Concert Reveiws
OK, i'm looking for concert reveiw to fill this section up. Like the pen pal
section. I need all of you to contribute to this section. Start sending 'em in!!
The first one is from Chris Nemec:
Well, I was in Dallas, Texas in April of
1996 at Edgefest 1996. Lust played 7 songs: Ladykillers, Heavenly
Nobodies, 500, Hypocrite, For Love, and Sweetness and Light. They were
really good that afternoon but I felt their set was made way too short
(There were about 15 other bands on the bill like Jewel, Poe, The
Refreshments, and the Vervepipe) and left me wanting more. This Drunk
next to me kept shouting at Emma to show him her chest. Anyway, after
their set they did an interview in one of the side places. I tried to
get them to autograph a copy of Split but they passed me by. According
to one of the people there, they had to play in Denver that evening and
were flying out in 15 minutes.
The Pavement is Shaved
Lush/Mojave 3/Scheer
Canda February 1996
I was so excited for the Lush concert I could not stand it. Not since Sonic Youth and Mike Watt played the Boathouse in the fall had
a band worth leaving the house for played in Hampton Roads (okay, so I missed the Garbage show, I was sick). And I have been a
Lush fan since I first saw the video for "Deluxe" on 120 Minutes (and my boyhood crush on Miki Berenyi began).
Unfortunately, we arrived at the Abyss late and Scheer (left) had already started. I had not really heard very
much of them (what, a 4AD band not getting airplay?), but I walked in to find them halfway through what
proved to be an absolutely SCORCHING set. By the time they walked off the stage, my wife and I were
both believers.
They were followed by Mojave 3, and while we were not ready for the abrupt shift in tempo, we settled in
quickly and enjoyed the set. I remarked that they took me back to the time I was working on a ranch in
Wyoming, all acoustic guitars, heavy hearts and close harmonies. They finished with a version of "Queen
Jane Approximately" that was better than any I'd ever heard from either Bob Dylan or the Grateful Dead.
But they had brought the crowd very far down from the high that Scheer had left us on, and I wondered if
the reaction to Lush would be slow.
My fears were allayed, as Lush took the stage and leapt into action. Unfortunately, I am not one of those types who can remember
set lists without writing them down, and I didn't write it down. I can tell you that they played "Deluxe," which made my century,
along with great versions of "Hypocrite" and "Tiny Smiles." Some moronic columnist down here compared their current work to that
of the Bangles. I can only imagine that this person has not had the opportunity to see Lush live. The Bangles would have run away
scared. Soon after finishing their set, they came back to play an encore which ended with their "radio song," "Ladykillers." Miki, who
looked as if she had been having a great time the entire night, complimented the crowd on looking so happy; and with that, the show
ended.
I'd just like to contibute my Lush live experience as a contrast to the
other reviews.
Retrospectively, the time I saw Lush live is a sad occasion, a wasted
oppurtunity. The band were coming towards the end of a small venue tour to
promote the single, "Single Girl", in Feb '96, and the song had already
made the top 20 in England, so when they had to play to a half filled
venue on free band night at Loughborough university, the mood was not the
best. It was pure coincidence that the band appeared on Top of the Pops on
the same night as they played the Student Union here. And that was the
reason we went to watch them, because there was actually a real band
appearing for free.
I had never heard of Lush until 3 weeks earlier when Single Girl started
getting radio airplay, as it was their first real hit, so the concert
meant little to me, not recognising any of the songs and the sound man
getting things quite wrong with microphone volume, and other things.
According to the student newspaper for the week, featuring an interview
with the band, the gig was, in Emma's words, ".. something of a greatest
hits package, featuring songs off all 3 albums and the early EP's."
During the spring and summer of 96, Lush brought out 2 more singles,
Ladykillers and 500, and I thought they were worth listening to. After
hearing the first album I had to see where they had come from and now I
have copys of most of their stuff, including Cookie and Topolino.
Just as I was looking into going to see them live again, but this time as
a real fan, Chris died and as we all know, there is little chance I will
now have that oppurtunity.
Looking back at the newspaper interview again, I see the setlist and know
that if I were to go back in time 2 years and watch that gig again,
it would have been one of the best concerts of my life and I could have
written a similar story to the other reviews.
Thanks for listening
BY:Phil
Email: spookylovelife@hotmail.com
