The Blue Moon Tavern

I was a little worried when I got to the Blue Moon Tavern in Seattle this Saturday (October 19, 1996). Not only was my luggage lost and I was trusting United Airlines to get it to the bar (and me) that evening, but the crowd didn't look like your usual Stale Urine fan club: mostly older, single men in their late 30s or early 40s. I was guessing that hard-rockin' '70s bands would be more their style, not experimental performance art industrial nerds.

I couldn't have been more wrong. The guys started out strongly with ``Wax Man,'' a Boingo-esque tune that has enough mass appeal to grab a crowd and groove them. The crowd loved the song, screaming out ``more songs about WAX!'' as Krevis' (on guitar) sound was adjusted for their cover of ``Marauder.'' [``Marauder'' is an original song in the style of AC/DC--ed.]

``From The Air'' was next, one of my all-time favorites. The crowd loved it too, judging from the number of people doing their own interpretations of Cypress Hill. ``Spoonman'' was dedicated to the city of Seattle, for obvious reasons, and these denizens of the city of Seattle seemed to really enjoy the mutilation of a grunge classic. The covers finished for a while with ``Kicker of Elves,'' surreal as always.

Adam's foam-at-the-mouth diatribe in ``Lobster'' [she means ``Horse In a Smelter''--ed] matched anything ever done by Benedetti, maybe because for the first time, I could understand what was being screamed. The Blue Moon's booking agent almost burst a gut laughing at the remarks about Seattle's chilly weather. Radford came up to lead ``Hello, Mr. Bicyclist!,'' and his stuffy, Boston-style delivery was a big hit, even down to the patter.

``Moon'' and ``You'll Be Alone When I Throw You in Jail'' would probably have been more popular had they been comprehensible. It took the crowd a while to recognise ``I Want your Sex,'' but the jolly mood carried over into ``Horse in a Smelter.'' ``The Third Rail'' combined two elements very popular at the Blue Moon: Screaming and Satan.

``La Donna e Mobile'' was a perfect way to leave the crowd wanting more: clearly enunciated and showcasing all three vocalists: Villani, Radford, and Lange. Lange's masterful improvisational accordion skills shined through on the encore (that's right! a Stale Urine ENCORE! this crowd was nuts for Urine!) ``Billie Jean Polka,'' although the vocalists should have possibly picked a song they knew the lyrics to.

Other than the crowds overwhelmingly positive reaction to this show, the really stunning thing was to hear a well-mixed Stale Urine. Guitar, Accordion, Spoons, Signs, Root Beer Bottle, and Filing cabinet were all equally audible, and nothing drowned out the vocals, although enunciation/distortion was a small problem. This was probably the best Stale Urine gig ever--the crowd loved them, the guys had fun, and the Sound Guy wants to videotape them!

Respectfully Submitted, 10/23/96
Connie-Lynne
Opinionated Person