In terms of their brand of comedy rock,
You see Axis of Awesome as much for the spectacle as for the punch lines, and for a fun night out they tick the boxes: loud, talented and a great presence on stage.
Axis’ setlist includes the viral classics (of course they do the Four Chords Song, that’s not a spoiler so much as a basic expectation – and it’s excellent) as well as a few that less die-hard Axis fans won’t recognise. Benny Davis shares some of Will Smith’s less well-known raps from his filmography, a recurring joke that does well not to result in diminishing returns. They act as tight interludes between the bigger set pieces of the night, the Bird Planes that the audience are ramping up for. We also are treated to Lee Naimo’s alter-ego of a Johnny Cash impersonator. A weird interval between songs, Naimo really owns the bizarreness of this character and wins over the audience easily. Naimo has an excellent sense of awkward humour, whereas Raskopoulos’ secret weapon is her penchant for quick ad-libs.
In terms of Bird Plane, it’s a great song although not too rich in gags. Instead, the song’s enjoyable because it showcases the trio’s talent. Whilst the band’s segue ways aren’t the most watertight and can seem a bit wooden, we get a glimmer of wicked humour when they corpse or return for their encore – this band can be filthy when they want, and it’s fun to snigger along. You see Axis of Awesome as much for the spectacle as for the punch lines, and for a fun night out they tick the boxes: loud, talented and a great presence on stage.
