[Review] Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Consiprators @ John Cain Arena, Melbourne 27/02/2024
Every once and a while, I have the opportunity to tap back into my rock and metal roots, reliving the nostalgia of listening to Guns N’ Roses, Slash, Myles Kennedy, and even Alter Bridge. At John Cain Arena, all of them combined into one, finally after so many years getting to catch Slash, with Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators, with the star’s special bonus of The Struts and Aussie legends Rose Tattoo.
It seemed only more than fitting to have Angry Anderson and his high-spirited charm open up the Melbourne show, as Rose Tattoo has never fallen short of putting on a solid, classic Aussie rock gig, and boy does Angry come alive with his charisma and never wavering vocals. As if this opening act couldn’t get better, Angry decided to unveil a surprise for us “early people”, and brought out none other than Slash for a few tracks, and you could tell that the frontman and the boys were thrilled to perform alongside such an iconic rock n’ roll figure. The night only got better from there as The Struts arrived to warm us up further, and I was nothing short of blown away. The stage presence of the UK hailing rockers was phenomenal, that at points reminded me of The Who. Whilst the entire ensemble shined in their energy and enthusiasm, Luke Spiller is a one in a thousand frontman. One you can’t take your eyes off of the way he dances and interacts with the crowd, engaging in call and responses and hyping everybody up flawlessly. If this is an energy The Struts can bring as a warm up act, I can only imagine how incredible a headline show would be.
If I can say anything about a show headed by Slash and Myles backed by the usual incredible ensemble, it’s that it’s exactly what you are expecting walking into it: nothing short of electric. It was a non-stop, 2 hour long stellar delivery that kept everyone moving in their seats and on their feet respectively. Slash never disappoints, for there’s a reason he’s a rock god. With the sheer presence of him and his signature Les Paul and top hat, his moves, and the fingers that never rest, flying across the fretboard like lightning. Myself, and seemingly everyone around me, never broke our gaze upon the inhuman guitarist during his many 10+ minute solos, leaving us with chills. Myles Kennedy shined as always, with an easily recognisable house that is still strong to this day and will be for the foreseeable future. His energy radiates this ‘cool’ that’s always great to watch, whilst also showing his wholesome side performing Fill My World inspired by his dog, encouraging the audience to hold up photos of their furry friends.
Todd Kerns, an incredible yet criminally underrated performer, was another highlight. His energy on stage is unmatched, and his foul language is as musical to my ears as Slash’s guitar craft, even also surprisingly jumping on the mic for a few covers and making that thing his bitch with his powerful vocals.
After a thunderous encore with a beautiful cover of Rocketman featuring Slash on the lap steel guitar, followed by the coolest riffs of Anastasia, the night came to a close, and I couldn’t even rest nor sleep even hours after the show, for Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators gave me a buzz unlike any other. My teenage rock n’ roll heart was pumping with excitement.
Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators The River Is Rising – Rest Of The Wold Tour ’24 With Special Guests
SLASH FEAT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS will be heading to Australia in February 2024 as part of The River Is Rising-Rest of the World Tour ’24 with special guests THE STRUTS and ROSE TATTOO.
A decade and four albums into their career, the universally acclaimed album 4 -which charted at #2 on the ARIA album chart also debuted as the #1 Most-Selling Hard Rock Album–is SMKC like you’ve never heard them before. A vibrant rock album fuelled by memorable guitar hooks and compelling melodies, big choruses, and even bigger riffs, 4 hits on a wide range of sounds, styles, and moods in 10 songs, and does it all with laser-sharp musical focus and a lightning-in-a-bottle sense of immediacy.
The fourth studio album from SMKC and SLASH’s fifth solo album overall, SLASH and his bandmates MYLES KENNEDY (Vocals), TODD KERNS (Bass & Vocals), BRENT FITZ (Drums), and FRANK SIDORIS (Guitar & Vocals), partnered with producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile), on 4 resulting in the band’s strongest album to date. Recorded at RCA Studio A in Nashville, Cobb shared the band’s desire to lay down the tracks live in the studio–including guitar solos and vocals–revealing a stunning, vital sound and style all captured live.
