Opening was the Ukelele Union of Boston with renditions of Fat Bottomed Girls and Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Sadly they weren't totally together on their sound, but they more than made up for it because they were clearly just having fun. Overall I was pretty happy. My friend that came with whispered in my ear after their set that they had no idea that those were Queen songs, and seemed amazed that I knew all the words. This would not be the first time I'd hear that.
I think this was where the MC asked us all trivia questions, and I got all but one of them right. Every time I got one, the MC would look at me bewildered and say, "Jesus! You really like Queen!"
Following that was Miss Madison West dancing with a blow-up doll to Body Language. It ended with her pointing her strap-on at the audience and shooting a can of silly string at us.
Then came Aquanette Jones (sorry, no link) dancing to I Want To Break Free. I didn't enjoy that one nearly as much, which is pretty sad. I think it might be because I've seen something similar done by Johnny Blazes.
Next, Alhena (again, no link) did a phenomenal belly dance to Mustapha! There were no words, only pure enjoyment!
Miss Madison West came back on stage to dance to Fat Bottomed Girls while wearing a prosthetic ass. When she had finished, she came up to me and apologized for "eye-fucking" me during her first number. But it wasn't often that she saw someone in the audience who would sing along to every single word. I'm about half-sure she was cruising me.
Someone in the audience was dressed as Freddie in the I Want To Break Free video came up to me and we shot the shit over the recorded music. She asked if I'd seen Queen + Paul Rodgers play in Worcester a while back and I told her that I hadn't. She then proceeded to tell me that I simply must go to London someday and check out all the Queen stuff there! It really bugs me when it doesn't occur to people that other people may not be able to afford that kind of trip.
Finally, Gunpowder Gelatine came on! While they set up, the bass player, Allison, claimed to know everything about Queen, but then the band looked down at me and were like, "Well, obviously not as much as this guy!" They then rocked so fucking hard that I was beside myself! During Now I'm Here, Bethany held the mic out to me so I could sing "Down in the dungeon just Peaches and me." I probably sounded terrible, but it was one of many kickass moments.
My friend decided to leave after their first set and come get me later. I had to crash at their place for the night because public transportation in Boston stops running by 12:30 and that's when the night would be over.
I think my absolute favorite moment was when Bethany came off the stage to dance with me during the ending of Spread Your Wings. I really hope to G-d somebody got a picture of that, because I sure as hell didn't!
It wasn't even that the singer's pretty and gave me the time of day, but Spread Your Wings is one of my all-time favorite Queen songs and for years my enthusiasm and excitement for Freddie and Queen has been amusing at best to people I've interacted with over the years. I've not been to any North American conventions (yet) or seen any other tribute bands (yet), so to be surrounded by people who Get It and to have this moment during what happens to be one of my favorite tracks was so fucking huge for me.
This is probably one of the most fun nights of my life. There was great music, fantastic performances, cupcakes. I hope Freddie felt the love. And The Mercury Phoenix Trust got a good chunk of money!
Gunpowder Gelatine are:
Bethany Hanley - vocals
Julie Perron - guitar
Allison Sigrist - bass
Nancy Galluzzo - drums
Kate Dobroth - keys
*ETA: photos of me taken by Amanda Johnston*
Jesus, I am SO jealous, brother!!! Glad it was a great time. <3
ReplyDelete