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Elvis Costello's show ended abruptly with a bang. Someone in the balcony of the Paramount Theater threw a string of firecrackers on stage. After the bright flash, the Attractions, Costello's backing group, angrily threw down their instruments and quickly departed from the stage. As the smoke cleared from the center of the stage, one could see Costello remained, his eyes fixed on the balcony.
After a moment, he began to sing out the lyrics of the interrupted song, without any backing. Shorty the Attractions came back out on stage and helped Costello finish "Watching the Detectives." As soon as the song was completed, they once again threw and knocked down their instruments and quickly departed the stage.
The show could not have had a more memorable climax if it had been planned. Only 13 songs had been performed in the 50 minutes Costello was on stage before his unexpected exit. Two nights earlier in Eugene, he performed three encores. after completing his 60 minute show.
The show was another in the continuing series of the "Catch A Rising Star" concerts. Another sell out crowd turned out for the one dollar show on Saturday night. The show was also broadcast live on the radio.
From the moment Costello walked out on stage, you knew he was unusual. In his dark wrinkled suit, narrow tie, short hair and black horn-rimmed glasses, he either had to prove himself to the audience quickly or be regarded as a comical curiosity. Any doubts of Costello's ability as a performer and song writer were quickly erased.
Only five of the 13 songs performed were off Costello's American release, My Aim Is True. Normally a performer would just perform released material to try to tempt the audience to buy his records as much as possible. So far the British performer's first album has sold well in America.
Costello's lyrics deal with the negative emotions such as anger, revenge, guilt and rejection. He sings with intensity. The music is of a more complex nature than that of most of his current English contemporaries. While it is mostly rock, some songs have a strong reggae influence. All songs are kept short. There were no long instrumentals.
On stage, Costello moved about awkwardly. His motions were slow and stiff. He would slide his feet sluggishly instead of walk. Most of the show he stayed near his microphone, slightly bent over with his feet positioned inwardly at peculiar angles. He played guitar on most numbers. The few comments he made to the crowd were that he was annoyed that they were not showing signs of life.
The Attractions are a three-piece group of bass, keyboards and drums. All were dressed in 1960-ish style clothes like Costello. They played well, but stayed in the background.
The show was opened by a local bar band called Fire Eye. They played adequately, but were disappointing due to their lack of original material. Hearing a band do a set of cover material at the Paramount just seems out of place and shows a lack of imagination.
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