The Psychedelic Furs and The Church visited the Rococo Theatre in Nebraska on Aug. 2 and left behind an audience of believers.
The British and Aussie bands, two of Duran Duran's contemporaries, have been touring together on and off for the past year in what has proved to be a successful billing.
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| All photos by Christopher Windle. |
The Church, far more psychedelic than the Furs, provided a venerable warmup act. While most of the audience stayed seated for The Church, the band just isn't the kind of act to start a party on stage. Still, singer and bassist Steve Kilbey has been more animated of late. Perhaps Furs frontman Richard Butler's moves have had some influence on him.
The Church drew from more than two dozen albums to play what amounted to a finely curated set list of nine songs. "Reptile" and "Under the Milky Way," perhaps the band's best-known tracks, made the cut. But the audience was just as impressed with The Church's more obscure guitar-driven soundscapes.
Fun fact: Church guitarist Ian Haug's former band, Powerfinger, covered Duran's "The Chauffeur" for an Australian tribute album released in 1999.
The Furs were the main attraction. Butler and his brother, bassist Tim, are the founders, and they have formed a band of true professionals to become a well-honed touring act. As the band came onstage, Tim Butler turned an expectant ear to the crowd. It would be one of the only times during the show that the audience was encouraged to be louder.
Rich Good on guitar and Mars Williams on saxophone turned up the volume, so much so that Richard Butler could barely be heard through the sonic wall on the set opener, "India." But soon the frontman's vocals shone through, and the band proceeded to play its hits and better known tracks.
The Furs have wisely kept "President Gas" in the set list. Though the song is from 1982, off the Todd Rundgren-produced masterpiece "Forever Now," it couldn't be timelier. With lines like, "He comes in from the left sometimes; he comes in from the right," the song could be about a certain candidate for president. In a stroke of genius, the Furs added T-shirts and badges to its offerings at the merch booth that feature the campaign slogan "President Gas 2016."
The Furs only saved room for two more tracks off "Forever Now," the shimmering hit "Love My Way" and "Danger." After all, the band's set list managed to span all seven of its studio albums and included a newer staple, "Little Miss World."
Good's guitar playing, especially on tracks like "Mr. Jones" and "House," was a highlight. Williams was an energizer bunny on sax. The band was rounded out by Amanda Kramer on keyboards and Paul Garisto on drums.
By the time the Furs left the stage after playing its biggest hit, "Heartbreak Beat," the crowd had been whipped into a frenzy. The band came back for an encore of slower track "Until She Comes" and, of course, "Pretty in Pink." It's easily the most famous Furs song, thanks to it being the inspiration for and title track to the John Hughes classic.
But the way the Furs play it includes a nod to the version of the song off 1981's "Talk Talk Talk." The original song was all jangly guitar, but it got a slickly produced makeover a few years later for the movie. The guitar is there, beefed up a bit, and so is the now-famous sax that wasn't on the original. And Richard Butler both sings and mumbles (as on the original) the closing lines of the song.
The Furs show touched on all eras of the band's career. The energy the band displays on stage will hopefully materialize in a new album before too long. After all, it has been talked about for a few years.
But for now, the Furs will continue to please fans with its fantastic live show.
