Iggy Pop and The Stooges @ The Warfield, 4/21/07
The old, the young, the rebellious. All here to see the inventor of the stage dive; the sinewy, writhing man that can’t really sing, that fronts a band of guys that can’t really play.
But how does the combination add up to one of the most influential bands of all time? They’re relateable, down on our level. Simple lyrics about anger, sex, and friendship that don’t require a joint and some candles to figure out what they mean. Infectious energy and stage moves that a 60 year old man shouldn’t be doing, but pulls off so well.
Iggy Pop runs on stage, shirtless, in jeans that often slip down to show his crack. Every muscle is accentuated, which in turn, accentuate a swollen belly and the slightly sagging skin that comes along with age and life in the fast lane. He moves to the music like he’s got the most appropriate set of Tourette’s ticks in existence. It’s his signature, and the crowd goes wild. Song 3, my personal favorite, ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’. Three quarters of the way through, he dives into the crowd. It looks pretty violent down there, but as soon as he gets back up, he does it again. Take that. Then, he invites everyone to get on stage. About hundred crazy fans jump up there- his security man’s worst nightmare. It’s one of the best moments I’ve seen of breaking down the wall between act and audience- people are signing into his microphone, clawing on him. One person takes it too far and grabs him hard from behind, almost knocking him over. But he doesn’t care. He jumps int the crowd many more times throughout the two hour set, obviously keeping his high energy level by feeding off of the crowd. The only time he looks pissed is when, at least from my perspective, he seems to spit on someone- though, no telling, they might have asked him to do that. The encore begins with ‘Happy Birthday’, as Iggy just turned 60 a few days ago. Balloons with his picture on them drop from the ceiling.
This completes my ‘classics’ bender from the last 3 weeks: Heart, Willie, and Iggy. And it’s true, the older the violin, the sweeter the music.
great video from youtube (not mine):
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