Supports: Darker Half and Sabïre.
Manning Bar, Sydney University
Saturday, 8th of June, 2019.
English rock singer Graham Bonnet has a pretty decent ongoing profile in Australia. Returning to our shores for a quick three date run of shows of Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney meant that tonight’s show was the last of the Australian dates. With the tour coined as the Graham Bonnet Band with Alcatrazz tour, it was also the classic Rainbow album of Down to Earth being played in full that added an extra draw to hearing Alcatrazz, Michael Schenker Group, Impellitteri and solo career songs. The new line-up of Alcatrazz was reportedly excellent and so many musicians in the audience were keen to hear reputable renditions of virtuoso guitar parts originally played by Yngwie Malmsteen and Ritchie Blackmore. Some older fans not familiar with Bonnet’s heavier material of the eighties may have been intrigued by the pending onslaught of guitar but regardless, Down to Earth wasn’t short of soloing so it shouldn’t have been a shock to anyone.
Prior to that though, it is safe to say that the glam metal band Sabïre might have been somewhat surprising for some. Front man guitarist and vocalist, Scarlett Monastyrski is heavily influenced by Blackie Lawless of W.A.S.P so his over confident stage banter was probably a bit jarring at first. The local four piece favoured guitar solos that were more of the flashy variety with reverse whammy bar antics from Monastyrski on his pointy, Racer X era guitar whilst lead guitarist and backing vocalist, Ivor Radocaj also added in some slower, clean sounding introductions on his flying V when not playing quick solos. Falsetto vocals were on hand for song such as ‘Demon’s Calling’ with a good dose of 80’s heavy metal style.
Style, if you can call it that, included spandex, sleeveless denim jackets, choreographed moves of swaying with guitars in tandem and cardboard placards with hand-written key words plucked from the lyrics. Ironically, the drumming and bass playing of Paul Corben and Zoran Mrakic respectively had a certain Motörhead vibe and whilst they were plenty of finger tapping guitar solos, some thrash metal aspects similar to early Megadeth was evident. Still, the subtle as a brick, ‘I’m a Rock’ had more of that 80’s feel as did their last track, ‘Rise to the Top’ with a drums and vocals introduction to encourage handclaps from the audience. Sabïre then concluded their set with Monastyrski’s mock guitar smashing routine which was more comical than actual stage craft.
Matters improved when four piece Darker Half hit the stage. The Sydney band had clearly worked hard at improving their sound as it has gotten better with a more focussed attack. Opening with ‘Aliens Exist’ from the Classified EP and then ‘Heaven’s Falling’ brought about some decent falsetto from vocalist and guitarist, Steve ‘Vo’ Simpson. Upcoming new album track, ‘Into the Shadows’ featured some china cymbal work from drummer Dominic Simpson.
The four piece’s brand of power metal was in solid form and the twin harmony guitar lines shared between Simpson and lead guitarist Daniel Packovski were employed judiciously when they weren’t trading guitar solos. The galloping rhythm section, which included Simon Hamilton on bass, got heavier through the set and also provided some decent backing vocals. Some crowd interaction, varied pace of songs and strong vocal vibrato made Darker Half’s set work well with ‘Glass Coloured Rose’ working nicely before the finished off their set with ‘Stranger’ from Never Surrender. They said they came to play some heavy metal and that is precisely what they did. They did not, however, prove that aliens exist.
A good five piece stage set was revealed during the headliner changeover with a keyboard riser, bass amplifier, drum riser with a single kick drum equipped kit, a vintage guitar amplifier slanted cabinet half stack and some spare guitars. It wasn’t an over the top set up by any means but as soon as Graham Bonnet appeared in leather jacket and sunglasses, the huge set list was off and racing.
Starting with the Down to Earth album being played in full, it of course kicked off with ‘Eyes of the World’ and guitarist Joe Stump, whose Blackmore influence is self-explanatory, tore into the dramatic Rainbow opener playing the guitar solo perfectly on his nicely finished, scalloped fingerboard, Stratocaster styled ESP guitar. Keyboardist Jimmy Waldo, who is also an original Alcatrazz member alongside Bonnet, synchronised his keyboard lines with Stump whilst bassist and backing vocalist Beth-Ami Heavenstone, in silver spandex, provided strong vocals and solid bass lines.
Hit song ‘All Night Long’ got the big chorus vibe going and a bit of Blackmore lean at centre stage from Stump during the brief but brief but expressive solo whereas drummer Mark Benquechea delivered a great snare sound plus some shimmering cymbals with the shuffle feel. Bonnet’s many interactions of banter started up and he revealed that there were lyrics out in front on floor as some songs had not been done in decades. The bluesy ‘Love’s No Friend’ and rock centric ‘Danger Zone’ soon attained some Malmsteen licks whilst Bonnet and Heavenstone leaned into each other during their parts.
