Gregg Gillis, better known as mashup-king Girl Talk, made an appearance in Houston promoting his latest party starter, All Day (which you can still download for free on the official website). It's almost unreal how much the popularity for this man has grown since his solo project was birthed into the world. The show was originally scheduled to take place at the House of Blues, but because it sold out so quickly, Livenation decided to move the event to a more appropriate venue. Either way, I knew I was going to be forced to shell out $8 - 10 per beer/cocktail. To compensate for this, I fulfilled my quota of Red Bull and vodka drinks beforehand at a friend's apartment *Kids, don't drink and drive*.
If you haven't seen Girl Talk in person, you are missing out on something....ridiculous. Hundreds (often thousands) of partygoers + alcohol + eardrum blowing music + flashing lights + confetti + balloons + a stage full of dancing hipsters = a good time for all. This was my fourth go around. His show's are more of a production than a actual "concert" per se. We missed the opening DJ, but I'm not losing sleep over it. Occasionally, I was able to recognize specific tracks from All Day, but when you see a Girl Talk show, it doesn't really matter. You're there to drink and dance. It's as simple as that. Gillis spun for about an hour and half, which is what I expected, and didn't disappoint the 3000+ concertgoers. Girl Talk attracts a very intriguing combination of people. You've got your hipsters, underage kids, fraternity/sorority douchebags, and preps. I went to Nocturnal Music Fest last year (Girl Talk also performed there) and experienced the same type of clusterfuck audience. One of the more surprising crowd pleasers was an extended version of Otis Day's "Shout". There is a small blip on All Day, but Gillis was smart to create a sing-a-long towards the end of the show. I can't lie, I was blowing out my vocal chords with the rest of them. Gillis truly knows how to maintain a high energy level throughout a performance.
As mentioned before, a stage full of dancing hipsters always makes for a more entertaining, and often humorous, show. I've graced a few concert stages with my drunken presence, but I decided to sit this one out. That, and they had preselected a large number of underagers. Funny story of the night: a 16 year old kid not only brought a flask on stage but also felt comfortable enough to let the entire audience know he had it. Oh, it doesn't end there. Apparently, he felt the need to accost his lady friend's vagina....on stage. C'mon guys....discretion. Do you know the definition of that word? Needless to say, he didn't make it to the end.
Whenever Girl Talk pops on my iTunes/iPod, I have think to myself...how did this music style become so sought-after? In no way do I intend to downplay how much work it takes Gillis to create an album, but when you logically think about....an hour of mashups consists purely of an ungodly number of songs that have been already created by someone else. My opinion: Girl Talk is society's answer to MADD (Music Attention Deficit Disorder). I include myself in that population.
Despite the excessive cost of alcoholic beverages at the venue, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I was even complimented on my dance skills. Check out the picture of me that made it onto the Houston Press website here.
PEE.ESS. I took several videos from the concert, so be on the look out for those soon!
