Aerosmith @ Calling Festival - Clapham Common, London - June 28 2014 (Live Review)
Tuesday, 01 July 2014
Written by Gemma Johnson
Photos: Gemma Johnson
And so it begins. It’s pissing down, naturally, but the downpour can’t dampen an incendiary set from Heaven’s Basement. Onlookers gather by the minute, bouncing with enthusiasm to better known tracks Fire, Fire and I Am Electric, before the band’s raucous frontman Aaron Buchanan enters the crowd for a quick handstand.
Every festival needs its nostalgia-inducing, lovable uncles, so cue the dad rock moves as Thunder fulfil that role. Old classics Dirty Love and Love Walked In set the tone for a band that, unlike a lot of their peers, still look like they’re having the time of their lives.
Richie Sambora needs no introduction. The former Bon Jovi axeman is back and appears stronger than ever, arriving accompanied by Aussie guitarist Orianthi and armed with a handful of tracks from 2012’s ‘Aftermath Of The Lowdown’. It’s Wanted Dead Or Alive what puts the icing on the cake today, though.
Hotshot guitar heroes come thick and fast at Calling, but none are cooler than Joe Bonamassa. Suited and booted, signature Gibson poised, the New York bluesman belts through The Ballad Of John Henry and Sloe Gin in effortless fashion.
Rock ‘n’ roll swagger, check! Sprayed on pants, you got it! Saturday’s main stage headliners, Aerosmith, don’t fuck about. Screams crescendo at ear-piercing volume as Steven Tyler and Joe Perry stare out into the crowd before storming straight into Mama Kin.
The bromantic bond between Tyler and Perry is electric and tonight they share a microphone and sing like it’s their last time around. Dude Looks Like A Lady and Walk This Way go down a treat, but are upstaged by a cover of the Beatles’ Come Together.
Meanwhile, Perry’s Freedom Fighter is illustrated by video footage of the man himself busking, with passersby completely oblivious. The fools. Then, arms sway and tears stream down hundreds of faces as every one of Tyler’s words to I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing are belted back.
Later, when he dared venture to the barrier, fans rushed forward, kicking, screaming, pushing and pulling as they fought for a piece of the Tyler pie. Drawing to a confetti-strewn climax, Tyler perches himself on the piano stool for a singalong rendition of Dream On, while Perry takes centre stage atop the grand, bringing one of the best shows on earth to a euphoric end. Tonight, Aerosmith prove they’re back in the saddle again.
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