It’s a bit too early to start yakking about my Halloween costume plans—Jack White, in case you were wondering—but judging by the Mary Chapin Carpenter Christmas record that I just received in the mail and a new Ani DiFranco record that came wrapped like it belonged under a fir tree, I think it’s O.K. to jump the gun and talk about bands that like to play dress-up. And, Halloween or not, you can’t do that in Charlottesville without bringing up The Falsies.
The Falsies: Tastes like chicken, but can you hear the costumes on record?
I’ve got a review of The Falsies’ latest EP in next Tuesday’s C-VILLE; I’m not going to give the verdict away—listen to some rough mixes here to get an idea—but I’ll say this: Any band fronted by a cross-dressing singer and anchored by a chicken on the skins has a lot to prove on record.
I think that the most successful "costume bands" know how to pair their garb with their personalities or mission statements. KISS nailed it with their makeup, of course—Paul Stanley‘s guitar work was the star, Gene Simmons was a monster and Peter Criss was as worthless as a cat (I’m kidding, honestly; hell, I own a copy of Detroit Rock City).
Jack White has his rule of threes and sticks to the red, white and black for live gigs and albums; Bowie stayed in character as "Ziggy Stardust" for the tour that followed …Spiders from Mars; The Misfits wrote goofy and creepy songs and performed in goofy and creepy makeup.
Unless they’re secretly singing about transvestite poultry, The Falsies really just wear costumes for the sake of wearing costumes, but bless their mess, they do it consistently live; the challenge is recording music that sounds like a chicken in a skirt.
Lay it on me, folks—who were the greatest bands to ever throw on costumes and cake on foundation and eyeliner?