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Punching the Air

There's something fundamentally frightening about Air. The three guys are hardly menacing, but the frenzy they create is skull-rattling. Sure, any kid with a guitar and Marshall amp could kick up the same racket, but Air have this urgency that sends dozens of perfectly sane people up and over the mosh pit. The security were, uncharacteristically, cracking jokes with the audience before the show; little did they know what mayhem would head their way. The body surfers sometimes came three or four at time. Some even broke through the wall of USMC-certified beef and made it on to the stage. Veteran photographers, known to not lose THAT shot, kept one eye to the rear.

I'm still at a loss when describing Air's sound. It's anthemic noise, sometimes resembling thrash's intensity but never does it devolve to head-thrashing speed metal. It's a big, thick crunch. When you add a booming rhythm track, it's devastating as heard on the song ``Freedom." Fear struck as I expected the last guitar chord would send out a radioactive wave, melting everything in its path.

It didn't, but next time, I'm packing ear plugs.

Reported by mark  (2000,7.30 / 21:26)