Last week I attended a Monday night show. It was probably not the most responsible of choices to party so early in the work-week, but since it was to see Voltaire, who I had enjoyed so much when he came through town last year, I made an exception.
Mr. Voltaire Performing a spooky song of sorts.
That night reminded me how much I love Elysium. The dark walls, plush yet posh seating, and always dressed-to-the-nines crowd all contribute to the somewhat intimidating, but overall very fun and spooky atmosphere. Smoke machines always help, too. It was pretty calm considering it was Monday, and the mellow vibe made it easy to actually hear people, which is not normally the case on a more chaotic but equally enjoyable Sunday 80′s night. This plays really knows how to cater to its subculture as the only “goth” club in Austin, for either type of night.
Both of the opening acts, Hellblinki and This Way to the Egress, were amazing. Band members of both dressed like your typical halloween-loving goths in costume-like fancy attire and ghoulish makeup. Musically, each had a novelty feel, playing with genres like rockabily, old-style radio show singing, european folk music, and whimsical circus-style music. And somehow a little industrial, too. Both bands also shared an affinity unusual instruments including accordions, bells, whistles, saw and bow, and key-tar. They were pretty good about the witty jokes and banter, especially when a sexy burlesque dancer performed along to their music. All in all, the music from both acts proved dance-able and lively, especially with their last, jump and clap inducing numbers.
I think enjoyed three-piece Hellblinki a bit more than the larger ensemble act of This Way to the Egress, if only because I was more impressed. From what I could tell, each member of Hellblinki was capable of playing any and every instrument! They also scored audience participation points by getting us all to drone along as zombies to re-enact the keyboardist’s prom. But, you know. With Zombies. To be fair, though, This Way to the Egress had a great little bit, too. During one song, one of the several band members who did not play an instrument for that particular song held up marionette handles over the keyboardist so it looked like she was his puppet. It was pretty damn adorable, as she had the acting ability to appear doll-like.
After both acts finished and took their bows, it was time for Voltaire to play. Accompanied by many members of the opening acts, he bantered on with the audience through his set, thanking us all for being out on a “school night.” If you’re unfamiliar with Voltaire, his acoustic goth-rock schtick is more of a novelty comedy act, as his lyrics are often full of self-aware, gore-y and spooky hyperbole. While you might expect something like NIN from looking at him, his music actually far more resembles the gothic version of what from Jonathan Coulton writes for nerds. Along with the new material he played to promote the new album, he also played a lot of songs that I remember him performing back in 2010. This included the Twilight-mocking “Vampire Club,” a song written for Cartoon Network’s Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy called “Brains,” and a tune addressing his grandmother’s attitude to his gothic lifestyle, “Death, Death.” He also played the title track of the ambitiously titled “Riding a Black Unicorn Down the Side of an Erupting Volcano While Drinking from a Chalice Filled with the Laughter of Small Children!” (Yes. That is the entire album title. And the banter about the title was very amusing). He closed with the crowd favorite “When You’re Evil,” ending on the same cynical, yet oddly optimistic note characteristic of his persona.
After the show, we stood in line to meet the band members and buy some merch. Hellblinki revealed it was a goal of theirs to sell at least one vinyl at every show, so I was glad to be that person that night. When we met Voltaire, it was lovely to confirm my belief that he was actually an extremely warm and genuine person. After giving us multiple hugs and being extremely patient about taking the classic myspace angle photo with us, he jokingly propositioned sex with my friend April–who adores him, by the way. The married man admitted he could not act ont he proposition as his wife would probably not let him have a threesome (unless of course it was with another man). Still, my friend was able to kiss him on the cheek, and he kissed her back. Quite magical!
We ended up staying even later than intended because I lent my camera to a friend who was having trouble getting to the front of the Voltaire line (mostly due to talking to other band members), but I am really glad we did. Apparently, towards the end of the night Voltaire likes to use the Wheel-o-Fortune style wheel This Way to the Egress has affixed to their merchandise booth to give away his own merchandise. While the first winner was a member of Hellblinki, he gave us another sympathy round, and I actually won! I won an adorable little plastic “Deady” bear, which is of course a spooky, gothic version of your regular teddy bear. He’s also sort of a ninja or samurai or something. He currently sits in my cubicle, still packed in the box that pictures a cartoon of the bear itself and a cartoon of his creator, Voltaire.
Everything else I know about Voltaire makes me realize I want to be him. Not only does he have this fabulous dark cabaret act, but Voltaire is also a talented animator, writer, filmmaker, and artist. He teaches most of this at the School of Visual Arts in New York, all while writing, recording, and touring his album material. This performance was no exception to the many examples of why he is amazing. I highly recommend going to a Voltaire show if you ever have the chance, or at least look up a few videos on YouTube. He did not play some songs I really liked from the first time I saw him (namely, the adorable lullaby he wrote for his son, “Goodnight, Demon Slayer”), so I can tell you he has even more material than what he plays live that is also with worth checking out.
All in all, the Voltaire show was a wonderful night of spooky fun, and I hope to do it again soon.