The gentler song ‘Makin’ Love’ featured some slide guitar but the hit song of ‘Since You Been Gone’ worked well with the recognisable chord based riff, harmony vocals and a well-played, country tinged guitar solo. The gritty boogie of ‘No Time to Lose’ ushered in the album part of the show highlight which was of course, ‘Lost in Hollywood’. It is a great, fluid song that saw Bonnet more confident with familiar material and pushing his vocal performance. Waldo’s classically influenced interlude introduced Stump’s sweeping solo before the unison parts and then an extended solo spot from Stump using an octave pedal and some classic guitar rock poses including using his teeth and inverting the guitar upside down to the stage floor and whilst pointing and kneeling before the chorus reprised to complete the album set.
Offering up a 1977 Countdown anecdote, Bonnet then strapped on an acoustic guitar to present a partially acoustic part of the show with starting with Bob Dylan’s ‘It’s All Over Now Baby Blue’ complemented by Stump’s tasteful guitar solo with wide bends and a phaser effect. A band tacit saw Bonnet play a portion of his hit single of ‘Warm Ride’ and then ‘Only One Woman’, the vintage Bee Gees penned track from 1968 duo, The Marbles.
Rock mode resumed and it was all aboard for a set consisting primarily of Bonnet’s eighties era tracks. Interestingly, the Alcatrazz material was only from the first album, No Parole from Rock ‘n’ Roll, but then no one really wants to attempt to take on playing Steve Vai’s solo parts. ‘Too Young to Die’ had Malmsteen’s solo parts authentically played as were the smashing drums and sustained vocals. Plenty of falsetto and wide, high vibrato guitar playing continued with the hit ‘Hiroshima Mon Amour’ and saw Stump playing the classic solo’s melodic, fast passages and adding theatrical drama with performance mannerisms as the solo built pace with accented notes.
‘Jet to Jet’ rocked out and included some band member introductions whilst the pop infused, keyboard and vocal driven ‘Island in the Sun’ let Stump off the chain with some whammy pulls and bending the guitar neck. ‘Kree Nakoorie’ got progressively heavier whilst the higher vocal line led the way for a backlit and extended guitar solo which was a crescendo of guitar virtuosity.
By comparison, the Michael Schenker Group track, ‘Desert Song’ was straight ahead and less bombastic than the Malmsteen material, even with a fast pentatonic guitar solo. From then on, the remaining songs in the set were largely a mixture of Michael Schenker Group, Graham Bonnet Band and Impellitteri tracks. ‘Night Games’ from his 1981 solo album Line-Up was an decent, chorus driven track bolstered by backing vocals from Waldo and Heavenstone.
Recounting the end of his alcoholism, the slow groove of ‘Rock You to the Ground’ got Stump’s wah pedal copping a workout. The shredding resumed for a cover of Impellitteri’s ‘Stand in Line’ with some falsetto vocals of the era from Bonnet, neo-classical infused speed from Stump and twirling drumsticks. It segued rather well with the catchy, seemingly ‘Thunderstruck’ influenced Blackthorne project track ‘We Won’t Be Forgotten’.
Two more Graham Bonnet Band tracks followed with ‘Long Island Tea’ and ‘Into the Night’, both of which had melodic, vocal harmonies. Between those tracks, the Assault Attack title track from Bonnet’s doomed tenure with the Michael Schenker Group was another set highlight as Stump rocked his wah pedal and Bonnet offered up a last bit of aggression in vocal delivery.
To conclude the mammoth set, the aptly titled Impellitteri track, ‘Goodnight and Goodbye’ closed it out admirably with plenty of bombast from all band members. Bonnet and crew crammed around twenty six songs into a set that was over two and a half hours long. For anyone into hard rock, classic rock, heavy metal and virtuoso guitar playing, seeing the friendly Graham Bonnet live was worthwhile and highly entertaining.
Eyes of the World
All Night Long
Love’s No Friend
Danger Zone
Makin’ Love
Since You Been Gone
No Time to Lose
Lost in Hollywood
It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
Warm Ride
Only One Woman
Too Young to Die, Too Drunk to Live
Hiroshima Mon Amour
Jet to Jet
Starcarr Lane
Island in the Sun
Kree Nakoorie
Desert Song
Night Games
Rock You to the Ground
Stand in Line
We Won’t Be Forgotten
Long Island Tea
Assault Attack
Into the Night
Goodnight and Goodbye.