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Sparks
Forum,
London
Saturday September 30 2006
I suppose, if the world at large knows anything at all about Sparks it's this: they were a mid-seventies electro-glam band. Had a singer who leaped all over the place. Keyboard player who just stood there shooting quizzical glances this way and that. Had a few hits. Currently residing in the Where Are They Now File.
Well, all that is correct up to a point. Sparks did indeed enjoy a certain flush of success in the immediate pre- and post-punk era; their hit songs from that time are still well-known today. They do indeed have a singer who leaps all over the place, and their keyboard player does indeed maintain a quizzical demeanour in the midst of the mayhem. But far from vanishing into the dreaded WATN file, Sparks just kept on going. In recent years they may not have troubled the chart compilers overmuch (or indeed at all), but they've built up an impressive catalogue of releases and an equally impressive history of touring. Their latest album, Hello Young Lovers, is just out, and here they are again, taking a swing through the theatre venues of the rock 'n' roll world to the delight of the fans.
Sparks
are their own support band. We're getting two sets tonight. To kick
off, a very 'performance art' realisation of the band's new album, acted
out in front of a large back-projection screen while the backing musicians
lurk behind. Ron Mael (the quizzical keyboard player) shadow-boxes a
virtual version of himself, and then, with many extravagant hand gestures,
plays a similarly virtual organ. Slogans and images flash up, surreal
and disconcerting. It's like watching a Power Point presentation put
together by Andy Warhol. Meanwhile, Russell Mael (the singer who leaps
about all over the place) addresss the audience with a combination of
hellfire preacher conviction and manic, chief-executive brio, striding
to and fro in his all-black outfit, as if he won't rest until we've
all signed up to his latest sales targets. The songs are classic Sparks:
oblique and witty, smart and surreal. We're informed that 'Chicks Dig
Metaphors'; we explore the logistics of names and noses in 'Perfume'.
At one point, Ron approaches the front of the stage, and diffidently
remarks that while at one time Sparks "...had the word 'apolitical'
tattooed on our chests, recent events have well and truly wiped it off."
Then it's straight into the band's first ever anti-war anthem, 'Baby,
Baby, Can I Invade Your Country?' although, in true Sparks style (and
as you might guess from that title), it's so completely soaked in irony
I'm sure the venue staff will have to swab down the stage afterwards.
The entire performance is a genuine tour de force - all that real/virtual
interaction must've taken days on end to rehearse. Most bands would
have been satisfied to call that a headline set. But not Sparks. The
main performance is yet to come.
An
intermission, and they're back. This time, the back-projection screen
has gone, and in its place we have the full rock 'n' roll stage set-up.
Sparks may have made their name as the original electro-duo, but on
stage they're a no-shit stonking rock band. Here we go, into a greatest
hits set which brings home just how many classic anthems Sparks have
lurking in their catalogue. 'Number One Song In Heaven' is thrown in
almost casually, just one big tune among many. 'Tryouts For The Human
Race' comes next, apparently only the second-ever time the song has
been performed live. But it's 'This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of
Us' that is, quite literally, the showstopper. As the song crashes to
its crescendo, Russell hitting the final falsetto note of vocal as accurately
as a sniper hitting his target, the audience sets up a roar, and just
doesn't stop. Russell 'n' Ron simply stand there, taken aback, looking
endearingly bashful. That sets things up for a riotous, storming, romp
to the finish, the band carried along by an almost tangible surge of
devotion from the crowd that greets every song from the band's extensive
past like a long-lost friend. Eventually, it's final encore time, but
here Sparks throw us one last curve ball. Instead of the big anthemic
finish we might expect, the band take things right down into the minimalist
zone - just the essential duo on stage. Ron sits, impassive as ever,
at his keyboard. Russell stands alongside, bedraggled but unbowed after
his exertions, and relates the problems the band have experienced in
getting their new single, 'Dick Around' on the radio. Apparently, the
title is offensive to the kiddies and the housewives, or somesuch feeble
excuse. One radio station, Russell remarks, disgust virtually running
in rivulets from the corners of his mouth, "...didn't even take
it out of the shrinkwrap." And so, by way of a finale, Sparks perform
a stripped-down version of the song, defiance in every soaring chorus.
Well, that was a gig, all right. A glorious performance by one of the
few bands around these days that can still put on a real show. The kiddies
and the housewives don't know what they're missing.
Essential links:
For more photos from this gig, find Sparks by name here.
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Page credits: Review,
photos and construction by Michael Johnson.
Nemesis
logo by Antony Johnston,
Red N version by Mark Rimmell.