A surprisingly small crowd of all types of people attending; young and old,punks and hipsters. I haven't seen anyone in a club, watching a band from the pit area, be asked by security to please stop smoking in quite some time. The offender nodded politely, and put it out. Very civilized. Seeing these guys play togther live, it's easy to see why icons such as Iggy Pop list Mission of Burma among their influences. The members concentrate on playing music more than they do on stage theatrics. Nobody jumps around like they're crazy, nobody does backflips into the audience. They just play the music, and they do that extremely well. Loads of raw energy, all pushed into the music. They split the set in half, with a ten minute break in the middle. One of the band left the stage afer announcing, "We're going to take a break to take some medication." The bass player muttered something about where his wheelchair got to. Whatever the medication may have been, the second set was even better; an incredible show. On the way out, I noticed that there was NO MERCHANDISE TABLE. No Mission of Burma T-shirts, bottle openners, caps, or CDs, or anything. Very surprising for a reunion show, where you'd think that the main reason for the tour was cash; maybe reunion tours aren't always about the money.

Elsewhere

By Richard Murray
Photos : Richard Murray
Published : August 9, 2004.