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BERKELEY — Elvis Costello opened his Friday night show at the UC-Berkeley Greek Theatre momentarily by himself. "Oh, I-," he sang, and then his six-man band, the Rude 5, kicked in for the rest of "Accidents Will Happen." Contrary to the song, there were no significant accidents and few surprises during the two-hour-plus set.
Costello sang many of his old favorites, as well as much of the best material from his latest album, Spike. He was as good-natured as his sardonic nature allows him to be. The band played well and the crowd responded warmly throughout. By most rocker's standards, the Greek show was a success.
But the precedent Costello has established over many years of astonishing performances made this one seem comparatively tame. Costello's cerebral side was in full force, but his emotional intensity erupted only occasionally. The pacing and focus of the evening was off, and the musicianship was more clever than committed. The entire concert seemed like foreplay to a climax that never arrived.
Saleswise, Costello has never done better. After a dozen years of should-have-been hits, "Veronica" recently became his first American Top 20 single. The album from which it came, Spike, is his only gold LP in a decade. These commercial flukes have more to do with the strength of Warner Bros.' promotion (Spike is his first release for the label) than the music's accessibility. "Veronica" doesn't represent the overall direction of his latest material. Although the maturing, mellowing Costello appears to be reaching out, Spike is one of his most difficult, inward albums ever.
This paradox didn't ruin Friday's performance, but it did accentuate the disparity between Costello's old and new songs. Most of the best-selling recent stuff sounded obscure, whereas a tune like "Radio Sweetheart," the flip side to one of his earliest singles, bounced along like a natural smash. So did "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" from My Aim Is True, his debut album. Both songs were performed during a solo portion of the set, when the songwriter accompanied himself on acoustic guitar.
Here, Costello was at his best. Simple and direct, his solo versions triumphed on the strength of tune and delivery. Other singers may have more notes in their range or more lung power, but Costello's croon is still a thing of beauty. The London-born singer's recent move to Ireland, as well as his work with the Pogues and marriage to ex-Pogue bassist Cait O'Riordan, has apparently brought a lilt to his inflections. This was especially apparent during "Tramp the Dirt Down," one of the folky high points of Spike.
The Spike songs with the Rude 5 were performed light-heartedly, but came across dark, demented. This black comedy style was often closer to the jittery soundtracks of vintage cartoons than to conventional rock 'n' roll. The complex arrangements, which featured the zany clanging and banging of percussionist Michael Blair, evoked slapstick violence. You could imagine Bugs Bunny walloping Elmer Fudd with a big frying pan in time to the stop-and-go beat of "Pads, Paws and Claws."
Blair and guitarist Marc Ribot, who hail from Tom Waits' backing band, were the instigators behind much of the new music's jagged edges. Costello's guitar playing has also grown more angular, discordant: His solos during "Let Him Dangle" and "Watching the Detectives" were practically atonal. Since the trumpet, trombone and tuba-tooting Rude 5 is more of a theatrical pit band than a rock band, many of the earlier songs were somewhat stiff. Although the ensemble included drummer Pete Thomas from Costello's former group, the Attractions, this unit lacked the old group's tenacity.
The tension was particularly missed on "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding," which featured the song's writer, Nick Lowe, harmonizing with Costello and playing one of several guitars. Whereas the Attractions' version was angry about its plea for peace, the Rude 5 rendition was laid back, almost complacent. Costello is one rocker who should never relax.
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