by Rebecca Moore

Created on: May 16, 2008

Ricky Ricardo lives and he's fronting a gypsy rockabilly band called DeVotchKa.

This band fuses so many influences together, I'll be honest, it almost does my head in.

Let me talk about my immediate experience at the show first. The HLC was there again. That stands for Hot Lesbian Cougars. The Ozomatli show was my first experience with such a phenomenon. Hot Lesbian Cougars. Its hard not to just watch them, especially since they can't just stand still, they are constantly dancing and making out. I have to wonder if they were actually paid to do this, so locals would think there were more to lesbians than short hair and work boots.

In addition to HLC, there was a great stink. Many in attendance at last nights show forgot to bathe, for at least a week. The obligatory hip hop screamers were there. Every show you go to, no matter how far from hip hop the genre is, there are always the obligatory hip hop dancer/screamers. Good for them for expanding their horizons. Bad for the friends that let them continue to throw gang signs and scream "yeah boy" during a romantic tarantella. I mean, you are really disrupting the HLC's mood!

At one point I found myself standing next to a couple. Then a couple they knew came up on the other side. Rather than move, they began talking; not in front of me; around me. So I found myself in a fivesome. I contemplated just joining in the conversation, but it was a dumb conversation, and I couldn't think of anything witty. This was one of the most awkward social situations I have found myself in. Since I couldn't think of anything to say, I just intently looked at all of them until I felt that I had satisfactorily made them feel 1/8 the discomfort I was feeling and then went for beer.

So back to Ricky Ricardo, I mean DeVotchKa. There was a four piece string section. There was a chick playing a sousaphone. Which looks crazy. Because you aren't playing classical music, and you're standing in front of a crowd, you can't help but move a bit with the music. But you're wearing roughly 4.2 tons of brass. So you bounce like a fat man bobbing in a lake.

I'll be honest. This was one band that I don't think you gain anything by seeing live. They didn't allow flash, and a few other things pointed to the front mans either greeness, or sheer nerves. I actually prefer just listening to the album. Great band, not awesome performers. Perhaps if they had played Copacabana. Or I'd gotten just one babaloo...

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