Tuesday night, the legendary British synthpop duo Erasure performed at Denver's Ogden Theatre.
Beforehand, we met up with our friend Dave and grabbed a bite to eat at Hamburger Mary's.
Because an Erasure concert itself isn't gay enough.
From there, we went to the Ogden on foot. We joined the opening act Frankmusik already in progress. I hadn't heard of Frankmusik, but Tim seemed to know about them/him. Most of the set seemed to consist of a medley of 1980s dance pop tunes remixed for the thumpa-thumpa scene. Though the stage was decorated with gargoyles and heavy-metalish neon, the environment wasn't nearly as scary as it looks here.
His part of the show didn't last very long; it was finished within half an hour of our arrival. I don't know; maybe he had to go to the bathroom or something.
In between sets, some props were taken away, and new microphone stands and a guitar were put in place. But the gargoyles remained. In fact, they were there for Erasure's set. That may seem uncharacteristic if you're familiar with their style. But it actually makes sense if you imagined it as being part of a huge old Gothic church.
Singer Andy Bell entered wearing a Greek helmet, looking to all the world like Ares the God of War, while Vince Clarke took his place at a synth station behind one of the gargoyles, and they began the performance.
Accompanied by a pair of lovely backup singers, they performed most of the songs you would expect at an Erasure concert, including Blue Savannah, Always, Chorus, Drama!, Chains of Love, and A Little Respect. They also played a few songs from their new album Tomorrow's World, due to be released next week.
For the encore, the backdrop became a colorful stained glass window, completing the Gothic church theme. They performed "Oh l'Amour" and "Stop!"
[Westword Review]
[Photos from heyreverb.com]
And here is my full gallery of pictures...
And we'll finish with everyone's favorite Erasure-related Flash game...
