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This ranks in my Top Ten for all time best shows …

April 25th, 2008 Posted by: Dust Devil

No joke. Ghostland Observatory was THAT good at the Fox Theatre in Boulder, CO, April 19. This is the second time I have seen them and I have a feeling they are this good everytime.

The night did not start off well, having to endure a terrible DJ for over an hour. I’m glad he thought he was good. If you look at a dance floor when a DJ is spinning tunes and maybe 5% of the people are dancing, that is not a good sign, especially in this case when the show was a sell-out, so there were lots of people that could have been dancing.

Finally around 11:15pm the lights went out and the sound system boomed with one of Ghostland Observatory’s songs, played straight off the actual disc. I apologize, I can’t remember the song title or what disc it was from offhand, but it was a great intro, setting the mood for when Aaron Behrens and Thomas Turner took the stage.

Thomas Turner got behind his extensive set of keyboards, donned in his trademark light blue cape with the cross on the back. Aaron Behrens sauntered over to the mike stand, clad in a coat and matching set of pants. Even in the pitch black, you could see he was wearing his trademark black sunglasses. Suddenly, Thomas began to plink away at Piano Man, and the crowd went nuts.

The lights never came on, but no matter. There was a spectacular laser light show the entire set, waving over the crowd from behind the stage and allowing full view of the duo in action. Good thing, because missing Aaron groove onstage would have been tragic. He threw himself into Piano Man and did not let up for the next hour and 15 minutes, or however long it was that they performed. It wasn’t long enough, that is all I know!

As I stated in an earlier post, Aaron Behrens is one of the best frontmen I have ever seen, and all he did was add to his credibility on this night. He has amazing charisma and a fabulous voice. The man can flat out dance! I stated before he reminds me of a cross between Mick Jagger and James Brown; my sister threw in a Prince comparision. He plays a mean guitar as well, clearly in evidence during their second song, the frenetic Ghetto Magnet. About 1/4, maybe 1/3 of their tunes, he plays the axe as well as singing.

Thomas Turner is a creative mastermind, putting together tunes that have an obvious electronica influence, but he mixes in rock as well, creating an extremely unique style of music. He occasionally steps out from his keyboard home and jumps on the drums. His drumming style is very basic, but with severe power as he pounds away in a brutal fashion.

The band’s MySpace page describes their music as “a robot making love to a tree”. That just may be the correct assessment! This duo has enormous power that overwhelms the audience, but the fury is unleashed in a controlled manner. You find yourself dancing whether you normally do or not. I was occasionally watching the crowd and no one was simply spectating. The crowd was 100% into what they were witnessing, and Ghostland Observatory knew it. They seemed to feed off the energy of the crowd, because the fury seemed to intensify as the set moved on.

This was the first time I have ever been to Boulder’s Fox Theatre and it is a great venue! The venue appeared to me to be an old movie house and is set right in the heart of Boulder’s Colorado University. The theatre has great seating areas along the sides, as well as a row that drops down a bit where one can stand with a long sort of mini bar to set your drink down. Then there is another drop down to a two-tiered dance floor. This is a great venue for shows that are general admission. There was only one drawback; the stage was far too small for this duo, because Aaron simply did not have enough room to dance! If he wasn’t playing the guitar he was all over the stage, moving and grooving in a manner that is all his. Those are the tunes you fully get to witness the charisma this man has.

The band played over half the songs from each of their first two discs, delete.delete.i.eat.meat and Paparazzi Lightning, before breaking out 3/4 of the tunes from their latest disc, Robotique Mystique. All three discs are amazing. Their latest effort leans heavier on the electronica than the rock and roll. My personal favorite is their sophomore output, Paparazzi Lighting, which the two previously mentioned songs come from, as well as the unbelievable Move With Your Lover, a song where the dancing style of Aaron Behrens is at its best. This was the tune when I saw them at the Monolith Festival in 2007 that made my jaw drop and made me realize I was witnessing something truly special.

I was simply exhuasted when this show was over. I hope they make their way back to Arizona one of these days. I guess they played at Hollywood Alley in the past. Shame on me for not knowing about them back then. This is a band I will travel to see over and over if need be, they are that good. What a wonderful shot in the arm for the music industry!

Do yourself four huge favors…

1. Check out their MySpace page. http://www.myspace.com/ghostlandobservatory
2. Go to Stinkweeds or your favorite independent record store and buy at least one, if not all three of their discs.
3. While you are there, pick up the DVD from their performance at the legendary Austin City Limits Music Festival, or order it online.
4. Order from iTunes their two ACL performances from 2006 and 2007, as well as their 2007 Lollapalooza performance. If you can’t be there, live is still the best way to listen to them!

Wow, just writing this makes me want to see them again! Cheers everybody! Don’t forget, Elbow’s new disc The Seldom Seen Kid came out in the U.S. this past Tuesday and it is stupendous! They are playing a few shows in the U.S., including Denver May 2, which I am quite happy to be going to, so if possible find a way to go see them!

The Dust Devil

Filed under: Event Reviews