Sounds, June 17, 1978

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Sounds

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Elvis, running with the de Ville


Sylvie Simmons

Elvis Costello, Mink DeVille, Nick Lowe
Los Angeles

If the prices asked by the ticket touts are the equivalent in musical prowess to notches on the bed, young Elvis is a popular boy.

Six months ago he was playing the Whisky, a 500-seater gig, with tickets around four dollars a head. This time around he's headlining the 3,000-seater Santa Monica Civic at twice the price with tickets selling out in a week and touts asking 20 dollars, and by the look of it getting it, for admission to the show.

Costello's name on the billboard outside the venue is three times larger than that of his "co-headliner" Mink and supporter Lowe. In an interview backstage from an earlier spot on the tour, the ever outspoken Willy DeVille claimed to have rightfully upstaged Costello because he had no right to go round by the name of the great Elvis.

But judging by the quality of Costello's music and the surprisingly raucous response from the audience, Willy may have talked too soon. Elvis was great.

The sound in the Civic is an abortion. There's something in the wall that absorbs any strength and fullness the sound had when it left the instruments. Imagine a large gym with a transistor radio at either end, and that's it. Mink and Rockpile suffered badly from it, but by the time we got to Costello we'd either got used to it, or he'd somehow managed to overcome the problems.

His set was, thankfully (after a relatively short one from Mink and an even briefer one from Lowe) quite long, around 20 songs, and very different from the pre-This Year's Model Whisky set. If you like that album, you'd have had trouble finding too much fault with his performance as numbers from it were featured heavily, the best song being "Pump It Up," traces of Dylan circa Blonde On Blonde in the voice and full, driving rhythm from the bass, drums and keyboards, so smooth and well synched as to be almost mechanical.

Though many of the tunes were very melodic, they were also stripped down to the hard and bare essentials, Costello's voice was snarly, his actions intense, even twisted. He seemed to be almost defying the audience to applaud, though they did so readily and loudly.

Before the end of the show, his guitar strap seemed to slip, and he brandished his instrument above his head. It was an ambiguous gesture; could have been triumph, as everyone was clapping and saluting him. But he followed that by kicking the amps in what looked like a fit of petulance and walking offstage without really finishing the show. I would imagine he felt the same way about the sound as I and many others did.

When he eventually returned he looked very odd, picked up a stage light and looked like he was going to throw it at someone, then got back to the music, finishing on a violent note that is not going to help improve his Angry Young Man image with the press. (Recent stories have gleefully reported an incident in which Costello allegedly had his crew tough up a persistent photographer who defied his no-press-backstage ban.)

Mink DeVille are probably more used to this venue. When they supported Tom Petty here last autumn they came up against such terrible difficulties with the tinny sound that they played "Spanish Stroll" at the equivalent of 78rpm just to get it over with. The thinness of the sound unfortunately worked against them again, as theirs is the type of music you need to hear through big, booming speakers.

But they put on a good show despite the odds, occasionally reaching brilliance with the throbbing, luscious "Mixed Up, Shook Up Girl" and "Guardian Angel," both songs that Phil Spector wouldn't be ashamed to have produced, and balancing the set pretty evenly with all the best numbers from their first and second albums.

Musically it was very muddy at times, especially on the more energetic numbers like "Gunslinger," but that was more the fault of the venue than the band. Willy DeVille was vocally on top form. I'd have loved to have heard this show somewhere else, though even here the crowd was more than appreciative.

Nick Lowe and Rockpile could have achieved a record tonight. They're probably the first support band I've seen here that by their second number had almost totally cleared the lobby of hangers around. Most people seemed more familiar with Dave Edmunds than with Nick, cheering him when he was introduced by Lowe, and giving a very warm response to the songs from his Get It album.

I suppose there must have been some confusion, as on the last tour it was labelled as Edmunds' gig with Nick Lowe as band member. But Lowe's "Breaking Glass" and set-closer "Heart Of The City" were by far the best of their much-too-short set.

Lowe suffered a little from the bad sound and from his lack of any real stage presence but he went down quite well, and looks like promising a good night out when he headlines the Whisky next week.


Tags: Civic AuditoriumSanta MonicaCaliforniaThe AttractionsMink DeVilleNick LoweRockpileDave EdmundsWhisky a Go GoThis Year's ModelPump It UpBob DylanBlonde On BlondeTom PettyPhil SpectorI Love The Sound Of Breaking GlassHeart Of The City

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Sounds, June 17, 1978


Sylvie Simmons reviews Elvis Costello & The Attractions and opening acts Mink DeVille and Nick Lowe, Tuesday, May 30, 1978, Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, California.

Images

1978-06-17 Sounds page 53 clipping 01.jpg
Clipping.


Photo by Gus Stewart.
1978-06-17 Sounds photo 01 gs.jpg


Cover.
1978-06-17 Sounds cover.jpg

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