The English Beat Dec.8 The Knitting Factory, Boise

My sister and I arrived at the venue at the perfect moment. The headliners were on stage and just starting their set. Unfortunately that means I can't comment on the opening bands, sorry. But I was quite surprised at how many people were in the building, considering that the streets of downtown Boise were eerily empty. Rachel asked me if there was a zombie outbreak. I told her that I didn't think so.

On to the show! We were not the youngest people in the crowd, I don't think. Understandably there were quite a few olda peeps. That's my sort of crowd. They know how to act and alcohol can help the good vibes spread to everyone. I found myself grinning widely as I was bopping my head to the bouncy beat.

I found Dave Wakeling to be a puzzling chap. He rambled through strange setups that segued clumsily into the songs. Rach and I heard several people ask their friends, "What is he saying?" "I have no idea." Here is, as far as I could make out, what he said during one of them:
"It's so nice to drive out of California to where there are seasons. The only way you know it's winter in California is if it smells like burning. I was so excited when we got our first chain advisory."
and then he said something about being in Birmingham and it was so dreary that suicide was a tempting option, if only he had the courage for it. I found it highly amusing, but no one in the audience seemed to understand either A) him or B) why what he was saying was relevant.

But the music. The music was beautiful to me. This is partially because it's been two months (!!!) since my last show and longer than that since I've been to a good show. Dave Wakeling noted the crowd's response to the ska songs and said, "It's going to be a 2 Tone night." That was exactly what I was hoping for. I love how there are at least two different rhythms to dance to with ska and it's still okay. You can be bouncy and fast or slow and swaying. The crowd got amped for "Hands Off She's Mine", "Tenderness" (the General Public song, remember?), and "Mirror in the Bathroom", which people had been calling for since the beginning. I wanted "Mirror" to last forever. I'm not even joking. It was musical bliss for me. Then there was a short break between the main set and the encore; they didn't fuck around.

At one point the band led the audience in a chant for Barack Obama during a breakdown, replacing actual lyrics. But I don't really the song titles since I'm not really a big English Beat fan.

So all in all, Dave Wakeling is strange and the band was awesome.