Went to see Tears for Fears at the Beacon last night. Yeah, I know, it's 2004... fortunately I ran until Ultragrrl there, and having a hip Spin columnist in attendance made me feel much less embarrassed to be there. Watching the show, I wondered if the band realizes that we aren't living in the 70's: the set was littered with Monty Python-esque cartoon cutouts, and their new album, "Everybody Loves a Happy Ending," borrows extensively from ELO. The concert was good, not great... not much different than listening to their albums, except that the instrumentation and vocals aren't as lush (although Roland Orzabal's voice is still incredibly strong). Yet the longer I sat among the crowd, listening to them cheer a band play a hit like "Shout" that's 20 years old (scary thought), the more I realized that going to a concert like this isn't really about hearing a quality performance. It's about revisiting your past. Nostalgia is great. TfF must know that they're passe. But when they play "Sowing the Seeds of Love," it makes their fans happy. So they play it, and people cheer, and even though it may be lame, there's nothing wrong with that.
P.S. I have to wonder, has Roland ever had a decent haircut? 1982: nope. 1985: nope. 1989: nope. 1993: nope. Present day: nope.