The album kicks off with opening track The River is Rising is one of the band’s toughest and most dynamic compositions to date, unravelling via a menacing, tightly-coiled riff and deep-in-the-pocket groove. April Fool followed the successful first single The River Is Rising. SMKC performed The River Is Rising which Rolling Stone hailed as “raucous” and Billboard acclaimed as “euphoric” with “a surging main riff, dissonant hooks, an infectious chorus, and a guitar solo that conjures images of a rowdy bar brawl” on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
4 is a standout album that grabs hold, and never lets go, from the deliberate stomp rock of Whatever Gets You By, the bright-toned, heart-on-sleeve pop-rocker Fill My World, to the talk box-drenched guitar hooks of C’est La Vie, exotica-tinged psychedelic fever dream of Spirit Love, the anthemic swell of The Path Less Followed, to the cowbell-inflected boogie-shake of Actions Speak Louder Than Words, the grimy Aerosmith-esque funk of April Fool, to the rampaging attack of Call Off the Dogs, and climaxing with the epic, six minute album closer Fall Back to Earth.
4 has generated some of the most positive critical accolades in the group’s history including:
“musically stinging crunch-rock… beautifully melodic.”- USA Today
“On 4, the fourth record by Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, he [Slash] captured the mojo he was after by recording most of the album live in a mere 10 days at Nashville’s RCA Studio A… For Slash, recording off the cuff was as liberating as he had hoped it would be, and not second-guessing himself contributed to the album’s eclecticism. There’s the heart-aching power ballad ‘Fall Back to Earth’ the glam-banging ‘Actions Speak Louder Than Words’ and the euphoric first single, ‘The River Is Rising,’ which features a surging main riff, dissonant hooks, an infectious chorus and a guitar solo that conjures images of a rowdy bar brawl.” – Billboard
“From the insistent churn of the opening track and first single ‘The River Is Rising,’ to the slippery funk rhythms of ‘April Fool,’ the dinosaur-sized stomp of ‘Whatever Gets You By’ to the off-to-the-races sprint of ‘Call Of The Dogs,’ 4 hits with the immediacy of a great live show. …Slash & Co color outside the lines on tracks like the slinky, Eastern-tinged ‘Spirit Love’ and the uncharacteristically major-key pop-rock workout ‘Fill My World,’ as well as the widescreen epic ballad ‘Fall Back to Earth’ which closes the record in dramatic fashion. Overall, it’s a leaner, harder and more expansive take on the SMKC sound.” – Guitar World
“The whole album is a masterpiece. If you want to know what real rock-and-roll sounds like, crack it up nice and loud.” – Metal Insider
“The ‘River Is Rising’ marks the first new music in three years from Slash and his band, and it doesn’t disappoint. There’s a metallic stomp to the track, which opens with a tremolo riff that would be at home in a black metal song. From there, quintet lock into a four-on-the-floor groove as Kennedy alternates between epic singing and cleaner melodies during the chorus. Overall, there’s plenty to satiate both hard rock and metal fans”. – Consequence Of Sound
Special guests are British rockers, THE STRUTS. They have been a live sensation since they first erupted onto the scene with their certified Platinum anthem, Could’ve Been Me, introducing the world to their triumphant, timeless rock sound. Following the release of their critically-acclaimed debut, 2016’s Everybody Wants, they set out on the road, bringing their energetic tracks alive on stage with larger-than-life performances and cementing their reputation as a must-see live act.
They’ve opened for the likes of The Rolling Stones, Foo Fighters, and Guns N’ Roses, while selling out shows across the globe and leaving a trail of unbridled rock collections. Their on-stage prowess and perpetual musicality have allowed them to reach the No. 1 Spot on Spotify’s Viral Top 50, more than 850M on-demand streams, and put them in the studio collaborating with Kesha, Tom Morello, Robbie Williams, Def Leppard and more.
ROSE TATTOO is one of Australia’s most revered rock bands fronted by Angry Anderson. Hailing from the late ‘70s and eight studio albums under their belts, their first four albums yielded the hits Bad Boy For Love, Rock ‘n’ Roll Outlaw, Nice Boys and Scarred for Life and have persisted with many changes over the decades. They were inducted into the ARIA Hall Of Fame in 2006 and in 1993 re-formed to open for Guns N Roses on their Australian tour.
Grab your ticket and catch SLASH FEAT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS, THE STRUTS and ROSE TATTOO live in action when they bring their powerful, explosive, and high energy at a show near you.
