By Ben Doy

Artist: TruckFighters

Date / Venue: Tuesday May 7th, 2013 - Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland

Last week when TruckFighters guitarist Niklas Källgren was asked what we could expect from their New Zealand shows he responded ‘Total Madness'... and he wasn't kidding. Last night the Swedish 3-piece played a no holds barred energetic performance that the Kings Arms Tavern in Auckland hadn't seen for quite some time.

Wellington lads Red Sky Blues got the evening off to a flying start, warming up the crowd and wetting their appetite. They played a great set, and were only let down by a few technical difficulties during their last song which, after a brief delay, they managed to finish. Certainly a band to watch for the future.

TruckFighters started with a bang starting off with the beefy Desert Cruiser before diving straight into some new material.

Guitarist Niklas Källgren was having a great time is seriously an animal. Jumping all over the stage wearing just shoes, shorts, his guitar and sporting a Lemmy style moustache, he treated last night's performance like a full on aerobic workout. "What night is it?" he yelled to the crowd. "Let's pretend it's Saturday!"

Drummer Andre Kvarnström held everything together perfectly throughout the madness that was going on around him. Solid, energetic, inventive and an enjoyable drumming style.

Singer / bassist Oskar Cedermalm is the cool, calm and collected frontman. His bong rattling bass reverberated around the tavern and even threw it into the audience before embarking on a little crowd surfing.

The Kings Arms was also the perfect venue for TruckFighters. Fans could get up close and personal with the band, with the intimate venue seeing
TruckFighters are a class act the whole way. This was their first visit to New Zealand and hopefully, judging by the crowds reaction and the bands enjoyment, it won't be their last.

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