REVIEW: The Aviators

THE AVIATORS
MIGHTY MIGHTY
SATURDAY 16 JUNE
Review and Photo's By Charlette Hannah

Paddy Breakley on guitar

David McGurk on drums

Kane Sherwood on guitar

James Mason, Dave Brennan, Simon Love and Kane Sherwood

Paddy Breakley, Ned Worboys, James Mason and Dave Brennan

James on Sax and Dave on Trombone

Mighty Mighty on Saturday was thick with ‘funk, crunk and grime’ courtesy of The Aviators. The funk is obvious – these boys are so full of it you could imagine them dancing themselves off the edge of the building and on the way down too, where they would get up and just keep on dancing. Or maybe it’s just me. The grime became clear about two songs into the set, when sweat was dripping down my face, and I was hardly even dancing! The venue was so packed out there was hardly room to move, and even less to breathe, but it was all worth it. (Someone’s going to have to explain ‘crunk’ to me though.)

The gig marked the release of The Aviators first album (following on from their EP in 2004) and the turnout proved how popular the band has become since they first started as a five piece way back in the day. Now an eight piece, The Aviators are even tighter than when I first saw them at Southern Cross a few months back, and they were tight then. It’s hard to tell how much is playing a song and how much is jamming, but I don’t think it really matters, as the result is good.

Each musician stands out, while contributing to the overall sound, from Simon Love’s wicked bass lines, to Paddy Breakley’s interesting and controlled guitaring. Drummer David McGurk is brilliantly creative with those sticks. Singer Ned Worboys has a smooth slick voice, and the songs are quality.

The whole band is great to watch, in their suits, dancing and communicating with each other. It’s good to see a band dress nicely. I figure, if you expect people to come along and listen to/watch you, it’s important to respect their eyes. Also, The Aviators are never standing still. That’s also an important ingredient in a good live show.

If you missed out, you really missed out. You can still get their album though, and they seem to have quite regular gigs at the Southern Cross, so head along next time you see a poster. Also, I recommend checking out the ‘band’ section on their website below, as it contains a rather amusing description of each member.

www.theaviators.co.nz

REVIEW: The Aviators

THE AVIATORS
SOUTHERN CROSS
SATURDAY 31 MARCH

By Charlette Hannah

In the way we humans have an irrestible urge to box and categorise things, I decided first of all to insert The Aviators in a lounge jazz/dub container. How wrong I turned out to be! Their first song at the Southern Cross on Saturday night was the cruisiest of the lot, and I mistakenly put it in a box I don't particularly like. I decided they were good, but not my sort of thing. As the set progressed they got funkier and funkier, until people just couldn't contain themselves and funked it up on the dance floor, whooping and grooving. Yes, grooving. I thought that was out of fashion, but I have since learned the error of my un-groovy ways.

A seven piece band, The Aviators have the standard bass, guitar, drums and vocals, but they also add in a percussionist, trombonist, and sax player. You can tell they're going to be different just looking at the line up.

I have to admit it took me a few songs to figure out what was going on. They are such good musicians it's hard to tell if a song is rehearsed, a jam, or a combination of the two. In the end though, it doesn't matter. These guys are tight, creative, rhythmic and great fun. Their songs are dynamic, unpredictable, and interesting. They're also good solid tunes with fine instrumentation.

It's satisfying to see a band who are so good live. Some bands appear to be just trying to get through playing their recording live, or getting through the live show so someone will make a recording of them. The Aviators on the other hand are lively, full of stage presence, and great to watch as well as listen to. With seven members, it would be boring if they all played all the time, and yet you barely seem to notice if one isn't playing, because they're dancing up there on the stage. Singer Ned Worboys has one of the best voices I've heard in a while – smooth and yet full of character, and he plays around with his vocal delivery too. The only complaint I would have is that the vocal mix at times wasn’t quite loud enough – when the band went into overdrive the vocals were drowned out.

I visited their website http://www.theaviators.co.nz and http://myspace.com/aviatorsnz and found this, which amused me, so I decided they could have a say in their own review. “...we play funk, crunk and grime. Not because we know what those genres are, but because they sound cool.”

Check them out if you get the chance. I believe they've got an album coming out soon.