Australian riff merchants Airbourne are getting the festive season started early with their new single Christmas Bonus, a riotous slice of sleigh‑bell stomp and bar‑room swagger that lands just weeks after their comeback track Gutsy.
The song arrives with a not‑safe‑for‑work animated video and a tongue‑in‑cheek nod to classic action cinema, complete with a line that channels the spirit of Die Hard’s John McClane: “Yippee‑ki‑yay… Merry Christmas!” It is all delivered over a guitar solo deliberately built to unleash good cheer at maximum volume.
Frontman Joel O’Keeffe says Christmas was always about rock ‘n’ roll rather than carols. “I remember being a little kid, and I really did not like carols at all,” he said. “I thought they were annoying. I just wanted to listen to AC/DC and Black Sabbath.
“But then I got this new AC/DC record, The Razor’s Edge, and there was this song, Mistress For Christmas. I had no idea what it meant, but that is what I was playing for Christmas that year. Rockin’ out at Christmas is one of the best times of the year to rock out. Let’s all headbang around the Christmas tree!”
Christmas Bonus and Gutsy were produced by Brian Howes, who previously worked with the band on their 2013 album Black Dog Barking. Engineering duties fell to Canadian studio legend Mike Fraser (AC/DC, Aerosmith, Rush, Metallica), with Zakk Cervini (Dayseeker, BMTH, Architects, Machine Gun Kelly) handling the mix.
From the first bell‑like chord of Gutsy onwards, Airbourne lean hard into a big, bold and unapologetically bombastic sound that still hits with the low‑end punch of classic Heavy Metal.
Airbourne have built a formidable reputation across the UK and Europe for their no‑compromise live shows, and they will be back on this side of the world for a mammoth headline run from January through March 2026.
The tour includes dates at Rock City in Nottingham, the Roundhouse in London, Manchester Academy, O2 Academy Birmingham and a full sweep across Germany, Scandinavia, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Italy.
Tickets for all 2026 shows are available now from airbournerock.com, and with venues already reporting strong sales, fans are advised not to leave it to Santa. Crank up Christmas Bonus, raise a glass to loud guitars and get ready to celebrate the holidays the only way Airbourne know how – loud, sweaty and gloriously Heavy.
