Earlier this week I went to the Lower East Side to catch '80s pop sensation Von Von Von screen a documentary about his life and perform some songs. I normally prefer punk rock music, but Von Von Von is one of my favorite acts from the 1980s. I was lucky enough to interview him and write a story about him a few years back.
Von's fall from grace was so tremendous and abrupt that even those of us who wanted to drive the final nail into the coffin of 1980s Euro-pop were rooting for Von. After all, unlike his contemporaries he had a rich musical background as a classical harmonica protégé and was one of the truly inspiring lyricists from that period. Also, Von Von Von has an authenticity that is otherwise completely absent from pop music.
Von played at a club called Pianos and he had the place packed. It was tough to get to the bar and even tougher to see the action when the show started. Von was looking good, sporting a belt buckle that doubled as an electronic screen alternately scrolling ‘Von Von Von’ and ‘Vontastic.’
The Vontastic one opened the show with his new hit 'House of Von’ and followed it up with his hit ‘Making Love.’ Then the documentary rolled. It was well made and comprehensive, covering the Von’s early rise as a pop sensation, the rough years spent working his way back out of obscurity at a Bitchen Schnitzel in Berlin and his triumphant return to the stage at the famous Apollo Theater.
You should definitely go see Von Von Von when you get a chance.
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Thursday, May 05, 2005
New York: Refuge from America's Celebrity Sickness
If you walk around New York long enough, you’ll see somebody famous. New York is about not caring how famous someone is. Don’t gawk at or squeal with glee at celebrities, it insults our city. The U.S.A. is already too celebrity obsessed. Let New York be a refuge from that. That’s the point of my latest column.
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