Gypsy Punks, Gogol Bordello, are doing a short run of dates along the US West Coast, and made a stop at Santa Ana's Observatory for the Casa Gogol tour -- named after frontman, Eugene Hütz's new label. They've brought along new signees, Mary Shelley and Grace Bergere.
As Mary Shelley took the stage, Hütz walked out to introduce this curious group of individuals garbed in hospital gowns and nurse uniforms. The member that took center stage was even in an orthopedic boot, which gave me the initial reaction that this person was probably in pain as they were about to play with a broken foot. They opened with a somewhat subdued track. Slow and thumpy. It wasn't until the second track, that things got interesting. The singer put down the guitar, pulled off his orthopedic boat, and spiked it into the stage while the rest of the band went into a post-punk/garage-rock number. Consider me surprised at the lack of a broken foot. Completely fooled me. Now he's dancing around and giving an uncontrollable performance. Throwing a little theater into your punk rock performance is always appreciated. The band continued to wow me with their energy and antics. The band has a new album coming out on June 14th entitled Bloodhounds, and I'm excited to check it out.
Next up was Grace Bergere. Once again, Hütz came out to give an introduction. The singer-songwriter presented a much different vibe from Mary Shelley. She was more indie/folk-rock with a restrained and somber performance. She only has a few songs available to stream at the moment, but they're worth a listen. Despite seeming like the outlier of the tour, her style of songwriting has the slightest hint of cabaret that manages to fit in with the rest of the tour.
It was finally time for Gogol Bordello. Right out the gate, they kicked things off with "Sacred Darling" from their first record, Voi-La Intruder. The stage was chaos. Pedro Erazo is dancing up and down the stage. Hütz is waltzing across the edge as he connects with the audience. The band continued playing tracks from their break-out hit, Gypsy Punks, like "I Would Never Wanna Be Young Again" and "Immigrant Punk." The entire show felt like a celebration. Fans were wailing from the floor and losing themselves in the music. Hütz never gave less than 100 percent as they continued to play through tracks like "Wonderlust King" and "Trans-Continental Hustle."
While they ignored 2 of their later albums, Pura Vida Conspiracy and Seekers & Finders, they didn't shy away from their latest release, Solidaritine. Puzzled Panther members Victoria Espinoza and Kay Bontempo joined Gogol Bordello for their track "Fire on Ice Floe" as well as their joint single, "From Boyarka to Boyaka." As the set started to wind down, they took a moment to pay their respects and dedicate their performance of "Mishto," to the late great Steve Albini -- who produced Gypsy Punks. And of course, no Gogol Bordello set would be complete without their boisterous, "Start Wearing Purple."
The band returned for their encore and went straight into a cover of Sex Pistols' "Bodies." After lamenting over missing the celebration of the 40th anniversary of Agnostic Front's Victim in Pain, Hütz went into an acoustic cover of the title track. They closed out the night with their cover of Angelic Upstarts' "Solidarity," which the band released digitally with Bernard Sumner from New Order this past Fall to raise awareness and funds for the Kind Deeds organization.
Gogol Bordello are finishing their short little West Coast run at Punk Rock Bowling this weekend. Over the Summer, they will be heading to Europe and The U.K. before coming back to the US in the Fall. Don't miss the party if they come to your town.
