MORRISSEY
Bass Concert Hall
Austin, Texas
4/12/09
Over the years, I've heard so many stories about what a shit Morrissey is that I had assumed that most or all of them were true. I had become resigned to the fact that my hero, though possibly the greatest songwriter of his generation- not to mention, icon and poster child for sexual ambiguity and liberation from strict gender roles- was not the type of person with which one could wish to go bowling. I was fine with that. Often, immense talent takes up so much of a human that there's not much room left over for a pleasant personality. I went to Bass concert Hall pretty much expecting a standoffish jerk who would pace around stage and do his level best to avoid eye contact with the audience, showing utter disdain for we mere average mortals of lesser god-given talents. It wouldn't matter, really, as long as he did a decent show.
There is the legend, and then there is the truth right before your very eyes. If indeed Steven Patrick Morrissey is an unrepentant asshole, he certainly did a great job of convincing me otherwise on this night.
Moz is about six weeks shy of his 50th birthday. He is decidely middle-age, like myself. Oddly enough, I am of a mind to say that Moz got his middle-age crisis out of the way more than 20 years ago during his days as the Smiths' lachrymose poet in chief. If the Dylan line "I was so much older then, I'm younger then that now" applied to anyone, it is Moz, for he seems to be having the time of his life, and taking the audience right along with him.
The fabulous NC and I had been looking forward to this show for months. I think I got the tickets back in January during the first minute of their availability to the public. Now that I look back on it, all the hitting, "refresh, refresh, refresh" on my browser, waiting for the "puchase tix" link to go hot was well worth it. I'll call it the virtual version of waiting in line all night for tickets.
Our discussion yesterday centered around whether Moz would do any Smiths songs. The fabulous NC was of the opinion that Morrissey was too obstinate to please the crowd, and that he would probably just stick to solo stuff. I agreed that Morrissey was a stickler, and that he did not care about what the audience wanted, but had a sneaking feeling that "How Soon is Now" would tiptoe onto the setlist near the end and make everyone bonkers. We had a bet. I can't quite remember what it was, but we had one.
I won the bet the second Morrissey stepped onstage and the band struck up the opening riff of "This Charming Man." I was so caught up in my moment of fandom that I think I shouted "there he is!" when I saw Moz appear in the wings. When he hit the stage, the crowd - Bass Concert Hall holds a little over 2,000 humans - let out a deafening roar. They were totally amped. So was His Pathetic Majesty. He and his band, dressed in Tuxedos, as though they were at a really big dinner party, ripped through mostly newer Morrissey material with a couple of more Smiths songs thrown into the hour and a half show - "How Soon is Now" and "Some Girls." The Fabulous NC and I disagreed over the origins of "Ask." She said Smiths. I said Moz solo. Anyone know???
About fifty people had perched themselves right in front of the stage. Moz did not shy away from them. I think he shook every one of their hands during the course of the show and even interviewed a few people standing up front. He wanted to know how far people had traveled to get to his show. One woman had come all the way from Baltimore, another, from McAllen, Texas. Now McAllen is a good 6 or 7 hour drive from Austin. It's a bit of a haul. What was most impressive is that Moz actually knew where McAllen is on the map. "It's by Brownsville, right?" he queried. That's right, Moz. The deepest Rio Grande Valley, right on the border with Mexico.
Which brings me to another observation. I've heard that Morrissey, since moving to Los Angeles, has taken a shine to Hispanic boys. True or not, I don't know. One thing is for sure, the hispanic boys - and girls - like him, and they were out in force, hoisting Mexican flags with Morrissey's visage in place of the Eagle and the Snake. One such flag wound up on a guitar amp. Morrissey's mutual attraction with America's Hispanics is truly remarkable, the basis of which I am curious to find out more about. Truly unexpected, but very welcomed. These fans are young and enthusiastic, and I'm sure they are helping Moz stay young. I'll bet that Moz's shows next week in El Paso and Albuquerque will something to behold. I wish I had time to go to one of those shows.
