First time I heard Girl Talk, it was on the Sasquatch! Music Fest site. That sample alone made me want to go to Sasquatch this year, but Girl Talk wasn't on until Monday night (and George is far). After listening to that sample, I purchased Feed the Animals, the fourth Girl Talk CD. I was hooked. When I heard he was coming to the Showbox at the Market (IMO, best venue for live music in Seattle), I said, "Sign me up." I invited Scott Campbell, the only person I knew who would not only love the music and not give a crap it was on a Monday night, but, most importantly, would want to dance.
I had read that GT shows are legendary dance-a-thons. It's true! It's a non-stop, sweaty dance party with an enormous frat boy-mosh pit. Scott and I made our way to the front (after securing ear plugs). It was LOUD, crowded and F to the U to the N. Girl Talk is a one-man operation: Gregg Gillis, a former bioengineer who gave up his career to focus solely on music in 2007. Not exactly mash-ups (which combine two songs), his songs use samples (from you name the band and he's probably sampled them--including Wu, Tang Clan, Metallica, Britney, Siouxsie, Veruca Salt, Radiohead) to create new songs. From start to end, it's one long remix. Gillis works it. He's spinning, jumping and sweating along with the crowd. Random folks jumped on stage and danced alongside him. By the end, most of the men and woman had lost their shirts.
Rolls and rolls of sturdy toilet paper towels came in handy to wipe off the sweat or to use to lei some of the folks in the crowd. The people who constantly blew the cold air dryers and water over the crowd probably saved a few individuals from heat exhaustion. The paper confetti flying into the crowd at intermittent rounds was excellent.
When it was over, no one had dry hair or clothes. I found pieces of confetti stuck to my face and arms (didn't notice until I got home). To top off the evening, I dropped Scott off at his car in a North Seattle parking lot. Next to his car cops were making a bust...not sure if it was prostitution, drugs or something else but there were 2-3 cop cars, one alleged perp waiting to be taken somewhere and a woman being searched.
The most fun I've had on a Monday night in years. And, one of the most memorable shows in my concert history.
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