Fans of X who saw the band at the Bowery Ballroom this past weekend probably couldn’t argue with the material that was performed onstage. After all they helped choose the songs that the group eventually played. For X’s current tour, dubbed “Total Request Live,” fans had the opportunity to pick their five favorite tunes for the band to play that night through the group’s website. And X delivered on its promise last Saturday for the second of three scheduled shows at the Bowery. They played two of the most popularly voted songs “Los Angeles” and “Johnny Hit and Run Paulene,” as well as other songs from its body of work.
Featuring original members—vocalist Exene Cervenka, bassist /vocalist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer DJ Bonebrake—X convincingly rocked fast and loud for a band that has been together for 32 years. The whole evening consisted one of pummeling rocker after another. Aside from the aforementioned “Los Angeles” and “Johnny Hit and Run Paulene,” the group also played tracks such as “White Girl,” “We’re Desperate” and “Poor Girl.”
A poignant moment of the evening occurred during X’s second encore when only Cervenka and Doe performed a lovely acoustic version of “See How We Are.” Then the whole band closed out the evening with “Blue Spark” and a cover of the Doors’ “Soul Kitchen,” which X had recorded almost 30 years ago on the Los Angeles album.
Each of the individual members rose to the occasion that Saturday night: Bonebrake was masterful and explosive on the drums; Zoom exuded calm just standing there playing his guitar riffs with a smile; Doe was working the bass while singing and Cervenka projected steely determination and cool as she and Doe worked in tandem on the vocals. With the fans’ input for what was played that night, plus the raucous performance that followed as the result, the show proved that democracy is mutually beneficial for all involved.
