REVIEW: Air Supply.
Staple eighties soft-rock innovators mesmerized a full house Avalon Theatre inside the Niagara Fallsview Casino on Thursday, October 4th; their 1st of 3 back to back shows this Thanksgiving weekend 2018.
Just on the heals of their recognized milestone, sporting their 5,000th show, they perfected their 1st hit written by Graham Russell entitled ‘Love & Other Bruises‘. Graham Russell stunned their captivating fans with a bare stage acapella poetry expressing,
“Since I was 11, I have fallen in love with words, games on wordplay” and Graham introduced an up close and personal sector of their breathtaking performance, as he resighted his poem titled ‘Invisible’ leading nicely right into their hit
‘No Mans Land’ with both
Russell and Graham stating, “thank you once again for helping us realize our dream!”
Air Supply & love songs, go hand in hand, as they create inside your hearts, an illusion of romance with their brilliantly inspired sweeping ballads. They rocked their impressive in-depth award-winning catalog with their new all-star 4 piece youthful, yet, seasoned music makers featuring Doug Gild on bass, Aviv Cohen on drums, fondly introduced Italian Stallion all the way from Italy with Mirko Tessandori on keys and crowd arousing guitar stylings of internationally acclaimed music director, back up vocals and lead guitarist Aaron Mclain, giving us an accomplished signature Air Supply sound on hits such as ‘Sweet Dreams’, ‘Every Woman in the World’, ‘Goodbye’, ‘Now & Forever’, ‘Two Less Lonely People’ just to name but only a few. The audience got their opportunity to sing alongside these mighty musical icons on ‘Here I Am.’ Russell, then asked, “Are we ready to sing?” encouraging us to sing ‘Carry On’ during the powerful ‘Lost in Love’ however, the audience took over most of it!! Further, Graham mentioned, “Inside here with us it’s like a cacoon. Have you felt the love tonight? Have you heard good songs? Take care of your loved ones & your children, as they are our future, give them love & compassion, can we do that?” Which led right into 1 of my favorite arrows from their quiver, “Making Love out of Nothing At All” enticing us to stand up out of our seats. just to note but a few! Meeting while on the stage of Jesus Christ Superstar back in 1975, Graham Russell and Russell Hitchcock formed Air Supply, but were totally unaware back then, that their anthemic songs would embark a page in the history of music, nor that their hits would still engage global audiences 44 years later. Still soaring high with 17 studio records & no signs of slowing down, they continue as Gold & Platinum award-winning artists celebrating well over 100 million in sales while making new music. They continue to evolve, yet, it’s like the pause button got stuck, their vocals are bang on, sounding like they did when they first started out in the 70’s. To capture Air Supply’s true essence is like capturing an infinite measure, both a creative workbook and an authoritative musical reference. Their stage presence is profoundly moving and a pertinent one.
This was a goose bump filled showcase from start to finish, filled with perfected measurements of rhythm alongside Russell and Graham’s supportive harmony, playing a crucial role in defining the sound of soft rock culture. Entering well into the 3rd millennium, this act was in rare & rejuvenating form, still exuding high energy infectious adrenaline & we were thrilled to be a part of their impressive audience’s loud and proud responsive energy….totally PRICELESS!
Sporting a 3 song encore of ‘ I Can’t Live’,’ ‘Shake It’ & finally, ‘I’m All out of Love’ the audience engaged in a 10-minute standing O from this point forward. Overall, this performance was 1 of stratospheric proportions for both Kevin and I, as growing up these internationally acclaimed music legends dominated the airwaves and have been a must-see for many many years….we were able to enjoy all the romance, love and excitement that one could expect from a show that
defines Air Supply!
