It was hard to take my eyes off Noelle Scaggs . She's one third of the lead-singing duo (figure that one out) along with band leader Michael Fitzpatrick. With the tambourine as an extension of her arm, she moved and grooved like her life depended on it. She gets the crowd going. Participation is key. She reminded me so much of Ranking Roger, the MC/toaster and creative half of The Beat/General Public. She doesn't sound anything like him, just played the stage and got the audience going in that same manner. Her vocals are a wonderful mix for Fitz and their playful banter recalls the great 60's/70's duos. Think Marvin and Tammi, Tina and Ike. Like Tina and Ike they took a song and turned it on it's head. For Tina and Ike it was Proud Mary, for Fitz it was Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). It became a call out, dance party. How'd they do that?
Leader Fitz stayed sartorial the entire show. Moving like Pete Townsend meets David Byrne, he never unbuttoned his red suit (accented by a black striped T-shirt). He sweat through that jacket, but never removed it. When you're having that much fun who can worry about the jacket?
The band thanked the sold out crowd many times, stating that New York was the first city to embrace them (they are from LA). The crowd loved it. The band gets the award for most impressive command of an audience. I've never seen 3000 people squat down at the request of the performers. During the encore MoneyGrabber, the crowd got down. Fitz then instructed, "New Yorkers lose your f**king minds". In unison, the audience jumped to their feet.
Instead of rehashing the set list, I'll just say Fitz and The Tantrums put on a party. There music is not a revival of 60's/70's soul. It pulls from all sorts of influences and leads you down a brand new path. GO SEE THEM!
Note: The band showed their support for Occupy Wall St and performed earlier in the day yesterday at Zuccotti Park.
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