I was thrilled to get the news that Cleveland legends Pere Ubu were going to be in town for a show, and even more thrilled when I found out that it was going to be in the tavern at the Beachland Ballroom.  I much prefer the tavern for closeness and atmosphere, as few bands can fill the Beachland’s much larger ballroom with enough audience and energy to make it as exciting a space as the tavern. As much as I adore Pere Ubu, I doubt that they could really pull off a show in the ballroom.

The show was sold out, or close to it, with a well-mixed crowd of many ages and personalities, appropriate for a band that has been existence for 30 years. I wasn’t sure how large of an audience to expect, which may sound absurd to people aware of Pere Ubu’s status as indie-rock legends. But, due to their uncompromising inaccessibility and status as an “art-rock” band, Pere Ubu has always been tragically unappreciated in its hometown. Despite being spawned from Rocket from the Tombs (and therefore allied with the punk-rock pride of Cleveland, the Dead Boys), Pere Ubu’s experimental flavor means they have a smaller fan base than either of these bands – especially when compared to the Dead Boys, who have a huge and dedicated local following.

On with the show though!  The opening group, Lives of the Saints, a local band that I hadn’t seen live before, was a pleasant surprise.  I won’t mince words – there really aren’t a lot of good local bands in action these days, and I’m always surprised when I really enjoy a new local band. Lives of the Saints was powerful and energetic, playing loud, hardcore-punk influenced music without being boring or clichéd.  I especially enjoyed the lead singer, Lawrence Daniel Caswell. Rather than typical rock or punk vocals, he has a soul-influenced style of his own that really makes Lives of the Saints unique.  I only wish that his second mic, which was running through some effects, would have been more audible.

After a short break, the current Pere Ubu line-up took the stage.  The band now consists of Keith Moline (guitar), Michelle Temple (bass), Robert Wheeler (synthesizers), Steve Mehlman (drums) and, of course, David Thomas on vocals.  Considering that my favorite elements of Pere Ubu’s music were Allen Ravenstine’s keyboard work and Tony Maimone’s skill as a bassist, I didn’t have high expectations for the current line-up.

I was happy to see Wheeler using an analog synthesizer rather than some sort of high-tech modern keyboard, which made his playing true to the early Pere Ubu sound.  I later found out that he actually is friends with, and to some extent, studied synthesizer playing with Allen Ravenstine.

The rest of the band got the notes right, but seemed a bit unfamiliar with the spirit of earlier Pere Ubu songs.  They played all the crowd-favorites from “The Modern Dance,” including “Street Waves,” “Non-Alignment Pact” and the title track.  From “Misery Goats,” they played “The Art of Walking,” an unexpected personal favorite, plus the most popular number of the night, “Sonic Reducer,” a Rocket from the Tombs song written by Thomas, but made famous by the Dead Boys – which I saw as uncharacteristic pandering to those groups’ fans in the audience.  They also performed tracks from more recent albums (“ Pennsylvania ” and “ St. Arkansas ”), most of which are not familiar to me.  The band seemed more comfortable playing the newer material, and even though I find much of the more recent Pere Ubu work somewhat tiresome on record, I enjoyed their playing of these newer songs more than I did what were essentially “covers” of the group’s old songs.

The highlight of the night was a little game Pere Ubu played called “Stump the Guitar Player,” where the audience was encouraged to think of songs the current lineup doesn’t know.  After a lot of laughter and shouted requests, Pere Ubu went into a version of “On the Surface,” played by three people who were completely unfamiliar with it, a bass player who had heard the song, but not played it, and sung by Thomas, the only original member of the band.  Of course, it was nothing like the “real” version of the song, but I thought it was brilliant.  (Many bands do best without a safety net.)

David Thomas, pictured, has a reputation for being a prima donna on stage, which I’ve always thought was undeserved.  I’ve seen much worse behavior from many lead singers, as far as complaining to the band and yelling at the audience (The Fall’s Mark E. Smith, anyone?).  Both times I’ve seen Thomas perform, he’s come off the stage and mingled with the audience after the show, an act I definitely don’t associate with being a snob. There was some trouble with the PA during this performance, which naturally caused some on-stage turmoil.  As a musician who’s had similar experiences, I wouldn’t consider being frustrated when the sound cuts out in the middle of the set unreasonable.

All in all, the new Pere Ubu seems to have a few kinks to work out, but for a band that’s been through three decades and numerous line-ups, they still have a lot of potential. With the recent re-awakening of interest in punk and new wave, a lot of bands of similar vintage have been satisfied to play tired, crowd-pleasing versions of their greatest hits.  Pere Ubu continues to innovate, create, and remain relevant.

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