Slash
Manchester, Academy
03/07/2010

When one of rock’n'roll’s greatest offspring takes to a UK stage; it’s a special occasion by any means. Guns N’ Roses axeman, Slash stunned Donington this year with a forty minute set at Download Festival showcasing his impressive repertoire and material from his new solo record. Tonight is more than a special occasion though, as Slash‘s two hour set is to be recorded, mixed and mastered on-the-fly towards a future CD.

Aptly supported by Mancunian riot starters The Virginmarys, whose half hour set of pre-‘Sex On Fire’ Kings Of Leon meets Zeppelin is a little ill-structured; the latter half of their slot is forgettable compared to the boldness of their blistering opening numbers. Then at 9pm sharp, the Academy’s packed out crowd is subjected to total blackness and bluntly asked “are you ready to rock, Manchester?” A huge roar is the response, as the man himself – top hat, vest, shades ‘n’ all – arrives and kickstarts his band’s performance with the hard rockin ‘Ghost’.

Slash justifies his born-for-stage persona with total Rock God presence throughout, as vocalist Myles Kennedy croons over smoky blues riffs and hard rock licks. And he never really has to allow Slash to be the centre of attention, as whenever he bursts into a solo, the crowd erupt in a collective holler of approval. And yes, Slash was built for this, but does he really need to prove it with a superfluous 10 minute solo that hardly reveals a fraction of the talent he possesses? Beer break, anyone?

Needless pretentious solo-ing out of the way, the crowd are treated afterwards to GN’R classic ‘Sweet Child O Mine’ with Kennedy’s Axl-esque vocals drowned out by an Academy crescendo. It’s a great night for Kennedy too; his delivery on self-written track ‘Rise Today’ is fantastic, whilst blues-tinged ballad ‘Starlight’ fits neatly into the middle of the set, followed by the punchy ‘Watch This’. Velvet Revolver‘s smash hit ‘Slither’ concludes the set with roof raising dynamics, and chants for an encore are satiated by a fantastic rendition of Led Zep‘s ‘Communication Breakdown’ followed by ‘Paradise City’, which leaves spectators in a state of worship for the Les Paul-wielding man that towers in front of them.

Guns N’ Roses? Nah. Long live Slash.

Danny Keightley