Upper Crust at Bowery Electric. Late Night Report Updated.

2015-04-23 22.46.43

UPDATE: Tech issues made posting last night a nightmare. Here are a few quick notes this morning before work.

Went out to dinner with Mrs. Rotoman and two friends, Lisa and Terry, at a tasty and crazy Bengladeshi place off Sixth Street. Good food, good fun.

Walked over to Bowery Electric in the cold, and got hands stamped (always fun). As showtime approached we met another friend, Walker, and headed into the charming room downstairs. The crowd was mostly middle-aged rockers, probably 150 or so souls. I didn’t feel old, for instance, but I did feel preppy.

The UC emerged at 10:47, two minutes late. Count Bassie kept his pinkie extended, politely. The crowd cheered. The band plugged in, Lord Bendover said, “we are here to roq-cue you,” and they played Let Them Eat Rock.

Another early fave was “Little Lord Fauntleroy.” Bendover introduced “Badminton” by saying it light of the impending summer they would play a song they rarely played live. It was a rare song in which the vocals weren’t crisp and clear, which was too bad, since they’re delightful.

Other highlights were the Duc d’Stortion-sung I Shall Winter Elsewhere, a lively ode to winter holidays set to a Chuck Berry riff, and Count Bassie on vocals for the Small Faces’ like Come Hither Fair Youth, followed by the stomper I’ve Got Class Up the Ass.

Yet another friend, another Lisa, had arrived a bit late. I found her upstairs on the mezzanine. The show wound down at midnight, with one encore that came after they took off guitars but didn’t leave the stage. “We must conserve our energy,” Bendover said while remounting.

It was a great fun show by a most unusual band. Who knows why they keep doing it, playing smallish clubs has to be a hassle and not that remunerative. But they are a tight rock band playing songs in a variety of hard rock styles with truly clever and funny lyrics and stage patter. That never gets old.

Here’s a bad clip (and big file that will take some time to load) to give just a taste. I’ll find more on the rocking web and post later.

6 thoughts on “Upper Crust at Bowery Electric. Late Night Report Updated.

  1. Why do they keep doing it? Geez, Peter. Ask Gene and Lawr and I.

    I’d give not quite my left nut (I’d give that to be a Hellacopter), but I’d give a little toe for sure to be an Upper Crustacean.

  2. Oh no, I understand why they keep playing. But why do they keep playing the same songs? They’ve got a fabulous act down, and I’m not saying they should quit it, I’m just wondering why they haven’t stopped to do something different. Though of course they have, so this is probably just as much fun for them as it is for us. And it isn’t the only thing, the way it looks from the partial outside view.

  3. What I didn’t know, because I’m such an arriviste, is that the Crust played some new songs at this gig, namely the excellent Fopped Up and I’ll Be Wintering Elsewhere. So, if the creative spark is still there there is plenty of reason to revisit the wigs and pantaloons.

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