[Updated] Thousands poured onto the greens on a sparkling spring afternoon at Brookside at the Rose Bowl Saturday, reveling in punk and new wave college and high school memories at this year’s Cruel World Festival.
Despite long lines for overpriced food and drinks, festival goers who paid admission prices beginning at nearly $300 (and topped out at $949, plus fees), were, for the most part, blissed out by a cast of US and English artists who provided much of the soundtrack for the Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton administrations.
Scattered across several main stages, the event featured performances from headliners Duran Duran and Blondie, as well as sets by Interpol, Placebo, Adam Ant, DreamCar, and others.
The event also featured a vinyl record store, as well as a host of food trucks, whose lines stretched far across the fairways.
With the performances beginning just after noon, early arrivals saw sets from longtime acts who made their names in the mid-80s, The Motels (“Total Control”,”Only the Lonely”) featuring Martha Davis, and Gary Numan (“Cars”), while waiting for the headliners.
Jesus and Mary Chain upped the energy and tempo in the mid-afternoon, with a dark, rumbling, edgy set, or as edgy as can be created on a sunny day on a golf course.
Simple Minds brought their anthemic radio hits to the appreciative audience, and were received warmly by the crowd. Scotsman singer Jim Kerr and original guitarist Charlie Burchill, joined by drummer Cherisse Osei and vocalist Sarah Brown, brought a warm and joyful vibe to the proceedings, before the throngs made their way across the fairway for Marc Almond’s Soft Cell and Blondie.
Marc Almond’s one-note leather perv oeuvre seemed as uninspiring to this correspondent as it was back in 1982. The addition of featured androgynous performer Christeen, in a red strip across the chest and some saggy dingy underwear, really didn’t help. Almond’s two backing singers were terrific, however, and brought some much-needed sonic life to “Baby Where Did Our Love Go.”
Meanwhile, with only one remaining original member of Blondie on the stage—the venerable Clem Burke on drums—singer Debbie Harry lit the evening up, accompanied by an impressively frantic and fun light projection system, which dwarfed the band members as it ran synchronized video clips, cartoons, magazines, photographs, and lots of fast-paced whatever else.
Harry, now in her late 70s, wearing Ray-bans and black leather, was as sultry and fabulous as she has always been, and clearly happy, making brief, droll remarks between tunes through the fast-moving, hit-filled, energetic set.
Her current band features original (and very dignified) Sex Pistol Glen Matlock on bass, as well as some serious guitar fireworks from guitarist Tommy Keller.
As fiery and brilliant as Blondie was, headliners Duran Duran were an anti-climactic exercise in wretched excess.
While all of the bands tried to “out light show” each other, Duran’s opening entrance was, in contrast, a bad “American Idol” season finale. Lead singer Simon LeBon’s whiny shriek of a voice, and silly too-old-for-this-outfit, with synth and bass-heavy songs that essentially go nowhere, proved to be this reporter’s undoing.
We couldn’t get past the third tune.
As we made our way to the exits, we were joined by thousands of others, who were ready for jammies and a good night’s sleep. Meanwhile, however, thousands of happy Duran Duran fans stayed on the greens, and hung on every note and every glimpse of the chubby LeBon, heartthrob John Taylor who still looked great, and professional haircut Nick Rhodes.
Along the way out, we passed Tones on Tail, performing their final set on the Sad Girl Stage. Their music was dark and alluring, and clearly, their fans weren’t going anywhere.
As it should be.
