Ten years after their last appearance in Austin, TX at the unfortunately now-defunct Fun Fun Fun Fest, New Wave pioneers Sparks returned triumphantly to Austin and a near sold-out show on a scorching hot Thursday evening, July 13th at the Moody Theater.
Hot off the release of their new album, The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte, loyal fans found themselves exuberantly applauding through the opening two songs of their set, including “So We May Start” and “The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte” off of the namesake. Brothers Ron and Russell Mael brought their distinctive artistic merits to the set, complete with Ron’s deadpan keyboard performance (although he did enjoy a memorable dance moment at the end of “The Number One Song in Heaven”).
With 26 studio albums and one live album to their name, it’s hard to condense an entire career into an hour and a half set. Other singles performed such as “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us” and “When I’m With You” from the early years in their over 50-year musical career continue to prove why they are one of the most underrated musical duos of the last half-century.
Sparks complete their USA tour on July 16th at the Hollywood Bowl before heading overseas for a run of three shows in Japan.
