Band:	Airbourne
Album:	Boneshaker
Style:	Hard rock
Release date:	October 25, 2019
Guest review by:	omne metallum

01. Boneshaker
02. Burnout The Nitro
03. This Is Our City
04. Sex To Go
05. Backseat Boogie
06. Blood In The Water
07. She Gives Me Hell
08. Switchblade Angel
09. Weapon Of War
10. Rock 'n' Roll For Life

The hype train left Airbourne at the station long ago, and at this stage in the band's career, they are hitchhiking album to album. Boneshaker is second-rate stuff from a second-rate AC/DC, passable but little more than that. A band I used to enjoy, I return to them after a leave of absence to see how things have changed.

Given this album comes twelve years and three albums after their debut album, I needn't delve into describing the band's sound. The band haven't changed in that regard, not that they had to anyway. The band do however sound short on ideas, which is odd given the well they draw inspiration from is far from dry.

Few moments from the album stand out for possessing anything of brilliance beyond one song and one solo. "Rock 'N' Roll For Life" sees fans go home happy, but it's the only time on the album the band sound like they have purpose, or piss and vinegar, in them. It's a great song but it does have the unfortunate side effect of leaving you wondering why the hell the rest of the album seems so pedestrian in comparison. The solo to "Boneshaker" is very Angus Young-sounding tone-wise; it's great regardless and worth hearing again.

The rest of the album is remarkable only by its lack of anything that moves the dial in either direction beyond three songs. Tracks like "This Is Our City" or "She Gives Me Hell" seem like another run through the same tired formula; given how full of life the band sounded on the last album I paid attention to (Black Dog Barking), it's startling to see what they have come to in the interim.

The other songs that moves the dial? "Sex To Go" has to be the stupidest song I've heard in ages. Aiming for AC/DC, they hit Steel Panther; it makes me want to move the volume dial to mute. The innuendo is as transparent as cling film, it just goes nowhere. "Weapon Of War" stands out with its spoken word introduction hitting one hell of a dark note for the band; you realise the band are trying to tackle a topic well beyond what you think is their purview. As admirable as it is, I just don't dig it. I give them kudos for trying though; it was a decent attempt.

The band match the music in terms of playing quality, nothing bad but then again nothing that sticks out as worthy of merit. The band play their instruments well and Joel O'Keefe can feign enthusiasm behind the microphone well if he has lost interest in what he is doing.

The band seem to be running out of fuel on each passing release, and how much longer until they stall and come to a halt on the highway to hell no one knows; given how much Boneshaker is running on fumes though, I can't say I'll be surprised if it's sooner rather than later.