The Garage 7.12.06

4 Ks
Alistair Lawrence

Combustible Soul-Rockers Increase the Heat

“Can You Dig It?!” cries Twilight Singers’ Greg Dulli, standing stage-centre, drenched in sweat. The sold-out crowd can, of course. Quoting the most famous line from cult ’70s action flick “The Warrior” has its own resonance for Dulli, who appears to have defeated every personal and professional trauma imaginable at least twice, but tonight everyone in the place is fighting a common foe: the sweltering temperature.

That the battle’s being fought to a raucous, defiant soundtrack of gut-busting, ass-shaking anti-hero confessionals makes it easier, of course. As “Annie Mae” is transformed from its slinky, synthetic recorded version into a live beast that stomps and swaggers with a pulsating riff at it’s heart following Dulli’s ‘Warrior’-cry, their 90 minute set fully ignites. It’s taken 45 minutes, but stamina and patience are integral to fully appreciating the road he’s travelled. No-one is complaining as the atmosphere is cranked up another notch and the perspiration continues to flow. It’s a bit like taking a shower with some choice passing strangers, an experience probably not entirely unfamiliar to the notoriously lascivious frontman. Even when the elements are against him, a billiantly authentic show is not beyond his reach.