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Though Ian MacKaye's heyday as hardcore figurehead is long past, hiseleven-year-strong avant-punk outfit Fugazi is still roping in new generations. |
Fugazi's fan base ranges from those who have loyally followed MacKaye's every move since his Teen Idles and Minor Threat days, to those raised on Fugazi staples like "Waiting Room" and "Margin Walker." Judging by the age of much of the sell-out audience at the Glass House, the latter-day fans are having an easier time getting out to see the punk godfather and his razor-sharp band.
No matter the age group, loyalists have always embraced the
D.C.-based foursome's intense, churning rhythms and songs that tick
like undetonated hand grenades. Every time guitarist/vocalist
MacKaye, guitarist/vocalist Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally and
drummer Brendan Canty reach the brink of explosion, they replace
the pin in its proper position to ease the tension.
Despite six solid albums, MacKaye and crew best channel that tamed
ferocityin a live setting. Fugazi is also one of the few
fan-friendly bands to keep prices at a bare-bones $6 per show. But
tours are becoming a rarity as more band members slip into a family
lifestyle (Brendan is a father and Joe is married). As such, this
night's gig was elevated to major-event status.
Though the Glass House show wasn't a marathon two-and-a-half hour
performance, as reported in other cities, a relatively
mild-mannered 800 or so fans hung on each impassioned inflection of
Picciotto's voice and every chord drilled out byMacKaye.
MacKaye, who opened with an anecdote about the band's last time in
Pomona,when an incorrect address was advertised for the show, made
few comments throughout the evening. Despite squelching from his
penchant for preaching, few personalities are as commanding as
MacKaye, whose muscled build, shaved head and piercing eyes betray
total focus.
Guy was also more grounded than usual, holding off on his
characteristic leaps around the stage -- though he channeled much
of that unused energy into his fidgeting. But the band's skin-tight
set was more than adequate compensation for any impersonal
sentiment.
The set was culled from bits and pieces of the band's past works,
evenreaching back to their first CD for powerhouse versions of
"Give Me the Cure" and "Bad Mouth," and to Repeater for
"Greed." They plucked a few from Red Medicine, including
"Birthday Pony," which MacKaye dedicated to a friend for her
birthday, and "Do You Like Me?" which inspired some fist shaking
and singing along. They sliced through both "Place Position" and
"F/D," two of the more straightforward tracks on their latest, more
experimental CD End Hits. "Arpeggiator" was just one of
several of the evening's instrumentals, while Lally's vocals filled
out "Recap Modotti." A second drummer complemented Canty on "Closed
Captioned."
The band came on for a four-song encore to cap the night with a
stinging "LongDivision" from Steady Diet of Nothing and
left the fans hungry for more. Fugazi ignored old staples like
"Waiting Room" and "Repeater," which reflected MacKaye's
characteristic determination not to dwell in the past. He's got a
pure "this is it, this is us" mentality, and that's just fine with
his fans.
The crowd was far less accepting of openers Fluf, who were
promoting their CD Road Rage. The band's generic sounds
inspired comments from Fugazi fans like "Three cheers for the Blues
Travelers" and "Please kill me."
MARLENE GOLDMAN
(March 15, 1999)