Sparks Spectacular: Whomp That Sucker
Posted in Concert Reviews, Music, Reviews, Sparks Spectacular |By Noisy Boy
This show was absolutely awesome! I was slightly unsure of how it would go, with the sparse attendance the night before, and Russell’s reticence about the eighties, but there were many reasons why this was up there with the best.
For one, the sound was the best I’ve heard at any of the gigs so far, apart from No. 1 In Heaven. The guitars were up-front, the synths popped through at the right point, Steven Nistor had the drum sound down pat, and the whole thing was very faithful to the album. When they came out and simply tore through “Tips For Teens,” I was completely enthused!
The whole album is a real favorite of mine and “Upstairs” (one of my most frequently-played Sparks obscurities) was impeccable. It was also great to be surrounded with an audience who were totally up for it, joining in on all the call-and-response on this song as well as “Funny Face.” It was also great to see Steve McDonald back in action, as having Marcus on second guitar adds an extra punch that was absent for the last two shows. He’s so energetic and expressive that it always cheers me up to just watch him for a bit.
I thought things went off the boil slightly for “Susie Safety” but came right back in for the last two tracks on the album. Following a convoluted monologue from Russell concerning Giorgio Moroder and his friend Nastassja Kinski, they really nailed that in the same key as the original (my one contender for a song they’d change key for). Absolutely magnificent. Same for “Wacky Women,” which was a lot of fun, and again lots of crowd replies on the “Medic! Medic!” bit.
The encore of “Get Crazy” was actually from the 1983 film, not this album, but it certainly looked like Russell was surprised at how well known it was, and I was impressed with the amount of people who were singing.
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