Way back at the end of 2009 when Uber Rock was still taking its fledgling first few steps (you will remember it as our cute phase before we became bastards) I proudly proclaimed The 69 Eyes' then new album 'Back In Blood' my album of the year by a long shot. A year and a bit on and I still think that album is something of a modern day classic within the glam/goth rock genre, hence why when this rather awesome Dark Decadence tour line up was announced at the beginning of 2011 I, like many others, rushed out and got some tickets. I certainly wasn't going to miss a bill that featured the Helsinki Vampires; along with the fine Swedish under card of Hardcore Superstar and Crashdiet I can tell you. On the quality of the bill alone the Dark Decadence tour certainly had the potential for Gig Of The Year before a note had been played and was just the type of sleazy three-band package we simply don't see enough of here in the U.K.

So with all this pre gig excitement building up inside me you can probably imagine my surprise/frustration when in the hours immediately preceding the Bristol date I started hearing rumblings at URHQ that one or maybe two dates were about to be pulled by The 69 Eyes due to...well no one knows really.

Surely this rumour can't be true, can it? 

Sadly it was very true, with both Bristol and Folkestone pulled from the tour itinerary with little more than a "due to circumstances beyond our control" given as any form of apology or explanation. So, I arrived outside a venue that was hardly buzzing with pre-gig excitement, due largely to a group of people obviously very disappointed by The 69 Eyes no show still milling around shell shocked. Instead of choosing to take the refund money and run I instead opted to bite my black lipstick-coated bottom lip and seized the opportunity of witnessing two longer than usual sets from the Decadence's Swedish contingent. I mean what else could wind me up tonight?

Well let's start with the merchandise stall selling t-shirts by The 69 Eyes shall we? To me this was a bit like those t-shirts fans of the losing team in a Cup Final get sold after the final whistle has blown that proudly proclaim them as winners. The sellers tempting you in by saying "you know you want one, they're a bargain and only £5"...Well £5 these shirts most definitely were not, they were £20, but they were probably just as equally pointless, as tonight any fan of The 69 Eyes who'd just shelled out the best part of £20 to get into a gig that isn't now going to feature the band they wanted to see in the first place isn't going to part with even more money to celebrate not seeing the band...are they? 

But enough of my ranting, as there were still two other bands to enjoy here and once inside the (about a third full) main hall at Bristol's O2 Academy I started to realise that if my encounter with Manowar the previous weekend had been like a trip back in time to 1981 then tonight was most certainly a dead ringer for 1985. First up and looking like they had just stolen a trailer marked "Wrathchild's Biz Suxx Stage Set" from a lay-by just outside Evesham were Crashdiet.

Playing their first proper tour of the U.K. in support of last year's 'Generation Wild' album, a few of the Uber Wrecking Crew were soon nodding their heads in approval as the four piece launched into a rowdy version of 'Down With The Dust' from said opus, complete with post apocalyptic smoking dustbins to round off the spectacle. And boy what a spectacle the 'Diet are these days, new singer Simon Cruz is the near perfect mix of Seb Bach vocals and Mickey Finn image, whilst the old (?) guard of Sweet, London and Young resemble a Premier League outfit from the glory days of the Strip; we are certainly not talking Reckless Love here folks.... thank god. But by the same token where H Oliver Twisted and his crew might have wowed audiences like tonight's with their averagely hummable tunes, Crashdiet seemed content to simply get their set over and done with as little fuss as possible. So where a golden oldie like 'Riot In Everyone' should have seen the guys hungry and ready to rip out our throats just like their contemporaries would have had done back in the Eighties, there was an unwelcome safeness pervading throughout their set that seemingly disappeared the minute the guys left the stage, when they instantly became larger than life rock stars once more.

Dedicating 'It's A Miracle' to Dave Lepard was a nice touch, as was the throbbing cock rock of 'Rebel', but the glam rock safety blanket returned once again when the band dipped into 'Breakin' The Chainz' from 'Rest In Sleaze' and suddenly I was wishing I was watching Dokken performing their song by the same name, which is not something I often wish for I can assure you.

Look, Crashdiet were the hands down winners of the best t-shirt on this tour (the Jack Daniels bottle one), but therein also lies the problem I have with them, as their live show simply didn't live up to the image or the musical legacy these guys have. So is it all cosmetic posturing and not a lot else? Well the guys are back in the U.K. quicker than you can have one off the wrist, as they return as special guests to hotshot AOR new boys Houston for a six date tour at the end of this month. Why not buy a ticket for that and then you can make up your own mind? 

Entering the main arena to the triumphant intro tape of Van Halen's 'Dance The Night Away' it was obvious from the get go that tonight Hardcore Superstar were back and once again delivering the goods like every gig was the best/last party in town. And if this night ever needed a kick up the upper-class ass Jocke and the boys were definitely the band to deliver it. 

Building on a set that largely mirrored their show stealing appearance at last December's Hard Rock Hell Festival, the songs were cherry picked from the very best of their eight album history, showcasing the new ('Sadistic Girls') whilst celebrating their past ('Liberation') in almost perfect harmony. Talking of which, harmony hairspray advert in the making and six string slinger extraordinaire Mr Vic Zino really does seem to have come of age recently, commanding his stage like a young Zakk Wylde alongside the camp theatrics of Mr (self confidence himself) Jocke Berg, whilst (Sweden's answer to Tommy Lee) Adde and the perma grinning Martin Sandvik provide the solid bed of glam rock that thrusts the Superstar's finely tuned engine along at full throttle.

With an extended set to enjoy, the acoustic guitar did make an appearance for a run through of 'Here Comes That Sick Bitch' but even that didn't mellow the tone of the night, as when it came sandwiched between a brutal 'Bully' and a soaring 'Live Forever' as it did, even the venue's arctic air conditioning couldn't cool the white hot action being generated by our four heroes on stage.

Returning for a three song encore of 'Moonshine', 'Someone Special' and 'We Don't Celebrate Sundays' it was left to Jocke to sum the night up perfectly when he thanked the crowd from the bottom of the band's hearts for being so welcoming on their first show in Bristol, whilst also demanding that the next time they play in their city that "Everyone please bring a friend", which if he can finally get The 69 Eyes to actually come and play Bristol sounds like a fair trade off to me.

All in all then, what should have been a potential contender for Gig Of The Year simply turned into a night I'll end up remembering for all the wrong reasons, and one that just happened to be saved by a sterling performance from Hardcore Superstar. And as for why The 69 Eyes pulled this show or the following night? No one really knows... not even their drummer Jussi 69 who we have an interview exclusive with coming up real soon....