Here is an article from Houston Press on this subject: http://www.houstonpress.com/2004-06-03/music/this-charming-hombre;
Here is info on a documentary about hispanics and Morrissey http://www.shoutmouth.com/index.php/emo-news/Morrissey_Fan_Documentary_Tries_to_Explain_Morrissey%27s_Latino_Appeal
and here is another http://www.papermag.com/?section=article&parid=1173
and another article: http://vidadeoro.blogspot.com/2009/03/latino-community-embraces-morrissey.html
I think this is really awesome. Funny how transcendent music can be.
Other cool stuff about the Moz show:
Per his Wikipedia page, Moz's guitarist, Jesse Tobias is an Austinite of Mexican descent. Tobias also worked with Joss Whedon on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Musical - Once More, with Feeling. He was also in the band Splendid (which Features Australian Angie Hart formerly of Frente!) which showed up on BTVS a few times. Oh yeah.. he was the original guitarist for an obscure band called Red Hot Chili Peppers.
I bought a green t-shirt that says Irish Blood, English Heart for $35.
I snuck my camera into the show, lying like a dog to the security guard at the door who asked if I was carrying one. Of course, everyone and their dog had their blackberries and i-phones out all throughout the show. Ergo, you've got photos here!!!
The Courteneers opened. They had thick Narth of England accents, and reminded me of the Wedding Present mixed with shades of Echo and the Bunnymen.
Moz wore about 5 different shirts throughout the show, going half naked near the end of the show after tossing his shirt into the crowd.
My friend Ryan went to the show with the fabulous NC and I. It was an early birthday present for him. He has a cool band called Fluoxetine.
A vodka w/orange juice and a double espresso costs $11 at Bass Concert Hall.
Videos of New York Dolls and Shocking Blue were played between bands- an obvious homage to Morrissey's biggest influences. Thanks to the Fabulous NC for pointing that out. Guess it wasn't so obvious to me.
Bass Concert Hall
Austin, Texas
4/12/09
Over the years, I've heard so many stories about what a shit Morrissey is that I had assumed that most or all of them were true. I had become resigned to the fact that my hero, though possibly the greatest songwriter of his generation- not to mention, icon and poster child for sexual ambiguity and liberation from strict gender roles- was not the type of person with which one could wish to go bowling. I was fine with that. Often, immense talent takes up so much of a human that there's not much room left over for a pleasant personality. I went to Bass concert Hall pretty much expecting a standoffish jerk who would pace around stage and do his level best to avoid eye contact with the audience, showing utter disdain for we mere average mortals of lesser god-given talents. It wouldn't matter, really, as long as he did a decent show.
There is the legend, and then there is the truth right before your very eyes. If indeed Steven Patrick Morrissey is an unrepentant asshole, he certainly did a great job of convincing me otherwise on this night.
Moz is about six weeks shy of his 50th birthday. He is decidely middle-age, like myself. Oddly enough, I am of a mind to say that Moz got his middle-age crisis out of the way more than 20 years ago during his days as the Smiths' lachrymose poet in chief. If the Dylan line "I was so much older then, I'm younger then that now" applied to anyone, it is Moz, for he seems to be having the time of his life, and taking the audience right along with him.
The fabulous NC and I had been looking forward to this show for months. I think I got the tickets back in January during the first minute of their availability to the public. Now that I look back on it, all the hitting, "refresh, refresh, refresh" on my browser, waiting for the "puchase tix" link to go hot was well worth it. I'll call it the virtual version of waiting in line all night for tickets.
Our discussion yesterday centered around whether Moz would do any Smiths songs. The fabulous NC was of the opinion that Morrissey was too obstinate to please the crowd, and that he would probably just stick to solo stuff. I agreed that Morrissey was a stickler, and that he did not care about what the audience wanted, but had a sneaking feeling that "How Soon is Now" would tiptoe onto the setlist near the end and make everyone bonkers. We had a bet. I can't quite remember what it was, but we had one.
