ROAD TRIP: The trio who fell to Boston Our two-day trek into one of America's biggest cities surpassed all expectations
So there we were: me, Jiggling Julie and Bodacious Brian all set to go to the United States on Saturday morning. The rental car we booked had not yet returned to the folks at AVIS, so they gave us an upgrade: a Ford Windstar that seats 8 and had a TV and VCR inside, as well as a tape and CD player. Woohoo! We hit the road at about 6:30.
Our venture at St. Stephen to cross over to Calais was uneventful. They asked us a half dozen questions and threw out the 4 apples we wanted to take for lunch. The security guy had a fairly good sense of humour, commenting he would be throwing them into the Department of Agriculture Bin (a.k.a. the garbage). We stopped a few times along the way to eat or rest or pay tolls at a turnpike or stretch or, more frequently to ask the directions. For future reference, I will never ask Americans for directions ever again. Ever. Ever. The only times we truly got lost were when we were listening to people try to explain where to go and what exits to take. We only successfully found our way whenever me or Bodacious Brian followed the map of Boston itself and ignored the verbal directions.
Our first official stop of the Boston area was directly at the Area2 Festival concert itself, our main reason for the trip. We got into Mansfield around 5:15 in the afternoon and caught most of the Blue Man Group. Having heard so much good word of mouth about the trio, I had raised my expectations for their set. They did mostly songs featuring percussion work with a couple of novelty bits thrown in (such as shooting tinsel-like confetti into the crowd or jettisoning a Blue Man dummy to be thrown about and ripped to shreds by rabid Bostonians), but I was expecting more theatrical comedy. It's a shame they didn't ham it up, because that's what I'd heard they do best. They did a fairly cool-sounding cover of "White Rabbit". Gadgets such as glittering fountain drums, giant gongs, and humming bamboo reeds became the stars of the show rather than the performers.
When we first entered the Tweeter Centre, there were signs posted everywhere that the next act on the bill, Busta Rhymes, was a no-show (he did not appear in Toronto either, citing difficulties crossing the border as his reason -- which smacks of a fabrication, if you ask me). Although none of us owned any Busta albums, we were nevertheless disappointed at this misfortune... until we were informed that David Bowie would go on earlier than scheduled and do an extended set. This made us delirious with excitement, and the wait was definitely worth it.
The stage was compacted for his show, with the word B-O-W-I-E affixed above the lights. The performer simply walked out onstage and started with the transcending "Life On Mars". Then he cut into "Ashes to Ashes". By this point, Jiggling Julie, Bodacious Brian and I were screaming our lungs out. The next tracks were a little less familiar to me: "Breaking Glass" (from Low), and the Pixies cover "Cactus", from his latest Heathen. I was a little more familiar with "Slip Away", also from the new album, because it has quickly become a favourite and I'd listened to it a few times beforehand. Bowie would go on to dig through the vaults and perform "Be My Wife", "China Girl", "Stay", "Fame", and the more recent "I'm Afraid of Americans". Additional cuts off of Heathen included "I Would Be Your Slave", "5:15 The Angels Have Gone", and the Neil Young cover "I've Been Waiting for You". He closed his first act with the inspired "Heroes", which finally got some of the younger set standing up and gettin' jiggy with it. His encore featured one new song, "Everyone Says 'Hi!'" and then a new version of "Let's Dance". The finale was "Ziggy Stardust", which set us reeling. Bowie, in a black vest and white ruffled shirt, was the quintessential showman: great dance moves, wonderful commentary between songs (before "Let's Dance" he muttered, 'This is, like, so '80's'), and a very tight accompanying band onboard. It was very appropriate that the Tweeter Centre had large video screens to capture the legend upclose. At one point during a song he closed his eyes and you could just watch him thinking. His concert was easily one of the best I'd ever experienced.
Next up was Moby. I was certainly not disappointed with his set, but after having seen two previous concerts that day, it was difficult to maintain the high-octane energy I had hoped to have. The audience must have been in the same boat, because they barely made any noise when the lights first went down at the start of the show. Things started off with the track "18", where a trio of women with odd-shaped violins played quietly. Then the stage lit up like a kaleidoscopic firecracker and Moby dashed onstage with an electric guitar. He tore into "Extreme Ways", also from his latest release. From that point on, he was like a whirling dervish on speed, running from congo-thumping to keyboard-smashing and all points in between. He next played the Twin Peaks-sampled "Go", then "Porcelain", the "James Bond Theme", and "Another Woman", which he humbly introduced as a disco track. Other cuts included "Move (You Make Me Feel So Good)", "Find My Baby" from 1999's Play, and "I Like To Score". At one point, he challenged his DJ to a spin-off while wearing a fake afro. The competition wasn't really all that long, but the song they scratched out was great. I enjoyed Moby's inter-song banter, too. He made fun of bands like Nickelback and Motley Crue by swearing in creative ways. He mocked his own love of carrot juice. He spoke of the joy he derived from watching in the wings as David Bowie played "Life on Mars". And he commented on 9/11 as an introduction to his current hit "We Are All Made of Stars". His set concluded with mainstream songs such as "South Side", "Bodyrock" and "Honey". He came back on after a brief encore and tore into the Ramones's "Blitzkrieg Bop", then finished up with "Feeling So Real". All in all, it was a hyper and rewarding festival.
We made our way back to Boston at some obscene hour and finally found our hotel, a Days Inn located quite far from downtown. Although the general concensus was that everyone was too tired to go out for a drink, for some reason we went to an IHOP and ate, which in hindsight was essentially a waste of money. The next morning, I was able to go for a walk along the water and saw some rowers. I found this pretty cool, because I'd only ever seen kayaks or canoes, and these were the long, thin ones like you see in movies that the university sports teams use. Before checking out of the hotel, the woman at the front desk told me I owed two cents for the rooms. I did a double-take. I had talked to her several times that morning, asking for advice on what to see and do, and I thought we were getting along well. I chuckled.
"Two cents," I quipped.
Her face was solemn. "Yeah, there's a tax on your room and you owe two cents." So I gave her a nickel and told her she could keep the change. That was a weird exchange, I have to say.
We drove into downtown Boston, parking beneath the Commons. Breakfast was at the snazzy Café de Paris. After that we wandered through the theatre district, which essentially stays abandoned during the summertime, then through the historical and financial districts. We ended up at Quincy's Market, which was a commercial mix of food shops, but didn't have any unique vendors, which is what we were really looking for. I will mention, however, I got to see "Inca Son", a pan flute busker, and "Rami Salami", a clown who listens to "The Pina Colada Song", "Sometimes When We Touch" and "Feelings" while twisting balloons into exotic shapes for children. Cheers was the next stop. This was the replica location, and the food was okay. It did look like the bar from the TV show, but it was a really small pub that for some reason had an open, outdoor area, which was kind of disappointing. On our way back we passed through the Commons, catching a glimpse of a free outdoor performance of Much Ado About Nothing.
After that, Jiggling Julie, Bodacious Brian and I hit the highway and drove back to good ole Saint John. It was my first time in Boston but definitely not my last. I would have to say that the major difference between the two cities would be that Boston is actually a cool city which I definitely want to go back to as soon as possible, whereas Saint John is a foggy cesspool devoid of culture and vitality.
