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Love me tender, love me deux
The French rockabilly revivalists Mustang are one of the ubiquitous bands this weekend. By they time they took the tiny stage in back of the Naeba Shokudo near midnight Friday, they’d already played twice, and there was still at least one more gig to go. At the Red Marquee the previous evening during the pre-fest party they were greatly aided by the crowd’s anticipatory verve. The band was rather stiff, making their old-style rock-n-roll feel a bit academic, but people would have whooped and danced to Mozart’s “Requiem” at that point.
For what it’s worth, the trio seemed loosed and almost chastised. The Naeba Shokudo is certainly the most awkward venue on the festival grounds: there’s absolutely no place where a viewer can get a purchase on some level ground, much less a clear sight line. Still, the intimacy was perfect for Mustang, and leader Jean Felzine talked openly and casually with the crowd. Moreover, the performance was much more intense than it had been the night before, and the band gave up two-count-em-two encores, one of which was a song by Serge Gainsbourg, “a national treasure,” as Felzine described him. About time this French band put some ye-ye in their yeah yeah yeahs.
