Opening band The Blue Angel Lounge is two songs into their set at the Crescent Ballroom when a drunk homeless man takes off his pants and exposes his dirty ass tighty whities on the patio. Four Phoenix PD SUVs line the street in front of the downtown venue and a crowd of hipsters gawk at the unfolding scene. The situation seems tense as bouncers and police officers surround the uncooperative and inebriated man. Brian Jonestown Massacre front-man Anton Newcombe steps outside and calmly talks with the police officers as the unidentified drunk man leaves quietly. The police officers climb into their SUVs and depart as the bouncers head back inside the venue. Anton talks with a group of fans on the patio then heads inside to prepare for his set. Tonight is a far cry from past behavior that has branded the Newcombe with an infamous legacy as a wild card. After years of negative hype detailing Newcombe"s antics it is almost surprising that the police showed up to the Crescent Ballroom looking for someone other than Newcombe.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre quietly steps onto the stage and the red lights fade into a soft blue. Percussionist Joel Gion and guitarist Matt Hollywood look indifferent and bored as Newcombe stays to the side of the stage with his full attention focused on the band and the music they play. He is the antithesis of the proverbial rock star and his performance is not based on any gimmicks. It is for this reason that the Brian Jonestown Massacre has made their mark; their honesty is refreshing in an industry almost completely reliant on deception.
Within an industry that strips the honesty out of music and repackages it with an altered reality, it is an industry that is dependent on their ability to create the illusion of celebrity. There are a growing number of people who are no longer satisfied with the notion that artists are rock-stars who live in some intangible realm. For these people, the answer is being released by indie labels like Newcombe’s label The Committee to Keep Music Evil. In time, history will reveal that BJM and their cohorts are a significant part of the current music revolution.
The venue is completely packed with adoring fans who know all of the words to “Anemone” and who cheer for “Servo.” They dance to “Not If You Were the Last Dandy on Earth” and they sway to “Vaccum Boots.” The set is played full force with only a few interruptions and during one interruption, Anton stops at the beginning of “That Girl Suicide” to reprimand the band with a quiet but frustrated, "Come on guys, I know you know how to play this song." The audience becomes awkwardly silent as Anton directs the band. They breathe a sigh of relief when the song resumes.
Tonight’s show proves once again that The Brian Jonestown Massacre has reached a new level in their career. Their set is well rehearsed, their sound is flawless, and they have sold out the venue. There is very little standing room inside the Crescent Ballroom and fans have to squeeze through one another to reach the bar area or the bathrooms. Everyone is genuinely excited to watch the spectacle on stage. They seem delighted to hear songs from the new album AUFHEBEN like " Want To Hold Your Other Hand’ and ‘Clouds Are Lies."
If everyone knows the band as a wild and crazy unpredictable show, 2012 has showed the band mature in more ways than one. Now they are behaving like professionals on stage and they are reaching a larger audience base through creative D.I.Y marketing ploys like Newcombe’s Deadtv show. Newcombe’s efforts to spread the word about his music without the aide of a major label seems to be working as days after the show as newly inducted members of the BJM cult are seen around Phoenix with shirts branded with the official slogan for The Committee to Keep Music Evil – "Keep Music Evil."
