|
Tuesday, 21 November 2006 14:37 |
 By MATT SWIFT
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts rolled into town to promote their latest album, "Sinner," in front of a swarming sea of black-leather-clad fans last Sunday night at the Orange Peel.
With her throaty roar and tough-as-nails presence, Jett still inspires legions of punk-rock fans to show up and rock out.
The 48-year-old queen of punk rock, who looked half her age, started the show with "Bad Reputation," which whipped the crowd into a fist-pumping frenzy.
Channeling her punk-rock past, she had the crowd in the palm of her hand the rest of the night.
Following up some of her classics like "Do You Wanna Touch?" ÇƒÓ a Gary Glitter cover ÇƒÓ and "Crimson and Clover," by Tommy James and the Shondells, the band broke into some of its new songs, such as "Change the World," "Naked" and "A.C.D.C."
It
appears that with its first studio album in more than a decade the
Blackhearts have grown lyrically broader, dabbling into more political
and spiritual content.
The new material
the band played was fresh, yet still had the aftertaste of circa 1981.
While the jabs taken at the Bush administration in some of her new
songs have been beaten into the ground by artists already, it seems
that Jett has jumped on the bandwagon anyway.
Furthermore, the
entire concertt felt a bit rushed, with the band not hesitating in
between songs, but rather, flying through the set like a whirlwind ǃÓ
possibly due to Jett battling a cold.
Nonetheless, the
show overall was nothing short of amazing, fantastic and edgy. Jett is
still physically stunning and her voice has lost none of its pungency,
presence or scratchiness. Her deviously charming grins, chant
cheerleading and playfulness toward the audience was fabulous.
"I Love Rock
and Roll" not surprisingly brought the house down as the fans recited
every single word at the tops of their lungs, while Jett playfully
encouraged the crowd to chant louder and louder at the showës end. At
that point, fans demanded that Jett and the Blackhearts return to the
stage for an encore. The band finished the show with a cover of Sly
& the Family Stoneës "Everyday People," a song that seemed rather
weak to end on, but a fine song nonetheless.
As fans trickled
out, I felt that the concert on the whole was well worth the time and
money. However, Iëm very eager to see if critics worldwide embrace her
new album or write it off as another ǃÚ80s artist trying to rekindle the
glory days.
|
