Photo by Philip Bardi
We missed the
opening solo set by Auditorium’s synth-wielding Ryan Wendell Bauer, cruising
into Ybor City’s two-month-old live concert venue just in time to grab some
drinks and check out Poetry n’ Lotion. The local quintet — made up of drums,
keys, acoustic guitar, mandolin and upright bass — performed loose, jazzed-up
instrumentals with a hard rockin’ edge, from a rendition of the Munster's theme song to a medley that had Black
Sabbath’s “War Pigs†sandwiched in the middle of Dave Brubeck’s “Take 5.†Aside
from the bassist having to re-string midway through, the set was fun, if a tad
too short.
Next up was The
Nein, a North Carolina
outfit with a sound that fused dance punk and experimental pop with an
electronic ambiance of synths and samples, the fresh-faced musicians’ sweetly
earnest playing occasionally interrupted by the lead singer’s plaintive
pleas for a place to crash for the night.
Velveteen Pink
introduced the costume-wearing portion of the evening with matching white
polyester pants and silver vests, but the disco funk rocking
atmosphere was a bit tame and not entertaining enough to keep me from taking
several drink breaks.
Beat
boxer/vocal percussionist/multi-vocalist
eFFeX entertained the crowd in between sets with his only instrument — his
mouth — and proved that you can
produce drum-and-bass beats without a DJ, records or turntable.
I’ve described Gil Mantera’s Party Dream as having a live show that was one part pseudo-performance art, one part indecent
exposure set to music, and this evening’s set hit that remark on the head. Both were
decked out in full Party Dream regalia. Gil Mantera, looking like a cross
between a wrestler and porn star, wore shiny gold spandex (the waist rolled
down just enough so that the tip of his ass crack peeked out most of the
night), a wide wrestler’s belt and shiny blue track jacket partially unbuttoned
to reveal a pale chest and cluster of tacky gold necklaces, brown suede fringe
boots and big dark sunglasses. (Everything but the pants, boots and sunglasses
were removed by the end of the show.) Ultimate Donny made a late entrance, his
striped gray sweater flung off shortly after so we could all enjoy watching him
perform in a full body jumpsuit of crushed black velvet accessorized with
double studded faux leather wristlets, and a black leather cowboy hat and
boots.
Their music — New
Wave-ish synthpop marked by earnestly kitschy lyrics, wildly emotive vocals and
robotic buzzings alá Krawftwerk — began with its usual aerobic-style dancing
and beer chugging until the body of Donny’s guitar cracked, which added whole
new level of chaos to an already disorganized stage show.
“Anybody got any
wood glue?!?†he yelled before crouching down and attempting to fix the
problem, which Gil insisted was unfixable. They bantered back and forth, Gil
amused but exasperated, Donny drunkenly convinced he could make the thing work.
Gil eventually quit arguing and began performing solo while Donny knelt with
his back to the audience and tried to fix his broken instrument. Soon enough,
he stood and admitted defeat. “Anyone got a spare guitar?!?†(He did not, of
course, have a backup.)
Gil performed one
song on an acoustic guitar courtesy of Poetry n’ Lotion, but quickly discarded
it in favor of putting his full heart and soul into singing, sometimes while
lying prostate, sometimes while starring in his own half-hearted aerobics
video. It was exactly the sort of spectacle I’d hoped for.
Overall, the bill
was fun and eclectic and attracted a generous crowd of a few hundred
scenesters, curiosity seekers and authentic Party Dream fans.
This article appears in Jan 17-23, 2007.