| View Thread | Return to Index | Read Prev Msg | Read Next Msg |

Boise, ID (Feb. 5, 2000)

fantastic show; abysmal reception

Posted By: Spencer <[email protected]>
Date: Monday, Feb. 7 2000, at 4:22 a.m.

It was with mixed emotions that I departed the Idaho Center Theatre in lovely (no hint of sarcasm there!) Nampa, Idaho. On one hand, I had never seen a more chatty or animated Moz; on the other, I couldn't believe that such an incredible performance could be received with such widespread indifference. Moz and the boys were white hot, especially on "Meat is Murder", "Tomorrow", and "Shoplifters...". I must say, I was thrilled to hear "Hairdresser..." live for the first time, as well as "Is it really so strange?". I was stunned by the powerful outro to "Meat is Murder". I was expecting the song to end, and as Morrissey collapsed to the ground, Alain, Boz, and the rest exploded into a two-minute wall-of-sound outro! Having closely followed the set-lists of the preceding shows, I was surprised when the band launched into "Last Night..." at the point in the show that they did. So far "Last Night" has been the encore, and I was afraid that because of the attitude of the comatose crowd that there wouldn't even be an encore! But despite it all Moz and co. returned and treated us to a note-perfect, supercharged reading of "Shoplifters...". As for the crowd, it was simply embarassing. I'm not from Idaho, so I can't rightly comment on the forces at work there, but I was amazed that nobody seemed to know any of the songs! (If they did, their reactions--or the lack thereof--proved that they were completely indifferent!) I was amused by Moz's comment after playing "Swallow on my neck": "I know you've never heard this song, but we played it anyway". The same could've been said for nearly every other song he played! Regardless of the crowd's reaction, Moz sang beautifully, and the band played perfectly (it appeared that one of Boz's strings broke during the aborted "I can have both"; it didn't seem to me that the song was being played out of tune. Also, contrary to a prior report on this show, Moz didn't play "Break up the Family"). The show itself was fantastic. As for the opening act, if you like third-rate Cure wannabe bands then they are your ticket! Their set was pleasant enough until their homage to the roly-poly Robert ended in an embarassingly faithful cover of "Pictures of You". If the band ever had any intimations of carving out its own identity then they've thrown them to the dogs. Strangely, such a cover, which should have been met with universal disapproval, was actually widely embraced with what was arguably the strongest applause of the night! Whatever one thinks about the Cure and their music (and their legion of copycat "artists"), it simply isn't kosher to be playing them at a MORRISSEY show! At any rate, I am glad Moz inexplicably decided to play Boise--er, Nampa--because I had the privilege of attending! I'm happy to say that Moz performed brilliantly, in spite of the "crowd".

Messages in This Thread

| View Thread | Return to Index | Read Prev Msg | Read Next Msg |

Boise, ID (Feb. 5, 2000) is maintained by David T. with WebBBS 3.21.