If there was ever the thought in your mind that Peter Murphy had grown old and had allowed it to affect his stage performance, then allow me to put your fears to rest. Murphy remains one of the finest rock performers that I have ever had the pleasure to witness over and over and over again. If news of his stunt from this year's Coachella festival hasn't reached your sheltered ears, then hear this: Bauhaus opened their set with a lengthy (10+ minutes) version of "Bela Lugosi Is Dead", which Peter performed while hanging upside down. I would venture to guess that it is difficult enough to sing a few lines upside down, much less an entire ten minute epic… And from all accounts, his performance was awesome.

So, I had no idea what to really expect on this Peter Murphy tour. His last time through our little burg was an acoustic tour, accompanied by an acoustic guitar player and violinist… and a bit of tape here and there. That was an amazing show itself, very personal and elegant in a gothic sense. This tour, however, finds Murphy out with a three-piece rock band behind him. The guitars are heavy and distorted - courtesy of Mark Thwaite (?), who, if I recall correctly, played for a while with Wayne Hussey in the Mission UK - reminding me more of The Sisters Of Mercy Vision Thing tour than anything Peter has ever really done before. The rhythm section is tight and full of bombastic power that belies the previous incarnations of many of the songs that Peter performed. And Peter… Well, Peter was the same wonderfully gracious rock god that he has been since he was young.

Opening the show was Sarah Fimm (get it?). Handpicked by Peter to be his support act on the entire tour, Sarah immediately recalls another singer with the name Sarah… McLachlan. Her songs are earnest and dynamic, her voice clear and resonant, and she is a fine performer… But the crowd was here for one reason only.

When Peter and the band came out on stage, Murphy's hair was bleached white and sticking in the air like a rooster's tail. His presence on stage has always been strong, and this night was certainly no exception. Peter still controls not only the band around him on stage, but can easily hold sway over the audience. He is a consummate performer, and draws all attention to himself, whether he is belting out a vocal line or dancing in his liquid Bowie/Pop/glam patterned style. The set consisted of songs from almost every album of his solo career, with the exceptions of Should The World Fail To Fall Apart and Love Hysteria. New songs from his latest, Unshattered, were powerfully wrought live, adding a nice alternate feel to the more relaxed versions on the record. "Cuts You Up" came out for an encore (of course), as did a wonderfully powerful rendition of one of the songs from his very Eastern influenced Dust record. The three piece band really rocked out on such classics as "Deep Ocean, Vast Sea" and even made good on the promise of the oft-overlooked "The Sweetest Drop". A fantastically sparse, and heavy, version of "I'll Fall With Your Knife" was a nice treat, as was the re-worked heaviness of "Gliding Like A Whale", both from the Cascade release.

The crowd was rabid, as always, and brought the band back out for three encores, each time Peter's hair seeming to recover from it's slump and becoming once again the sharp rooster tail that it had begun the night as. A few clothing changes, and short breaks made for a captivating and worthwhile recall to the stage. A successful stop on the tour. Catch it if you can.

-L. Keane

Peter Murphy
Ogden Theater, Denver, CO
May 20, 2005

www.petermurphy.info

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