Airborne have returned with their third full length album Black Dog Barking and if you are at all familiar with any of Airbrush’s past output and/or live shows, you can undoubtedly expect one thing; pure and unrelenting, breakneck, fist pumping, balls to the wall rock and roll! If you can say anything about the unashamedly AC/DC worshipping Airborne and the ten tracks they’ve produced on Black Dog Barking, they know what works for them here and they have perfected it to an rotator.
In fact, the bar has been set so high on this album that I really can’t see how the band can outdo themselves on their next effort. The production has also been well and truly turned up a notch since ass’s No Guts No Glory, every riff, lyric and drum beat sounding more polished than ever before. After a sing-along intro. The self-explanatory first song, ‘Ready to Rock, sets the tone exactly how rock fans would expect, immediately grabbing you by the scruff of the neck and preparing you for the onslaught that follows.
Familiar below-the-belt themes make an re- appearance on Woman Like That’ and ‘No One Fits Me (Better than You)’ and sure-to- be certain party-starters ‘Mammalian’ and ‘Firepower get the foot tapping and head banging at a frenetic pace. “Live It up”, the first single from the album, begins with a riff quite reminiscent of “For Those About to Rock’, accompanied by sounds of soaring aircraft and air sirens, lulling the listener into a false sense of security before kicking into what becomes another great rock anthem and perfect choice for first single and USIA video. Hungry’ is a definite album highlight for me. Starting with flamenco- style guitar flourishes, It quickly turns into a song much Like Motley Cruse’s Kickstand My Heart’ but even more lively and energetic If that Is even possible. Album closer and title track ‘Black Dog Barking’ unrelentingly puts an end to proceedings, not before funneling the listener to submission with some amazing guitar solos and a chorus you’ll be singing along to long after the song has finished. It’s almost