The band—vocalist/guitarist/percussionist Steve Smith, guitarist Ben Harris and keyboardist/programmer Paul Harris—began its nationwide trek Tuesday at Lisner Auditorium in Washington, D.C. as the opening act for reunited ‘80s pop icons Tears for Fears.
That is a far cry from the nightclub dates Dirty Vegas performed, both as a live band and in DJ sets, in support of its self-titled 2002 debut album, which has been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales of more than 500,000 units. However, Smith finds the pairing to be complementary.
“Just over 20 years ago, they was an underground electronic band, you know, with ‘Mother’s Talk’ and ‘Mad World,’ and stuff like that,” said Smith. “They were very loop-based. Even ‘Shout’ was a massive crossover record in the hip-hop world. It’s great for us to do the gigs with them.”
The sound on One, which features more live instrumentation than its predecessor, was inspired by the dates in support of Dirty Vegas, Paul Harris said.
“Last time, it was lots of guitars and drums, and the show now is the same sort of thing,” he explained. “That’s really the thing that stays the same. The new songs will make a lot more sense [in that context].”
The shows will also expose the band, best known for “Days Go By,” which crossed over from the underground club community to win a Grammy in 2003 for best dance recording, to listeners outside the dance/electronic and top 40 markets.
“Who are you guys?” an audience member at the Lisner show shouted. By the end of a 40-minute set that veered from the U2-esque “Walk Into The Sun,” the first single from One, to a propulsive, bassline-driven version of “Days Go By” (complete with acoustic guitar intro) the band had successfully won over the crowd. The polite applause during the first few songs gradually increased to noisy cheers by the finale.
Dirty Vegas is tentatively planning a headlining tour in the first quarter of 2005, Paul Harris said.
Dirty Vegas’ tour dates in support of Tears For Fears, tickets for which are available through Ticketmaster, are:
Oct. 28: New York (Beacon Theatre)
Oct. 30: Boston (Orpheum)
Nov. 1: Chicago (Vic Theatre)
Nov. 3: Detroit (State Theatre)
Nov. 5: Lakewood, OH (Lakewood Civic Auditorium)
Nov. 6: Columbus, OH (PromoWest Pavilion)
Nov. 7: Milwaukee (Northern Lights Theatre)
Nov. 9: Minneapolis (State Theatre)
Nov. 15: Boulder, CO (Macky Auditorium)
Nov. 17-18: Temecula, CA (Pechanga Resort & Casino)
Nov. 20: Reno, NV (City Center Pavilion)
Nov. 21: San Francisco (Warfield Theatre)
Nov. 23: Los Angeles (Universal Amphitheatre)
Nov. 24: Las Vegas (The Joint)
Nov. 26: Tucson (Anselmo Valencia Amphitheatre)
Keep visiting dancemusic.about.com for additional Dirty Vegas content leading up to the release of One.
