So last night, this happened:
That’s right. Dan Deacon at the 9:30 Club put on an epic and extremely bonkers set of electro freak dance party music. NPR webcast the show, though I do wonder how much of what went on translates for a listener. Make sure to check out the amazing shots the NPR photographer took… you can even find me in a crowd shot (it’s like a sweaty hipster Where’s Waldo.)
Deacon performed on stage with this 15 person band playing songs of Spiderman of the Rings and Bromst… a full on melee of synths and percussion and hard driving dance grooves. Deacon also coaxed the crowd through a slew of dance contests and audience participation and sing alongs… all of which the crowd happily went berserk over, especially during songs like “Wham City” and “Crystal Cat.”
The show also featured some of the most hilarious (and awesomely terrible) pre-show music I’ve heard in a long time:
“Another Night” by Real McCoy ; “Bulls on Parade” by Rage Against the Machine ; “Kissed By A Rose” by Seal ; “What’s Up” by 4 Non Blondes ; “Only Time” by Enya; “No Rain” by Blind Melon
It was like reliving early ’90s Bar Mitzvah parties and middle school mixers, but it left no doubt that Deacon himself was programming the music himself, showing a great sense of humor in the process.
All in all, the show was insanely fun and a total blast.
An explanation for what’s happening in this photo above:
Dan had everyone spread out to make a huge circle on the floor, then take a knee. Then the dude in the center was supposed to dance slowly and the crowd was supposed to imitate what he did, slowly collapsing the circle and standing up a bit taller. About 30 seconds into, everyone just rushed the center again and went bonkers. You know us Millenials and our attention to instructions. Oh well…
What you cannot see here was that a dude in a Space Ghost costume joined the shirtless dude in the center.