Why is it that whenever straight couples find themselves in predominantly gay audiences, they feel like they have to make out with each other to prove themselves? Tonight's Rufus Wainwright gig at the Bürgerhaus Stollwerck Cologne was no exception. The average gig goer was in their mid- to late 30's, male, and - by the looks of it - gay. Yet I found myself being pushed away from my early secured spot by a very annoying couple who were making out so avidly that I almost found myself saying the famous words: "Get a room!"
As you may have guessed, I wasn't in my best mood by the time the gig started. Warm-up act was a one-man, pardon me, one woman-act, a lady with the name of Joan, and her guitar. As we were to find out later, she is a member of Rufus's band. While her songs were very pure and melancholic, it added even more fuel to my not-so-friendly neighbouring couple's libido, and my mood pretty much went from bad via worse to basement as time went on.
Only one man, the gay messiah, was able to free me from these depths, and it turns out he even has the wings to prove it. From the moment Rufus Wainwright entered the stage, a wave of frenzy surged through the hall, and this energy was actually kept up and even raised during the more than 140-minute-long(!) show. The main focus of the show was on Want One and Two, followed by sections dedicated to his two cover versios, Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", and "Across the Universe" by The Beatles. Rufus Wainwright jokingly added that he would have to get back to the challenge of playing his own songs, but he was sure he would be just fine. And right he was.
Through the fast and the slow, the audience was pretty much eating out of his hands. When he introduced the songs he had written about his family, each family member was cheered like they were on stage themselves. The introductions to some of the songs made the entire show extra-special. While he seemed slighty high-strung at the beginning of the show, he seemed to warm up to the audience very quickly (there even was talk about Cologne having been the best audience so far, remarkable since in the beginning, he didn't even know where Cologne was: "The South, right? The North? Okay, it's the East. The West?!" Yep.) The best introduction must have been for "Gay Messiah" though. Rufus mentioned how he saw a report on CNN about the new pope, and apparently they said something along the lines of, "He used to be such a stern, harsh, hard man. Look at how changed he is, he is smiling" and Rufus said, "The man just became the new pope, surely a little smiling was in order." He also mentioned how he wondered around Rome, but not meeting anybody (dirty laughter), hoping that he would become the new pope, but there's still hope for the next time around.
He then proceeded to tell us how CNN and other news channels said that Germany must be so happy, however his impression on the matter was quite different: "But here, everybody kinda hates him". So true. The audience certainly couldn't agree more. And therefore, Gay Messiah was deciated to Benedict VI - that's right, it really should have been Benedict XVI, to which he declared, "Jeebers. Enough Benedick already!" LOL
Anyways Rufus's ambition in life now consists of the pope hearing the song "Gay messiah" at least once.
The real highlight however must have been the first set of encores, when he stripped to reveal a very flashy blue thong, fishnet stockings and red high-heels - and fairy wings were to follow. The rest of the band followed suit, all revealing equally daring outfits. I think the keyboard player even had a whip. For the next song, they put witch capes and hats over their lingerie, which in the third song were replaced by bathrobes. Bizarre? I don't think so. After that, Rufus and band came back for another encore, the beautiful "Poses", and "California". Rufus wished us all a lovely spring, happiness, and all the other good stuff. I could help but think that the couple next to me don't need any more spring fever, but I'll have it, thank you very much.
Download a clip of Hallelujah from last night's show.
As you may have guessed, I wasn't in my best mood by the time the gig started. Warm-up act was a one-man, pardon me, one woman-act, a lady with the name of Joan, and her guitar. As we were to find out later, she is a member of Rufus's band. While her songs were very pure and melancholic, it added even more fuel to my not-so-friendly neighbouring couple's libido, and my mood pretty much went from bad via worse to basement as time went on.
Only one man, the gay messiah, was able to free me from these depths, and it turns out he even has the wings to prove it. From the moment Rufus Wainwright entered the stage, a wave of frenzy surged through the hall, and this energy was actually kept up and even raised during the more than 140-minute-long(!) show. The main focus of the show was on Want One and Two, followed by sections dedicated to his two cover versios, Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", and "Across the Universe" by The Beatles. Rufus Wainwright jokingly added that he would have to get back to the challenge of playing his own songs, but he was sure he would be just fine. And right he was.
Through the fast and the slow, the audience was pretty much eating out of his hands. When he introduced the songs he had written about his family, each family member was cheered like they were on stage themselves. The introductions to some of the songs made the entire show extra-special. While he seemed slighty high-strung at the beginning of the show, he seemed to warm up to the audience very quickly (there even was talk about Cologne having been the best audience so far, remarkable since in the beginning, he didn't even know where Cologne was: "The South, right? The North? Okay, it's the East. The West?!" Yep.) The best introduction must have been for "Gay Messiah" though. Rufus mentioned how he saw a report on CNN about the new pope, and apparently they said something along the lines of, "He used to be such a stern, harsh, hard man. Look at how changed he is, he is smiling" and Rufus said, "The man just became the new pope, surely a little smiling was in order." He also mentioned how he wondered around Rome, but not meeting anybody (dirty laughter), hoping that he would become the new pope, but there's still hope for the next time around.
He then proceeded to tell us how CNN and other news channels said that Germany must be so happy, however his impression on the matter was quite different: "But here, everybody kinda hates him". So true. The audience certainly couldn't agree more. And therefore, Gay Messiah was deciated to Benedict VI - that's right, it really should have been Benedict XVI, to which he declared, "Jeebers. Enough Benedick already!" LOL
Anyways Rufus's ambition in life now consists of the pope hearing the song "Gay messiah" at least once.
The real highlight however must have been the first set of encores, when he stripped to reveal a very flashy blue thong, fishnet stockings and red high-heels - and fairy wings were to follow. The rest of the band followed suit, all revealing equally daring outfits. I think the keyboard player even had a whip. For the next song, they put witch capes and hats over their lingerie, which in the third song were replaced by bathrobes. Bizarre? I don't think so. After that, Rufus and band came back for another encore, the beautiful "Poses", and "California". Rufus wished us all a lovely spring, happiness, and all the other good stuff. I could help but think that the couple next to me don't need any more spring fever, but I'll have it, thank you very much.
Download a clip of Hallelujah from last night's show.
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