Psychedelic Furs and the Church at the NYCB Theatre at Westbury

Psychedelic Furs and the Church
NYCB Theatre at Westbury
Westbury, NY
August 19, 2015

The Psychedelic Furs are one of the most iconic bands of the modern rock era. The British band found initial fame in the early 1980s with what was originally an art-rock sound that developed into the more robust new wave modern rock with which the band achieved its biggest successes. The band initially consisted of Richard Butler (vocals), his younger brother Tim Butler (bass), saxophonist Duncan Kilburn, Paul Wilson (drums) and guitarist Roger Morris. Over time the line-up expanded into a six-piece as guitarist John Ashton was added to the line-up and Vince Ely took over on drums. Drummer Paul Garisto and saxophonist Mars Williams joined the band in 1987 for the Midnight To Midnight (Columbia Records) album. Both musicians remain an integral part of the band in its current configuration.

In 1981, the band's second LP, Talk Talk Talk (Columbia Records) cracked the Billboard 200 Chart (reaching number 89). The album featured the original version of "Pretty in Pink," which was later rerecorded for the John Hughes film of the same name. The song was included on the movie's best-selling soundtrack, and the rest is history. Over the years the Psychedelic Furs have had a presence on both the U.S. and the U.K. singles charts with "Love My Way," "The Ghost In You," "Heaven" and "Heartbreak Beat." The band is currently comprised of Richard and Tim Butler, guitarist Rich Good, Amanda Kramer (formerly of Information Society) on keyboards, Williams and Garisto.

The Church are an Australian progressive, psychedelic, pop, art-rock, modern rock band. Comprised of Steve Kilbey on lead vocals and bass guitar, Peter Koppes and Marty Willson-Piper on guitars and Nick Ward on drums, the band released its first album, Of Skins and Heart was released in Australia by EMI Parlophone in 1981. It was released internationally by Capitol Records in 1982 as The Church. Ward soon left (replaced by Richard Ploog from 1982 -1989 and then Jay Dee Daugherty from 1990-1993). In 1994 Tim Powles began manning the drumkit where he remains to this day. Guitarist Ian Haug replaced Willson-Piper in 2013.

Best known in the U.S. for the hit single "Under The Milky Way" from Starfish (Arista, 1988) and the number 1 Billboard Modern Rock chart smash "Metropolis" from Gold Afternoon Fix (Arista, 1990), the band has enjoyed a long career due to its cult-like following and die-hard fanbase. The Church's CDs include Untitled 23 (Second Motion Records, 2009), Priest = Aura (Arista, 1992), the covers album A Box of Birds (Cooking Vinyl, 1999) and Forget Yourself (Cooking Vinyl, 2003). The band continues to record. In 2014 it released Further/Deeper (Unorthodox Records), its 20th full-length studio album.

The summer of 2015 found the two legendary groups co-headlining their way across the country. The evening's festivities began on the lounge/deck outside the venue where former WLIR disc jockey Andre spun the best of the '80s hits that made the terribly missed radio station a staple of the Long Island music scene. The station, which along with KROQ in Los Angeles has been recognized by the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame for its integral part in the history of the genre—so much so that its logo (and that of its alter-ego WDRE) is prominently featured in the Hall's exhibit area.

For the majority of the tour (to date), the Church had served as the opening act. On this evening at Westbury, NY's NYCB Theatre the status quo was held. Appearing on stage a few minutes after 8pm, the band began to play its opening number, "Block." Unfortunately, due to a monitor malfunction (the band could not hear its own performance) which Kilbey quickly called to the attention of the soundmen, the show had to be delayed. After first joking with the crowd while the issue was attended to, Kilbey left the stage. He was followed in short order by the other band members. After approximately fifteen minutes, the band returned and delivered a strong, though abbreviated eight-song performance.

At one point, Kilbey paused and stated, "This is the strangest gig, I've ever done." He then asked about the pit and the gap between the circular stage (which sometimes revolves, though not on this night) and the seats. The enthusiastic crowd, which was littered with the children of the '80s—most of whom were either pushing 50 or were now just north of that milestone birthday—didn't care. The audience cheered and sang along as the Church's set of "Block" "Reptile," "Toy Head," "Metropolis" and the almost dirgy "The Disillusionist." "You Took," with its feedback and drums interlude followed by the stage lights flashing in a strobe-like manner fast enough to cause epileptic seizures. "Under The Milky Way" was presented following the statement, "Here's a song that should never have an introduction ever again." The performance of the band's biggest hit was letter-perfect and the audience responded by rising to its feet and singing along with Kilbey. Prior to the group's final song, Kilbey made reference to the sound issue that plagued the beginning of the set. He said, "Sorry about the screw-up before. This is a song from our new album (Further/Deeper). It's called "Miami."

