Shows/1990-08-18
You must be logged in to mark yourself for being at this show.
Setlist: (incomplete)
The B-52s
— with They Might Be Giants, Ziggy Marley, and The Cramps opening —
Aztec Bowl in San Diego, CA
August 18, 1990 at 3:00 PM
Fan Recaps and Comments:
"X-Fest III," sponsored by the radio station 91X. Tickets were $17.50, $19.50, $21.50 and $27.
Review from The San Diego Union (Aug. 20, 1990):
The first band to take the stage, They Might Be Giants, has a sound that might best be described as a strangulated cat crossed with a 1950s sitcom theme song. This isn't, by the way, as bad as it sounds.
They Might Be Giants also got the audience to simulate a car crash in two parts, to square dance (during "Cow Town," the highlight of their set), and to act as a fist-waving timekeeper for a song. The crowd took these, and They Might Be Giants, for what they were: silly fun.
But there's the definite impression that They Might Be Giants (the band actually consists of only two men, both named John) has a taste for odd for odd's sake. The first hint of this was their choice of instrumentation, which included accordion, out-of-tune horns, a marching bass drum and a metronome.
The oddness of their instrumentation pales next to the "Two Johns" themselves, who delighted in just being strange. Probably no other band in the world which would poke fun at pop conventions by screaming "Awesome guitar solo, awesome guitar solo, awesome guitar solo" during the part of a song where most bands would actually put such solos.
- This was my first TMBG show and (holy crap has it been 17 years?) I dont remember much about it. They opened for the X Fest III concert that included TMBG, Ziggie Marlie, some other band, and the B-52's. This concert is one of the reasons that I enjoy They concerts so much. I remeber they had a recorder, a few instruments and just the 2 Johns on the stage. No act, no production, just a couple of guys playing music. It was way cool. I remember only one song.. Lie Still, Little Bottle because the only instrument they used was a big ass sax! attending my 6th show tonight! -Matt 9/21/07
