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Scissor Sisters played Northampton last year.
Since then a rampant publicity campaign and a slot on
TOTP following a surprise top ten single have launched
them into the big time; and (in what is surely a highlight
for the New York pair) from the small room at the Soundhaus
to the big one, complete with sell-out crowd. Snaking
onto the stage to rapturous applause is Jake Shears,
the svelte silver-tongued devil behind the Scissor Sisters’
own special brand of power pop.
I guess he thinks he’s a bit of a Prince-a-like in
his cut off leather jacket, pink fur trim, trilby, leather
trousers and chest bare to the world, but he actually
comes across as some strange Iggy Pop-cum-Bez-stroke-thingy-out-of-Savage
Garden hybrid with a voice just like Elton John.
The female edge to this searing musical partnership
is Ana Matronic, satin-dress-clad and chatty but so
American it hurts. She’s, like, SO New York.
We’re not really focussing on the rest of the band
– we’re trying to work out if Jake’s ridiculously low-slung
tight leather pants (the Americanisms are rubbing off)
conceal the smallest of smalls or whether he’s going
commando (general consensus – commando).
Equally intriguing is how in so short a space of time
since the album was released all of their tighter-than-tight
songs sound like dance classics. From the Thomas the
Tank lollop of 'Laura' to the glam stamp sleaze of 'Comfortably
Num' or the practised swagger of a heavily reggae-inspired
track, it’s all deliciously clean cut and razor sharp.
The glitter ball in full motion by the end of the gig
seemed to represent perfectly what Scissor Sisters are
all about – glittering beat-driven pop decadence in
a world of raw guitar realism like Roxy Music and Bowie
and all their other camp influences.
But if it’s all those things, it’s also pretty derivative
of about a million eighties dance acts who similarly
strutted their stuff on TOTP after a surprise top ten
hit. So go, dance, and be happy, but just don’t tell
me it’s the future of pop music. Or I’ll be the stone
to their scissors.
Relevant sites:
http://www.scissorsisters.com/
Natasha House for Crud Magazine 2004©
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