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Fischerspooner
The Fillmore, San Francisco
Filter Grade: 90%
by Lauren Gallagher | 01.01.2007

Fischerspooner might not be overtaken, but they certainly overtake the crowd. Their glitter-glam entourage includes six sharp, precise dancers in feather headdresses and fishnet unitards, the operatic-size vocalist Lizzy Yoder in contrast to her beanpole counterpart Cindy Greene, frazzled pompadour headdresses, and Warren Fischer's faux-blood sputterings, all flickering amongst the maelstrom of fog, wind, bubbles, and strobelights. While they no doubt govern the stage, some wonder whether they came for the music or for the spectacle.

Currently promoting their pretentiously named debut album "#1" in the States, the New York based artsy duo has already enjoyed rave reviews, both in the US and in the UK. Yet their musical performance is another matter. Since Spooner and Fischer don't mix live, their use of recorded music will keep fans guessing. Spooner even took a Heineken/smoking break wherein vocals continued as he slurped and smoked. His head-set and microphone only seemed necessary to pick up Spooner's comical quips rather than live lyrics.

Nevertheless, Fischerspooner's dark, moody, but not melancholy electro-pop keeps fans writhing for more. These boys push the boundaries of synth-pop into a new realm of complexity. The dusky, melodic atmosphere of "Turn On," remains sexy in spite of robo-voices, with male and female overlapping vocals, including cries of "I'm so hot," "Trembling," "Pink and wet," while the tempo desperately accelerates. Fischerspooner's sound provides a much-needed injection into the neo-electro movement, and their live shows steal clichés from pop and Vegas, react against it, and viciously make it their own.