Early Bird Pre-Sale Tickets On Sale: Thursday 2nd November @ 12pm local time
Sign up to access early bird pre-sale tickets – https://daltours.cc/SLMKC24
General tickets on sale: Friday 3rd November @ 12pm local time
Tickets from destroyalllines.com
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SLASH FEAT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS:
THE RIVER IS RISING – REST OF THE WORLD TOUR ‘24
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS THE STRUTS & ROSE TATTOO
TOUR DATES:
THURSDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2024 – ADELAIDE ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE, ADELAIDE
SATURDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2024 – HORDERN PAVILION, SYDNEY
SUNDAY 25 FEBRUARY 2024 – RIVERSTAGE, BRISBANE
TUESDAY 27 FEBRUARY – JOHN CAIN ARENA, MELBOURNE
General tickets on sale: Friday 3rd November @ 12pm local time
Tickets from destroyalllines.com
Slash Ft Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators Announce New Album ‘4’ To Be Released February 11, 2022
A decade and four albums into their career, Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators haven’t been deterred by any obstacles in their path–including a global pandemic. Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators have announced today they’ll release their new album titled 4 on February 11, 2022, via Gibson Records, in partnership with Sony Music Australia. 4 is Slash's fifth solo album, and fourth overall with his band featuring Myles Kennedy (Vocals), Brent Fitz (Drums), Todd Kerns (Bass & Vocals) and Frank Sidoris (Guitar & Vocals).
PRE-ORDER 4 HERE
A vibrant rock album fueled by memorable guitar hooks and compelling melodies, big choruses, and even bigger riffs; 4 builds on the legacy of Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators’ prior work. That sensibility comes through immediately on the opening track and the first single, The River Is Rising. The group has unleashed The River Is Rising.
Slash describes the creation of the song The River Is Rising, “There’s two or three songs on the record that were written during the pandemic; everything else was written before. ‘The River is Rising’ was one of the last songs I wrote before we started pre-production, and because it was so fresh and has a certain groove and energy to it, it was the first thing we really attacked. It’s the newest song on the record, and as for the double-time part, that was something that I came up with and tagged onto the end of the arrangement. Then when we were over at RCA, Dave Cobb suggested we do it right after the breakdown. So, we went straight into the fast part and I just started doing the guitar solo over it. It was one of those things where we were jamming around, trying to fish out the arrangement, and it just happened.” While Myles Kennedy adds, “The lyric ultimately explores how humans can be brainwashed or indoctrinated by some sort of dangerous idea. Once we shot the demo back and forth a few times I personally felt confident that we had the album opener. To me, it’s an important track.”
For 4, Slash and the band traveled across the country together to Nashville, TN and recorded the new album at the historic RCA Studio A with producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile), revealing a stunning new sound and style all captured live in the studio. Cobb shared the band’s desire to lay down the tracks live in the studio including guitar solos and vocals–a first for the group. The band’s previous albums over the last decade Apocalyptic Love (#2 ARIA Album Chart Debut), World on Fire (#2 ARIA Album Chart Debut) and Living The Dream (#4 ARIA Album Chart Debut) have continued on an upward trajectory all achieving Top 5 ARIA and Billboard charting debuts and reaching the Top 10 on 12 major charts across the globe.To date, the three SMKC albums have now garnered 10 consecutive Top 5 Radio singles, spawned sold out world tours, and have earned SLASH and the band the best critical acclaim of their career with their latest album Living The Dream (2018) singled out by the Los Angeles Times, Classic Rock, Guitar World, Loudwire, LA Weekly and more, as their best songs to date.
The band has launched a DSP and physical pre-order in the following formats for 4 including: a Deluxe Vinyl Box Set featuring a vinyl gatefold jacket in four colours (Black, Red, Blue, and Purple), randomly distributed inside a mirrored O-card. Each vinyl is 140g black vinyl and comes with a guitar pick, an Axe Heaven Custom Limited Edition 4 Slash Les Paul Mini-Guitar, CD softpack in one of the four colours above (also random) the O-card and a guitar pick, a Cassette Tape featuring an exclusive 4-song live rehearsal titled Live Rehearsal Tape 5/28/21, a 36-page photobook including an SMKC interview and handwritten lyrics, an embroidered sew-on patch, a Signed Lithograph and a pick tin with 4 custom Slash guitar picks. A Deluxe CD Box Set, a full album Cassette Tape and Standard Vinyl and CD packages are also available. To view the full variety of 4 album packages available, go to: http://www.slashonline.com.
