At 7:00PM sharp, with the sun just beginning to set behind the incredible geological wonder that is the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, The Bellrays walked on stage. By the end of their hyperactive R&B/Soul/Punk fusion set, the entire crowd in the general seating area was on their feet with hands in the air. This is quite an accomplishment for the first of three bands - especially when breaking in an audience for the Violent Femmes and the Pixies. This was the “101” lesson in late 70’s punk meets early 70’s funk.

From the very first song of the Violent Femmes set it was like being transported back to a house party in the early 80's. The 'Femmes sounded great, or as singer Gordon Gano said between songs, “Yeah, and the Violent Femmes are pretty good too, if you like that kinda thing.” Well, I happen to like that kinda thing. Gano’s voice was in top form, and for a guy in his mid-to-late forties now (I assume he is), he can still deliver that angst-ridden, whiney unmistakable vocal. It was a sparse setup, with drummer Victor De Lorenzo dancing all around his minimal three-piece kit front and center. Brian Ritchie still has one of the most distinctive bass sounds in pop or rock music. All you need to hear is are three notes of his intro and you immediately know what song is coming. Many of the songs are still radical after all this time - even with all the barriers that have been knocked down by the sexual frankness of Hip Hop and the frequent “F-bombs” of neo-punk. Their set sounded real fresh and relaxed, and above all it was a lot of fun. The ‘Femmes taught the “201” course on 80’s frat party sound tracks.

So the Pixies come on stage under a nearly black sky with the stars twinkling. They open with Wave of Mutilation, and it was clear that this was not a case of the once-popular rock band trying to cash in on the popularity of years gone by. The Pixies mean business, and it was nearly all business at Red Rocks especially evident by the driving, no-holds-barred demeanor of Frank Black (formerly Black Francis in the Pixies’ heyday). The stage was sparse and there were no elaborate effects or light show candy – it was all very no nonsense. The only real visual candy were the three tall structures behind the band that kinda looked like sperm swimming upstream, and every once in a while they would light up and become the focal point of the show. The whole band paid careful attention to the musical detail and nuance throughout the entire set, although they might have lightened up a little more often. Mr. Black barely communicated with the audience at all, and the only sign that they were having fun at all was the irresistible little grin that kept showing up on Kim Deal’s face between vocal parts when she was up near the mic. Otherwise she was back beside the drum kit laying down an incredibly solid bass rhythm with drummer David Lovering. The one other moment of levity was when the band wandered back on stage and had an awkward band conference before deciding on what they would do for an encore. Lead guitarist Joey Santiago kept up a relentless pace of soaring hooks and melodies that created the near-symphonic aural accents for many of the Pixies best songs. True to form, he remained dead serious for the whole show – but then again, there were some seriously great sounds coming from this man. The Pixies completed the evening’s Alt-Rock education with the final “301” instruction on driving guitar wall of sound start-stop-quiet-loud rock formula-breaking with obscure lyrics sung soft then screamed. It was a poignant lesson that gave clear perspective on a certain phase of Rock music history and provided archeological evidence of the beginning of the Alternative genre.

I saw the pixies Nov 18, 2004 in Detroit. It was by far the most amazing show i'd ever been to. It remains etched in my memory as if it just happened yesterday, as cheesy as that may seem. I was right up to the stage, right in front of Kim with her lovely smile. At the end of the show, I caught a setlist. I have it framed with my ticket stub, of course.

The set list??!! I'd have framed that too!

I signed up for the live CD from the Red Rocks concert. They're supposed to be top quality, properly mixed and mastered, not burned copies off the board. Can't wait to hear it - it'll be my collectors item from the show.