Was lucky and privileged enough to catch a performance of Jon Langford's multimedia show on Saturday night. Like his anti-death penalty benefit CD's, it is called "The Executioner's Last Songs." For this performance, the band consisted of longtime collaborator & Mekoness Sally Timms (vocals, ukelele) along with Tony Maimone (bass & bass banjo), Dan Massey (drums), Jean Cook (violin) and Barry Mills (video).

The real time video was a major component of the show, emphasized by the fact that Mills was up front stage left with keyboard trigger and powerbook mixing and matching on the fly, interspersing the scripted, chronological images with clips from Mills' 90's cable access show for which eye-patch sporting Pirate Langford read sea shanties while seated in a boat, floating in a bathroom sink, which were used to take Jonboy down a notch when he got a bit too full of himself. Worth the price of admission alone. Fortunately, there was much more.

The performance is an autobiographical survey of Langford's life from childhood, to the shock and release of art school for the kid from the country, to the liberating electricity of punk and the founding of the beloved Mekons, their courting & broken marriages to major labels Virgin and A&M, their influence by folk music, Langford's move to Chicago and his infatuation with American country music, especially Chicago's longtime kings of underground honky tonk, The Sundowners, Tony Fitzpatrick & the rebirth of his painting, and his work against the death penalty.

Songs from the Mekons' canon are interspersed with songs written for the show and covers and other snippets broken up with readings by Langford, Timms and Cook that range from the poignant to the absurd. While I didn't realize it at the time, the show was quite long; however, the only part that actually dragged for me was the intermission.

For Mekons fans, this is a must see. For fans of 70's punk, alt.country, social commentary, and performance art, there should be more than enough here to entertain. Unfortunately, you most likely won't be lucky enough to catch it in a bar, as the upcoming shows are at art museums. Shiner Bock can do nothing but help. Nonetheless, I'm sure they'll liven it up somehow and find some way to poke a hole in the over-reverent surroundings.

Upcoming performances:

In Chicago January 20+21, 2006 at the MCA

In Minneapolis Feb 10+11, 2006 at the Walker Art Center

Go.


high heat