Perhaps you’ve heard that CBGB is closing? For a while now there have been farewell-ish shows at the legendary club, but this week the real countdown begins. The remaining performers include Bad Brains, Debbie Harry and Patti Smith (among many others) between now and Sunday when the last show ever will be held. We’re trying to say goodbye gracefully, and last night the Bad Brains helped us along in our quest. We were joined by approximately 563 dudes who look like the adult Beastie Boys. Everyone was pretty and buff with prematurely grey hair and youthful faces. And tattoos. Lots of tattoos. They all knew the words to the classics like “I Against I,” “Sailin’ On,” and “I,” and sang unabashedly while sipping light beer and purchasing expensive T-shirts. It was quite moving, really.
The night could have been anticlimactic (and was a bit, the sound is bad in that place and the lights don’t really turn off and people stand on chairs, making it impossible to see) but there was this indubitably romantic feeling in the air, like we were truly honoring the passing of an era. It probably helped that arguably the greatest hardcore/punk/reggae fusion band ever was onstage, complete with the incomparable presence of H.R. The band sounded confident and tight, but our prize for most entertaining element of the show goes to H.R.’s dinner jacket. It was constructed out of champagne-colored crepe (the kind you’d see hanging as track-housing drapes or on suburban moms in the form of capri pants) and as he spun around, alternating shrieks with purrs, it glittered in the lights like a sartorial disco ball. So if you squinted your eyes you would see mosh pit donations like shoes and bandannas floating through the air in the light of this glittery rasta punk’s badass jacket. We’re gonna miss this CBGBs place.
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- Portions of Album Content Provided by All Music Guide © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC.
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