I won the bet the second Morrissey stepped onstage and the band struck up the opening riff of "This Charming Man." I was so caught up in my moment of fandom that I think I shouted "there he is!" when I saw Moz appear in the wings. When he hit the stage, the crowd - Bass Concert Hall holds a little over 2,000 humans - let out a deafening roar. They were totally amped. So was His Pathetic Majesty. He and his band, dressed in Tuxedos, as though they were at a really big dinner party, ripped through mostly newer Morrissey material with a couple of more Smiths songs thrown into the hour and a half show - "How Soon is Now" and "Some Girls." The Fabulous NC and I disagreed over the origins of "Ask." She said Smiths. I said Moz solo. Anyone know???
About fifty people had perched themselves right in front of the stage. Moz did not shy away from them. I think he shook every one of their hands during the course of the show and even interviewed a few people standing up front. He wanted to know how far people had traveled to get to his show. One woman had come all the way from Baltimore, another, from McAllen, Texas. Now McAllen is a good 6 or 7 hour drive from Austin. It's a bit of a haul. What was most impressive is that Moz actually knew where McAllen is on the map. "It's by Brownsville, right?" he queried. That's right, Moz. The deepest Rio Grande Valley, right on the border with Mexico.
Which brings me to another observation. I've heard that Morrissey, since moving to Los Angeles, has taken a shine to Hispanic boys. True or not, I don't know. One thing is for sure, the hispanic boys - and girls - like him, and they were out in force, hoisting Mexican flags with Morrissey's visage in place of the Eagle and the Snake. One such flag wound up on a guitar amp. Morrissey's mutual attraction with America's Hispanics is truly remarkable, the basis of which I am curious to find out more about. Truly unexpected, but very welcomed. These fans are young and enthusiastic, and I'm sure they are helping Moz stay young. I'll bet that Moz's shows next week in El Paso and Albuquerque will something to behold. I wish I had time to go to one of those shows.
Here is an article from Houston Press on this subject: http://www.houstonpress.com/2004-06-03/music/this-charming-hombre;
Here is info on a documentary about hispanics and Morrissey http://www.shoutmouth.com/index.php/emo-news/Morrissey_Fan_Documentary_Tries_to_Explain_Morrissey%27s_Latino_Appeal
and here is another http://www.papermag.com/?section=article&parid=1173
and another article: http://vidadeoro.blogspot.com/2009/03/latino-community-embraces-morrissey.html
I think this is really awesome. Funny how transcendent music can be.
Other cool stuff about the Moz show:
Per his Wikipedia page, Moz's guitarist, Jesse Tobias is an Austinite of Mexican descent. Tobias also worked with Joss Whedon on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Musical - Once More, with Feeling. He was also in the band Splendid (which Features Australian Angie Hart formerly of Frente!) which showed up on BTVS a few times. Oh yeah.. he was the original guitarist for an obscure band called Red Hot Chili Peppers.
I bought a green t-shirt that says Irish Blood, English Heart for $35.
I snuck my camera into the show, lying like a dog to the security guard at the door who asked if I was carrying one. Of course, everyone and their dog had their blackberries and i-phones out all throughout the show. Ergo, you've got photos here!!!
The Courteneers opened. They had thick Narth of England accents, and reminded me of the Wedding Present mixed with shades of Echo and the Bunnymen.
Moz wore about 5 different shirts throughout the show, going half naked near the end of the show after tossing his shirt into the crowd.
My friend Ryan went to the show with the fabulous NC and I. It was an early birthday present for him. He has a cool band called Fluoxetine.
A vodka w/orange juice and a double espresso costs $11 at Bass Concert Hall.
Videos of New York Dolls and Shocking Blue were played between bands- an obvious homage to Morrissey's biggest influences. Thanks to the Fabulous NC for pointing that out. Guess it wasn't so obvious to me.
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