Concert Review: The Revolution at Emo’s Austin: band honors Prince’s legacy with return visit to state capital.
It was a packed house last Saturday night at Emo’s Austin, on a particularly chilly evening. But things heated up quickly once indoors–The Revolution, the virtuoso backing band of Prince Rogers Nelson, were once again ready to pay tribute to the late musical icon, and just as they did last year (at the ACL Moody Theatre) they honored him in incendiary fashion.
After the frantic funk of America, fans cheered upon guitarist Wendy Melvoin and keyboardist Lisa Coleman’s seductive intro to Computer Blue, the first of many cuts from the Purple Rain soundtrack, which featured propulsive vocals from fleet-footed bassist BrownMark.
Indeed that album loomed large in the set list, from a bombastic When Doves Cry to a smashing rendition of Let’s Go Crazy and that single’s B-side Erotic City which had the entire crowd dancing with abandon. Indeed the audience were under the band’s spell throughout, being sent into a musical time machine of nostalgia and exquisite song-craft.
Other smash hits from their back catalogue followed, from a beatific Raspberry Beret, transcendent 1999 and playful Kiss (the latter performed by guest vocalist Stokely Williams, who hit His Purple Majesty’s piercing falsetto moments with aplomb). But just like last year, Little Red Corvette was conspicuously absent, one of the few glaring omissions from a stacked set list.
The group didn’t solely rest on radio classics however, they also pulled heavily from their early Minneapolis funk heyday, with playful takes on DMSR, All Day All Night and Let’s Work.
And the entire band were given time to shine with a jam session, including keyboardist Dr. Fink (who I recently interviewed) blowing minds with sci-fi soundscapes, rollicking drum-work from Bobby Z, and a sinewy bass solo from BrownMark, while Melvoin and Coleman displayed their impressive chops in fine fashion.
The band concluded their set with Purple Rain, where Melvoin replicated Prince’s chill inducing guitar solo to deeply emotive effect, and invited the audience to sing in lieu of their departed frontman. She also noted how Prince’s ability to create a band of such diverse cultural heritage gave them strength through their differences, not in spite of them, a thinly veiled commentary on our current xenophobic president and fractured nation.
The band returned with an encore of two more Purple Rain tracks, I Would Die 4 U
and Baby I’m a Star, before departing. I didn’t think they could top last year’s performance, but I stand corrected. While their figurehead may be in the afterworld, they keep his presence vibrantly alive, while demonstrating how they were equally important in bringing his musical vision to fruition.
Set List:
America
Computer Blue
Mountains
Take Me With U
Uptown
D.M.S.R.
All Day, All Night
Raspberry Beret
Erotic City
Let’s Work
1999
Let’s Go Crazy
Delirious
Controversy
Kiss
When Doves Cry
Purple Rain
Encore:
I Would Die 4 U
Baby I’m a Star