Electric 6, VHS or Beta, Lunar Event
The Vogue
Tuesday, May 3

There is nothing quite like a good dance beat … well, if you like to dance. Fortunately, I’m fairly confident that most everyone who attended the Electric 6/VHS or Beta show last Tuesday evening knew what they were getting into. Because it is nearly impossible to listen to these bands and not want to bust out a move or two. It’s just human nature that a sound like that makes the listener want to move to the beat.

Lunar Event was booked to open the set; an absolutely perfect local complement to the other two national bands performing. In classic Lunar Event form, the vocals were lovely (as was Gwynn Hermann), the sound clean and well-executed.

VHS or Beta followed, and, having been slightly unimpressed with the group the last time I saw them, I was hoping for better. What I found was more of the same. They’re not a bad group. They have a solid dance sound and, generally speaking, they keep the crowd entertained. My issue with them was the same this time around as it was the last: They just need to, in the words of the great Emeril Lagasse, kick it up a notch. For a dance sound, it felt somewhat slow and plodding.

Headliners Electric 6 closed the show with non-stop action. If their predecessors seemed to lack shine, Electric 6 made them look like rust. They played all the hits, and the audience knew every one. “Danger, Danger” was perfect, even in the absence of Jack White from the White Stripes, who originally was included on the recorded track.

The band had tons of interaction with the audience, discussing their current bouts with illness, grabbing a cell phone to call an absent and ailing band member and finally jumping into the crowd to dance along. Despite the missing synth player, Electric 6 managed a virtually perfect set with energy to spare. Sure, their antics are a little goofy, but at least they’re FUN. Anyone looking to have a frivolous, silly time with an excellent soundtrack should check them out the next time they’re in town … and some of their contemporaries should take note.