Oy ve!!

Chicago rocked the world into the wee hours of the biggest shopping day of the year with two solid hours of Moxy Fruvous. Though the show started a bit slow, due in part to the drunken harangue from a particularly vocal clubber, it quickly built up a breakneck pace. The majority of the audience seemed to already know and love fruvous, which contributed to a comfortable and homey atmosphere.

Once again, we Americans were forced to lend an ear to four Canadians determined to mock all things remotely traditional in our culture. As Jian bespoke of the Thanksgiving crowd, "Good evening, stuffed Americans." The puns continued to and beyond Sam-I-Am's discourse on free love: when I was sixteen, I remember my big, juicy, and somewhat wilted goose...and my...turkey. It was funny.

As a segueway to "Stuck in the '90s," Jian ran his political schpeel regarding the current crisis in the Middle East. Unfortunately, the soap box didn't seem to suit the crowd. Whereas fans stood at attention, a few clubbers took advantage of the opportunity to get a sloshy (yet quiet) word in edgewise.

The event was so memorable, it's inspiration faded in the annals of memory; it shall long stand as one of the highest lights of fruvdom; the Beatles interlude of GE&H will never ever be the same. Mike raped Dave. The sheer, incomparable hilarity of it meant every attempt at further clean funny would have failed. Ask Dave to make a fish face, and one might catch a glimmer of that priceless expression that brings a smile to the heart.

In case you haven't yet heard, the word is out on a new live album! Murray pegged April/May as release date, pending the timely US release of both B and Wood. With respect to the content of the shows, one might speculate the inclusion of "Boo Time", "Message", "Right Wing Shit", and "Marion Fruvous". Any other guesses?

After the show, I ran rabidly through the joint looking for sigs. I'd gotten all but Jian's, and I couldn't find the alien, so I decided to go home and save that business for a succeeding show. Who should happen to be sitting in my seat next to my mother but our short-lost frudude?! Needless to say, I was somewhat thrilled; I mean, me, Jian, and ... my mother. A shock to say the least. We chatted (they, really; the conversation was rather "impassioned"--as usual, I'm sure--and therefore difficult to break into) with Lilly and her friends for about half an hour before Schuba's closed.

All in all, a tremendous learning experience and great fun speaking with Angela and Lilly et. al. Perhaps we shall meet again. Ta 'til then...

Thanks to Matt Keener for this one:
• Scanned setlist

Some other tidbits from the performance include:

• Feel free to help contribute to this section!