Handsome Furs: Gig Review

The first leg of the Handsome Furs’ debut Australian Tour began at the Corner Hotel in Melbourne. Support acts include local bands, Rat vs. Possum and Ouch My Face. Hailing from Montreal, Canada, husband and wife dynamic duo, Alexei Perry and Dan Boeckner make up this indie dance-rock band, and are unlike many of the other spousal groups that preceded them. For one, there’s no indication of foul play circa Ike and Tina Turner Revue, nor any sickeningly sweet love songs that include the words, ‘I’ve got you’ and ‘babe’. They also travel light, with just a keyboard, guitar, and a suspiciously small drum machine.

Kicking off the gig with Legal Tender, the crowd feet-tap and heads gesture a slight nod of approval in sync with Perry’s thumping base line. The more up-tempo, Talking Hotel Arbat Blues follows, “I don’t know but I’ve been told”, sung in repetition by Boeckner’s distinct voice – inner turmoil meets angst with fervour – accompanied by obnoxious claps and an upbeat drum rhythm.

It is hard to believe that just a week before their arrival, Perry had encountered a medical emergency that had forced them to cancel a line interviews (Boeckner later told me she’s doing fine). There’s no hint of weakness on her part; in fact, she’s a cannonball of energy and the life of the minimalist stage. Stationed over her drum machine, her feet stomp the ground as assertively as her palpitating beats, body lunging back and forth tirelessly, and as the gig goes on, her bleached blond hair begins to manifest symptoms of whiplash. She is also strikingly beautiful.

Sharing sporadic Eskimo kisses and well-timed humour, the duo is a blast to watch. They confess that their songs are either about “fucking or being sad”, and Evangeline is about fucking – the horny crowd is pleased, or perhaps just the guy in front of me is. He thinks it’s alright to shove his arse dangerously close to my crotch as he slurps on his girlfriend’s neck. He’s also wearing his Nana’s knitted cardigan. I contemplate knocking him out with my plastic cup, but am interrupted by Boeckner’s humourous, introductory monologue for their first single from Face Control, I’m Confused.

Citing the death of MJ as premature, that is, Michael Jordan (HA. HA.), he sounds as if he’s about to dedicate the track to the basketball star but instead, I’m Confused is sung in honour of “Kung-Fu legend” David Carradine, whose unfortunate death was brought on by his own “sexy hands”.

Lyrically, The Furs’ songs are anything but chirpy. They describe landscapes of post-communist countries, the melancholy bite of travel and more often than not, divert into expressing distaste for particular political issues. The effect is atmospheric, and though sometimes bleak with the help from Boeckner’s distorted guitar cries, the dichotomous yet complimenting marriage of Perry’s ever-present, dance-like drumbeats creates little room for emo. Instead, what you get is anthemic music, which when heard live, enwraps you with mix feelings of nostalgia and adrenalin. The kind of music best listened to peering out of a train window while you journey into a strange, new city, harbouring feelings of excitement and homesickness.

Having only just stepped foot into Australian soil, the band is already well versed with the local lingo, showing off their newly extended vocabulary with “fully sick” and “bogan”. When the band introduces Plague Park’s controversial single, Handsome Furs Hates This City, the crowd is asked to participate in selecting their city of choice. Naturally, being in Melbourne, the full-house Corner Hotel scream in unison, “fuck Sydney!” Knowing that when they get to Sydney the favour, “fuck Melbourne”, will be returned, The Furs add Ontario and Toronto to their dedication list, and the track is well received.

Just shy of an hour, they sing their second last song, Radio Kaliningrad, displaying yet another aspect of Eastern Europe that inspired much of the material for Face Control. They bounce off stage swiftly after the song, only to return for a disappointing one-song encore; a newly written track, suggesting a third album is already in the making. Three bows later and ‘thank you, you guys are sweet” – the gig is sadly over. The band will soon make their way to Sydney, then Perth, before leaving Australia for their Asian Tour.