The Anvil, Bournemouth
It’s Air Show weekend in Bournemouth and during the day the town is full of tourists watching the Red Arrows flip and fly in the sky, whereas in the evening the local reprobates settle down to a riffed out Rock ‘n Roll show. Thuum start the groove with a full on set of bad ass tunes. You wouldn’t know it’s their first ever gig as they unleash their own brand of sludged-up madness for the sold out Anvil. The local boys tear things up big style and I can see a lot more Thuum gigs in my future.
Up next up were XII Boar, one of my all-time favourite bands. They didn’t waste any time in getting the crowd amped up to the max. They treated us to a ton of new songs from their new album and I gotta say they boogie-rock the freakin roof off. A couple of technical difficulties hamper an otherwise killer set that included the new single “Tuck stop baby”!
Oxford stalwarts Desert Storm up the ante even more and the groove packed riffs flow like lava from an active volcano… slow and red hot. Every time I see this band they are better than the last, the music and show were just immense. Excellent riffs and a low end groove shook the basement as they finished their set with the Mastodon like Enslaved in the Icy Tundra.
The night’s headliners are the lords and masters of the mighty riff Karma To Burn. For those not in the know, they don’t name their songs, they number them (see set List below) but the albums all have names. They are touring the new Opus Arch Stanton which is the name of the grave next to “unknown” where the gold is buried in the climatic end-sequence of the classic Clint Eastwood flick “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly”.
The years of experience showed as Karma To Burn delivered a tight set, honed to perfection. All the tracks are instrumental but were played with a passion and energy that never made you think that they would be any better with vocals added. This was the second time they have played here and by all accounts this gig was far superior in attendance as the crowd bounced shoulder to shoulder in the Anvilís sweaty confines and loved every minute of it.
What a night and what a top notch gig, as XII Boar frontman Tommy Hard rock would scream “OOOHHH YEAH, SHAKE THAT BOOTY”.
Words and photos: Dan O’Gara
