My Evening with Peter Murphy

Getting tickets to the show was an adventure. Not wanting to pay $5 in fees I decided not to pay them online, but hit Greywhale on my way home, although I never made specific plans and of course forgot, so the weekend before the show I decided I would get my ticket at that point, but that day I was so sick and all thoughts and plans left my head and. Monday I started to panic as the show is tomorrow, but I figured I could still get them online. Until I read the bold SOLD OUT, that is. I started calling Greywhale locations and of course, the one by my house was sold out too, but the one in West Jordan still had a few. I called Husband but he was too sick and I figured I could go after work. They close at the unreasonable hour of 6 PM, but I figured if I really drove fast from the trax station, I could make it. Of course I don’t normally take trax on Mondays, but because of being sick I didn't want to risk going to the gym, so I took trax because it's so convenient, or something. Of course the ride home and my train gets stopped behind another train. I keep watching the time slip away, but it's only an extra few minute hold-up, I can make up for that. After practically running to my car at the station I speed to get onto the freeway. Only to come to a dead stop. Traffic is terrible and slow moving, finally when i make it up to the onramp, I find out why. The lights to get onto the freeway are out. My glimmer of hope is fading; I think that it's possible that I could still get there just before they close the doors. Then I see the freeway. Gridlocked. There is no way that trying to wade thro

ugh that mess would get me there in time.

My new plan is to call the venue tomorrow and see if any tickets open up. In the morning I check the online classifieds to see if anyone is selling tickets. Only 2 different people. One wants $75 for his pair, and the other wants $75 a piece. I send a text to the first guy; the tickets are spoken for, but if that falls through he'll let me know. I'm not desperate enough to pay $75 for a $25 ticket and if that's what it would cost me I'll just stay home. As the day starts to draw to a close i start calling the venue. No answer, I also work just around the corner from the venue, so I decide that I'll check it out if I can't get them to answer the phone. After work I walk around the corner, I see people milling about, the front door is slightly ajar, but I decide to head around back, as I could swear I heard music on my way over and if I can't get tickets, maybe I could hear Mr. Murphy sound checking and that would have to be enough. Unfortunately all I could hear was an occasional drum beat even with the venue's back door open to the parking lot, I wanted to get closer, but noticed some other people and didn't want to be asked to leave yet. I went back to the doors and walked in, the entry way was empty and right as I opened the door to inside a girl came in to man the desk. She told me there weren't any tickets but I could come back at 9 and see if there were any scalpers. Gee thanks. I walked out and went back to the back of the building and noticed that the chain link fence to their lot was shared with my work's I sat down and fiddled with my phone, trying to look busy and listen, but I couldn't hear anything, so disappointed I walked over and found that there was a gate in the fence and I could get back to my car that way.

I drove home disappointed. At home I jumped on the internet to see if I could find any other tickets for sale. No dice, but I saw the person trying to get $75 a ticket had lowered his price to $60 in the last hour. I sent a text asking for one at $40. No response. After about 40 minutes I decided I was staying home that night and tried to accept that. Then I got a text. It was from the first guy who had thought his tickets were sold. Since I'm so clever and I only needed one I told him that since I wasn't sure I could find anyone to take the other ticket if he would take $70 for them. He agreed. Now I had to find someone who would be willing to go on about 30 minutes notice. The wonderful Niki had commented when I had posted about wanting to go, so I called her and she was in! I spent a few minutes getting ready and saying bye to the kids and I picked up Niki, we headed to the venue and parked in my employee lot.

We met the nice Darren who sold us the tickets and waited in line. Doors opened around 8:30. The venue was pretty crappy. I saw some old friends who I haven't seen in years, even the boy who had always looked like Peter Murphy, actually when he walked by, for a moment, that's who I thought it was until I realized that this chap had hair and also wasn't as old. Honestly I had expected to see lots of folks that I knew from the old days of Baushas-listening and clubbing, but it was just these two. The opening people weren't much to write about, I liked the first guy okay, but the ultra-goth seeming Ours was too screamy and over the top, also the sound up front was awful and far too loud. Niki and I took ourselves to the back for Mr Murphy.

The wonderful Peter Murphy came out. He is looking pretty old, and his commitment to his thinning longer hair isn't doing him any favors. He began with new stuff, which is actually quite good, but I didn't know it as well (of course) but he treated us quickly to 2 Bauhaus songs Silent Hedges and In a Flat Field. He seemed very personal-able and comfortable, but almost everything he said was unintelligible which I think was mostly the fault of the poor sound system, but you could still hear the lovely British accent and a few words would slip through. His voice was still amazing, he has such a unique way of singing (just now my pandora radio is playing me a Peter Murphy song) and it was amazing to hear again. He played a song called Rose Hunter and said it had his absolute favorite guitar riff in it. Peter Murphy has not been idle, releasing EPs and albums and appearing in Twilight movies as a vampire (which knocked my socks off that I totally recognized him at the theater even in a wig for the brief time he was on-screen).

The section of older songs including Cuts You Up and I’ll Fall with your Knife was brilliant, all the club favorites. I was hoping for a cover of Hurt, but it was not to be and while I was expecting one additional song from the new album, the song The Prince and Old Lady Shade is one of my new favorites. The first encore started with my heart skipping a beat as he began to play Marlene Dietrich's Favourite Poem, which when the universe kept trying to remind me to buy tickets the week before had come onto my iPod and I thought "Oh wouldn't it be awesome if he played this song?" thinking that since it wasn't in any recent setlists and unlikely to make an appearance, but there it was and he sang it beautifully. Then Ziggy Stardust, he owns that song, sorry Bowie, when he sang that, the crowd went nuts and there was so much energy in it. I was surprised that we got another encore, a cover of some obscure singer and a final Bauhaus song Stigmata Martyr, which while awesome, didn't have quite the same "this is the last song" amazingness that Ziggy did.

It was a great show, and parking just through the gate was super fast which was good since it was soooo much later than I meant to be out on a Tuesday night. There was even a raccoon in my parking lot, staring at us with its wee banded eyes.

I'm so glad that Niki came with me, she rocks the house party and I was glad to have one of my dearest friends to share in the awesomeness of an unexpected concert!