Volbeat<\/span><\/strong>
\nAirbourne<\/span><\/strong>
\nCrobot<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Venue<\/strong>: Jyske Bank Boxen
\nLocation<\/strong>: Herning, Denmark
\nDate<\/strong>: 19th of October, 2016<\/p>\n

By the look of it, this is indeed going to be an evening of rock’n’roll. Of varying degrees of hardness, naturally. The 15.000 or so capacity venue Jyske Bank Boxen was apparently sold out in a mere\u00a0ten minutes, which shows you just how strong a foothold VOLBEAT<\/strong> have gained in their home country. And it’s certainly well-deserved. Michael Poulsen and drummer Jon Larsen have stuck to their guns since the turn of the millennium, and it has paid off. The first time I saw them, they played in front of 30 people. The next time in front of 10.000 Germans. The time after that in front of 60 or 70 thousand people at Wacken. What a ride.<\/p>\n

Artistically, Volbeat have fallen into the\u00a0temptation of\u00a0nurturing a\u00a0more commercial sound, and ‘Beyond Hell…’ and ‘Outlaw Gentlemen…’ in particular suffered from that, but I personally think that the latest effort, ‘Seal the Deal & Let’s Boogie’, is a return to form and nerve. Let’s see if Volbeat can show some nerve on stage tonight as well, shall we? But first it’s time to see what the two support bands have on offer.<\/p>\n

CROBOT<\/strong> from the States is one of Nuclear Blast’s recent signings in the genre of retro hardrock. I can see why Nuclear Blast\u00a0have faith in them. Especially the front man and the bassist\u00a0put an energetic effort into entertaining the crowd. The crowd, obviously, are not here to listen to Crobot, but there is a decent response from a couple of hundred of those who have bothered to arrive early. Frequent readers of this site will know that I have long since grown tired of retro hardrock bands, but I’m certain that the American hopefuls haven’t made any enemies on this Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n

AIRBOURNE<\/strong> have already made themselves quite a reputation as the heirs to AC\/DC’s throne. Again, it’s understandable. The band is indeed\u00a0pure energy, and the only thing that, in my humble opinion, stands in their way\u00a0of gigantic success is their lack of originality. As much as you can be little else than\u00a0 overwhelmed by the positive energy around Joel O’Keeffe and his headbanging compadres, this is just AC\/DC over and over again. For someone like myself who’s never really been the biggest fan of the Australian rock veterans, it’s just not overly exciting.<\/p>\n

Having not quite established themselves here in our wee country, the general sentiment among the crowd is one of polite cheerfulness\u00a0here in the by now full Boxen.<\/p>\n

O’Keeffe does score a few extra points when he is carried on the shoulders of a roadie from the stage to the mixer in the middle of the arena. Cool move.
\nThe audience never really ignites during this gig, but, honestly, it’s not Airbourne’s fault. They deliver the goods. Had this been Germany, I reckon it would have turned out differently.<\/p>\n

$\"airbourne02\"$
\nJoel\u00a0O’Keeffe – the man in the middle (photo<\/strong> \u00a9Thomas Paick)<\/span><\/p>\n

After two support bands, you can now sense the audience is more than ready for the evening’s main attraction. As Mot\u00f6rhead’s Born to Raise Hell booms from the PA, we’re finally there. The intro riff from Devil’s Bleeding Crown billows over us and the skeleton-Elvis-with-wings curtain falls. Revealed is a stage setup that is worthy of Metallica and Maiden and tonight, VOLBEAT<\/strong> display exactly how used they have become to stages like that. As always in the centre of attention, Michael Poulsen seems relaxed, yet focused and, above all, happy. Behind him, his trusted right hand, the rhythm machine, Jon, is working away on the drums. To his left, the newest member of the band, bassist Kasper Boye Larsen, displays calm solidity and seems to have fallen right into place since he replaced Anders Kj\u00f8lholm earlier this year. On Poulsen’s right, Rob Caggiano, the former Anthrax guitarist and producer, is his usual cool.<\/p>\n