A statement from Gogol Bordello‘s website rings true… “The troubadours of neo-authentics are comin as a trans-global art syndicate family that has never been witnessed before.” There is only thing I can add to that statement. Nothing quite like Gogol Bordello has been witnessed since they hit the world spotlight. They are now touring the Eastern US. Following the US tour, an extensive European tour through the middle of June is on tap.
Opening the US tour is Amigo The Devil. To be honest, having seen him perform several years ago as a solo act at a metal festival, I wasn’t sure how he would be received as an opening act for Gogol Bordello. His style was quite different than theirs. Well, he now has a superbly tight backing band that has really uplifted his style in my opinion. It seemed that many people were there to see Amigo whilst Gogol Bordello was an added bonus. Clad in an open button-down Budweiser shirt, Danny Kiranos (Amigo) was all smiles and clearly having the time of his life. When someone is having that much fun, it’s infectious. Thus, Amigo The Devil proved to be a perfect opening act for Gogol Bordello!
Given the fact that Gogol Bordello’s frontman and lead singer, Eugene Hutz, is Ukraine-born, and violinist Sergey Ryabtsev is Russian-born, there is a lot of attention brought to the seriousness of what is going on in Ukraine. Ryabtsev put out an impassioned video on YouTube regarding the situation which you can watch HERE. Ukraine flags were displayed all about the venue. The seriousness of Eastern European politics did not detract from the joy of the show. As always, the Gogol Bordello stage was organized chaos!
Hutz, Ryabtsev, and the host of musical miscreants wildly roamed the stage. Percussionist/vocalist Pedro Erazo moved about in a non-stop frenzy! Vocalist and marching drum percussionist Ashley Tobias and guitarist Boris Pelekh were only slightly more stoic but gave the whole audience close-up views as they moved from stage right to stage left. Their new bassist and drummer Korey Kingston held the music together with their solid rhythm lines. They also held the stage showdown as they, for the most part, held their ground during the almost 2-hour set.
The set consisted of songs from throughout Gogol Bordello’s history with all of the most popular songs sprinkled about. Each song was greeted wildly by the frenzied crowd which delighted Hutz and the band. There was a bit of crowd surfing mixed with a bit of moshing throughout the set. My one and ONLY disappointment with the show was that Eugene didn’t crowd surf on the marching drum as he purportedly did the night before in Boston but that’s a very minor disappointment indeed.
For the remainder of Gogol Bordello’s tour dates here in the US and upcoming in Europe, click HERE and scroll down. If you’ve never seen this musical circus live, you will have the time of your life!
