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Without actual statistics it’s hard to say how many present at the final stop on Hole’s US tour were there expecting (hoping?) to see a train wreck or how many were there out of curiosity. With a ticket price of $37.50 it’s fair to say one would have to be very curious to fork out almost forty bucks on the off-chance that Courtney Love would repeat the now famous “performance” at Washington D.C.‘s 9:30 Club earlier on the tour.
The nearly 90-minute wait between openers Foxy Shazam and Hole taking the stage had started to turn the crowd ugly. Many had too much to drink and despite frequent chants for the band, word quickly got around that Ms. Love wasn’t in the club. (Nearly everyone there was staying up-to-date by checking Love’s Twitter feed.) More than a few had speculated that they show would be canceled. When Ms. Love and the band finally took the stage at 12:47 a.m. they were greeted by a number of boos and more than a few crude gestures. However, the hardcore fans drowned out any dissenters.
Throughout the hour and twenty minute set Ms. Love reminisced about her time in Minneapolis, recalling various venues (Goofy’s, the C.C. Club, in addition to First Avenue), places and people. She even sang a bit of what she called “the first song I ever wrote”, written while living here about then Magnolias’ bassist John Joyce.
Contradiction and dichotomy seem to be the ruling words for Ms. Love. Trading her extremely high heels for flats after the first three songs, explaining, “I only wear these for the photographers.” Implying that since the photographers were no longer allowed to shoot, it was okay for her to be comfortable and less fashionable. Polling the audience about their credit scores — hers is 525 she said — only to suggest that this is the wealthiest city in the country. She seemed very eager to be considered one of us, yet she reveled in what set her apart. The fashionable L.A. actress from a well-to-do family versus the lower-middle-class punk-rocker from the Minneapolis. Both personae were on display Friday night.
The thing is, when Courtney Love rocks, she really rips it up. She’s one of the best female screamers in rock. This was a good set. There were great moments, a song here or there that really pulled out all the stops (“Skinny Little Bitch”, “Violet”). This was by far not the trainwreck folks were expecting and overall was a pretty good show. It just wasn’t as good as it might have been.
Set list:
Pretty on the Inside (truncated)
Sympathy for the Devil (truncated)
Skinny Little Bitch
Violet
Take This Longing (Leonard Cohen cover)
Closer (Nine Inch Nails cover)
Unsatisfied (the Replacements cover)
Doll Parts
Malibu
Samantha
Awful
Never Go Hungry
Opening band Foxy Shazam is certainly a band to watch.
Extremely high energy, the band’s short set was nearly non-stop from start to finish. Lead singer Eric Nally is manic in the way he roams the stage. Looking like the impossible bastard-child of Mick Jagger and Freddie Mercury, he has the stage presence of both singers plus a little Iggy Pop thrown in for good measure. Musically, the band is equally tough to pin down. Crunchy, grungy guitars mixed with funky horns and keyboards meets classic rock on an inner city basketball court. Looking forward to seeing them again.
