Photos/Text by Andrew Parks
“I have the biggest hard-on right now.”
To be clear, the straightest of males said that at the Music Hall of Williamsburg last night, having been gleefully exposed to Of Montreal‘s endless evening of pansexual theatrics and pitch-perfect indie pop. Hell, we were all left feeling a little flushed after two and a half twitchy hours, more than 25 Technicolor songs and enough costume changes to rival a Madonna concert. As self-titled said on our Twitter halfway through all the madness, “this Of Montreal gig is the gayest show we’ve ever seen. In a good way and both senses of the word.”
With Kevin Barnes shedding his fur-trimmed, glitter-doused wardrobe like a natural born stripper every other song–many onlookers went home with portions of his closet–and the band itself pushing their pedals straight through the goddamn floor, Of Montreal delivered two things: (1) an airtight reminder of how deep their crowd-pleasing catalogue runs and (2) a performance that might as well have been billed as a ‘rock opera.’ After all, it’s not every night where a concert features cross-dressing, Lord of the Flies-like face-painting, ninjas, paper mache props, psych-steeped visuals, open-mouth kissing, golden golems, ripped bodices, and enough wigs, costumes and makeup to drain the stockroom of Ricky’s.
And the best part? Despite our worries that Of Montreal lost their old fans for lunkheads like the guy that ordered “five shots of Jameson and five shots of Patron!” beforehand (dude, it’s an Of Montreal gig, not SoHo), Tuesday’s crowd was the loosest we’ve seen all year. As one diehard said afterwards, “I am tired of always being the jumping around and having a good time. This show was great because of (pointing at everyone around him) YOU, YOU and YOU, just as much as the band!”
Cheers to that. Check the setlist …
Of Montreal, Music Hall of Williamsburg, 12.16.08:
1. Intro
2. Id Enganger
3. So Begins Our Alabee
4. Triphallus, To Punctuate!
5. She’s a Rejecter
6. For Our Elegant Caste
7. Touched Somethings Hollow
8. An Eluardian Instance
9. Heimdalsgate
10. Gallery Piece
11. Wraith Pinned to the Mist
12. Womens Studies Victims
13. St. Exquisites Confessions
14. Eros Entropic Tundra (Sad Love)
15. Nonpareil of Favor
16. October is Eternal
17. Wicked Wisdom
18. Bunny
19. Knight Rider
20. And I’ve Seen a Bloody Shadow
21. Plastis Wafer
22. Beware Our Nubile Miscreants
23. Mingusings
24. Kongsvinger
Encore:
25. Oslo in the Summertime
26. American Girl (Tom Petty cover)
