Violent Femmes have been making their quirky brand of folk punk music since they were teenagers, irreverently pushing the boundaries of musical exploration with a cacophony of wild instruments and infectious energy. This legacy was evident in the sold-out, exuberant crowd that spanned three-plus generations at the Femmes’ October 11th show at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts in Burlington, VT.
The Femmes began the show by coming through the rear doors of the theatre, walking to the stage playing “Olinguito.” The joyous silliness of the opener (which is about a small mammal and somehow felt like a tune that might accompany one on a walk into the Andes) perfectly set the stage for the Femmes’ overall performance. The four main band members – founding members Gordon Gano and Brian Ritchie, plus long-time collaborators Blaise Garza and John Sparrow – were joined by the Horns of Dilemma, the Femmes’ ever-changing back-up band, for a show that never took itself too seriously but which was musically engaging and challenging while nearly always comfortably familiar.
The band’s sound remains remarkably true to their original recorded materials – including their various unusual instruments (such as Brian Ritchie’s Big Johnson bass or Garza’s contrabass saxophone) and Gordon Gano’s voice, which sounds as fresh as ever. The crowd immersed themselves immediately in the action, singing along, dancing in their seats, and generally relishing this chance to see a band that still sounds largely as it must have in the early 1980s.
While the teenage angst that fueled many of Gano’s early lyrics is now far in the rearview mirror for those who likely remember the original release, the audience reflected a huge age spread, with people who were undoubtedly born a decade or more after that album first hit still clearly immersed in the music. The Femmes have never been a mainstream group, though they certainly attained commercial success with songs like “Blister in the Sun,” “Add it Up,” and “Gone Daddy Gone.” However, they still drew a sizable crowd who were clearly overjoyed to be there, the rollicking music clearly transporting them to rapturous bliss.
The band blasted through the majority of their first two albums, the eponymous Violent Femmes and Hallowed Ground. “Blister in the Sun,” of course, drew the crowd into an exuberant sing-along – only to be followed immediately by “Kiss Off,” which seemed to give the crowd even more pleasure as they sang/shouted along with Gano’s counted list of sought reparations for those who had wronged him. Similarly, the crowd laughed joyfully at Gano’s efforts to update “For All Those Who Love,” inserting the words “Taylor Swift” into the lyrics and asking, “Is she making art? Don’t think so” – even after having first lost his words and asking the band to take it from the top.
At the end of the day, besides the remarkably familiar catalog, it was the sheer frivolity of the band and the show that made it worth remembering. From Gano talking about his housecoat (“did you know a bathrobe is also called a housecoat?”) to the wild drum solo by Sparrow or the amazing bass solo by Ritchie, or the giant sing-along on “Add it Up,” the Femmes produced, the audience received, and a great time was had by all. And after 40 plus years of making music, one would imagine that this must be the best way to land—never compromising, helping people find joy and meaning.
