-radio hit "Are You Gonna Be My Girl." They closed with a cover of "That's All Right," that was just as dirty and dangerous by today's standards as Elvis must have sounded when he delivered his version.
The Living End, a trio featuring resonant upright bass, riled up the room with their seamless, high-octane blend of punked up Stray Cats guitar and tart vocal harmonies that channeled the saltiness of British punks Generation X and the Undertones.
Kicking off the all-Australian extravaganza, the quartet Neon ranged from worn jangles of guitar-laced modern rock to moments that marshaled the heavy, vocal-driven assault of the Screaming Trees.