Pre-Order 4 from JB HiFi and enter the competition for your chance to win a Slash signature edition Les Paul Epiphone Guitar, signed by Slash.
The new album 4 has the added history-making distinction of being the first-ever album to be released on the new Gibson Records label which is headquartered in the iconic American instrument brand Gibson’s hometown of Music City, Nashville, TN. In light of the 30-year partnership between Gibson and the GRAMMY Award-winning, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Slash, it makes sense the new Slash Ft Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators' album 4 will be released via Gibson Records–in partnership with Sony Music Australia.
In another groundbreaking move, Gibson will commemorate Slash Ft Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators' first studio album with Gibson Records, with a first-ever limited–edition Slash Les Paul Standard 4 Album Edition guitar package that will be released on February 11, 2022, the same day as the album release. Only 250 Slash Les Paul Standard 4 Album Edition guitars will be made available for global release on www.gibson.com and at select authorized Gibson dealers, and the unique guitar package also features the new SMKC album 4 on vinyl with an exclusive case inside that houses the vinyl, a 4 album guitar pick tin containing a variety of pick colours (8 count), a signed SMKC band portrait, and a 4 album decal sticker.
ABOUT SLASH AND SMKC:
Slash–the iconic, GRAMMY-winning, American rock guitarist, songwriter and film producer–has amassed album sales of over 100 million copies, garnered a GRAMMY Award and seven GRAMMY nominations, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and is a New York Times Best-selling author. Slash is considered one of the greatest rock guitar players of all time and one of the most recognisable faces in pop culture worldwide. Time Magazine placed Slash at #2 (Jimi Hendrix was #1) in its list, 'The 10 Greatest Electric Guitar Players.' Slash created signature sounds like the guitar riff on #1 hits for Guns N’ Roses Sweet Child o’ Mine and Welcome To The Jungle. After leaving the band, Slash went on to critical acclaim with Slash’s Snakepit and global success with the supergroup Velvet Revolver before embarking on his own solo career. After landing on the top of the charts with his first solo album, Slash (2010)–which featured Ozzy Osbourne, Fergie, Myles Kennedy and more–he formed his current band Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators (SMKC)–which features Myles Kennedy (lead vocals), Brent Fitz (drums), Todd Kerns (bass/vocals) and Frank Sidoris (rhythm guitar)–who’ve been touring worldwide and making music together non-stop for over a decade. Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators (SMKC) released their debut album, the critically acclaimed Apocalyptic Love (2012) which stormed the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart debuting at #4 on the overall chart as well as the #1 Top Rock album, and spawned Slash and the band’s first-ever #1 solo radio hits You’re A Lie and Standing In The Sun. The band’s second album, World On Fire (2016) debuted to global praise and the album’s title track, World On Fire ascended to #1 at U.S. Rock Radio. In 2016, Guns N’ Roses re-united and Slash joined Axl Rose and Duff McKagan for the historic and ongoing world tour which Billboard magazine now ranks as the third highest grossing tour of all time. Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators' most recent release is their critically–acclaimed third album Living The Dream (2018) which Rolling Stone declared “a biting blues filigree at the end of a riff, weeping solos full of long notes and boogie-woogie riffs” and the Los Angeles Times added is full of “unexpected funk, boogie, blues and garage rock influences.” Living The Dream debuted with 10, Top 10 Chart placements across the globe and fueled by the Top 5 song Driving Rain, and the single Mind Your Manners was hailed by critics as the best songs of the band’s career. By the end of SMKC’s worldwide tour in 2019, Slash Ft. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators had achieved seven, consecutive, Top 10 Hit singles at radio. The group’s first new music in three years, Slash (guitars) and Myles Kennedy (lead vocals) along with their fellow co-Conspirators—Todd Kerns (bass), drummer Brent Fitz (drums) and Frank Sidoris (rhythm guitar)–will release their new album 4 via Gibson Records in partnership with Sony Music Australia–on February 11, 2022. The new album 4, is co-produced by Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Jason Isbell, John Prine, Brandi Carlile), was recorded at the famed RCA Studio A in Nashville, TN, and will be Slash’s fifth solo album overall and the fourth album to feature Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators; watch the teaser clip here.