As the new song was played, the stage was bathed in reds, purples and a very strange greenish yellow. Though the song's performance was strong, it was marred by the fact that the roadies began disassembling the band's equipment while the Church as still playing. When the song ended, it seemed that half of Powles' drums had been removed from the stage and part of the Psychedelic Furs stage set-up had been assembled.

After an intermission that lasted for about twenty-five minutes the lights dimmed and the Psychedelic Furs took the stage. Frontman Richard Butler, looking much younger than his 59 years of age, came front and center and took a very theatrical bow. The crowd ate it up and responded with ear-splitting cheers. A powerful and brilliant rendition of "Heartbeat" followed.

Though he didn't speak between songs, Richard Butler spent the entire evening interacting with the crowd. His vocals as well as the band's energetic renderings of their songs sounded much as they had during the group's heyday. This vigor was quite evident on the Bowie-esque "Mr. Jones" (from Talk Talk Talk) which was played at breakneck speed. During the song, the bespectacled Richard Butler, who was dressed in his trademark charcoal black trousers and a matching black button-down shirt jumped into the small pit between the stage and the seating area and shook hands with some of the audience members. He ended the song with is arms wrapped around the shoulders of his brother.

During the performance, Richard Butler commanded the attention of every member of the audience. It was impossible to not keep one's eyes pinned to his every move as he danced, pirouetted and jumped up and down, bopping in place between songs as well as during the vocal-less musical segments of his songs. He appeared to be in his own world as he clapped and gestured theatrically throughout the set. His gravely, raspy, growling vocals were crisp and clear as the band roared through a muscular version of "Heaven," "There's A Word," "Love My Way" (which caused the audience members to take to the aisles to dance to the beat and crowd who shout the song's "Awoo, Awoo, Awoo, Awoo" closing lyrics), "Little Miss World" and "Susan's Strange."

"Ghost In You" which features the "Inside you the time moves and she don't fade" lyric was marred by a brash and brazen audience member who not only left the seating area to venture in to the pit but actually was bold enough to jump on stage. Security pried her loose from the singer and with a stern warning quickly escorted her back to her seat. The audience was again brought to its feet during the band's highest charting single, "Heartbreak Beat" (during which Richard Butler again went out of his way to shake hands with the lucky fans who had scored first row seats) and "Highwire Days," a deep cut from Mirror Moves (Columbia, 1984). The thirteen song main set ended with "Pretty In Pink," which, as it often does, turned into an audience participation event as the aisles were flooded and crowd members sang along with Butler. The encores, much like the entire show, were short, sweet, high-energy and right to the point. "Sister Europe" from the self-titled debut album (Columbia, 1980) and "Sleep Comes Down," from Forever Now (Columbia, 1985) provided a fitting end to a strong performance.

At the end of the night's festivities, the appreciative crowd erupted with applause and the tall, lanky Englishman grinned like a happy kid on his birthday. He bowed and addressed the crowd for the first time, offering a simple and understated, "Thank you."

Though its been over thirty years since both bands came on the scene, those years have been kind. Some grey and silver in the band members' hair serve as a reminder that the '80s have passed, but the musicians' youthful enthusiasm and the excitement that the performances generated allowed the crowd of mostly younger baby-boomers to relive its care-free youth. It was definitely a very strange evening in the intimate venue. The sound at the NYCB Theatre is always crystal clear and perfect. For some reason on this evening it wasn't. The fact that the Church stopped their performance and left the stage while it was fixed was surprising. Rarely do audience members make it across the pit and attempt to jump on the stage. Those who take-on the risky proposition are quickly tackled and removed from the venue. On this evening, not only was the transgressor helped off the stage, she was returned to her seat.

The majority of the audience, though, was far more well-behaved. Although some had long (and sadly) loud conversations during the early stages of the Church's performance, they reigned it in for the later part of the band's set. The crowd conducted itself in a far better manner for the Furs—with the one exception. The audience members got much more than they bargained for. They were treated to an evening featuring virtually every song (from both groups) that they had hoped to hear. These songs, when they were played, sounded fresh and vibrant. They acted as a musical time machine, transporting the crowd back to its younger days. Both bands proved that they've still got it. Judging by the reaction from the audience, the fans agreed and loved it!

Lastly, judging by the sounds of the retail frenzy emanating from the merchandise tables, the audience members also wanted to bring home some mementos and memorabilia (CDs, posters, t-shirts, caps, keychains, vinyl records, etc.) from both of the bands. Many were seen leaving the venue with bags filled with their purchases.

Photo Credit: Christine Connallon
[Additional article contributions by Christine Connallon].

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