There’s a great story about R.E.M. when they first started. They literally drove round America, taking any gigs they could. Didn’t matter where, didn’t matter who, just anywhere that would give them petrol money and an audience. And, as Bill Berry said ‘if we played to six people the first time, there would be twenty there the next. And the third time there would be a hundred.’ The point being that if they went, rocked it, and came back then word of mouth would bring in a bigger crowd. A great philosophy. If there is one person out there who paid to see you, give them a show.
So, to (We Are) Performance. They walk onstage to a place about, with a generous estimate, a fifth full. there are mitigating reasons; It’s a Tuesday, there is Champions League football on (indeed the barman tells me there at least 50 sold tickets not picked up.) You could go two ways. You could give the hardy souls who ARE there one hell of a show. Or it could be a bit dispiriting. Credit to (WA)P though – they decide it’s going to be a BIG bit dispiriting.
They kick off with ‘Surrender’ and sound great – all Human League synths and rampaging guitars – before deciding that, if no-one else wants to be here, they don’t either. The singer complains of feeling ill, and copiously vomits on-stage during one of the songs. This is enough for a good section of the small audience, who sensing the enveloping ennui, wisely fuck off to the downstairs bar. The band grow visibly less interested with each number, and then head off ten minutes before the scheduled end, cutting three songs from the set list. If you boast that you are Performance, you better be able to mach schau better than this.
So, teething problems for a young band? Possibly. I don’t want to sound like a rusty ol’ blues man, but son, you gotta pay your dues. it wasn’t about the people who didn’t turn up; it should have been about the ones who did. (We Are) Performance didn’t make any new friends last night, but they lost a few old ones.
Filed under: General Stuff, gigs | Tagged: concerts, Electro, gigs, human league, king Tuts, reviews, Synths, We are performance
Its sickening when that happens. Someone had too much Dutch Gold for Dutch courage methinks!
Otherwise, a good gig was had by all, it would seem!
Yes, a delight!
Crazy – we all have off nights, but when you are trying to establish yourself, you simply can’t afford to.
As an addendum to this story, my friend, who is a big fan of the group, MySpaced them about how disappointing she found the gig. To be fair to the band, they got back to her and took her comments on board. Who knows, there may be hope for them yet.