Audio-Visuals

IGGY & THE STOOGES: LIVE IN DETROIT
Directed by unknown
(Creem/MVD)
As advertised, this DVD documents the mighty Iggy & the Stooges, reunited after 30 years for a series of concerts that culminated in this one, at Detroit's DTE Energy Music Center. A show of such magnitude can't possibly live up to expectations, and Live in Detroit is no exception, but it still rocks as Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott "Rock Action" Asheton and bassist Mike Watt (filling in for the late Dave Alexander) charge through a selection of tracks from the first two Stooges albums (nothing from Raw Power, alas). Ron slashes and pounds his six-string, barely moving except for his violent wrist action, while his brother pounds the skins in (it must said) workmanlike fashion. Watt thrums along with an intense expression in his face, as if he's both thrilled to be there and afraid to make a mistake. But the center of attention is Iggy, who performs as if he can barely stay still. He runs back and forth across the stage, wriggles and writhes in a dance that would be embarrassing in a man his age if it weren't so utterly unselfconscious, jumps into the audience, invites them onstage—Jesus, he even humps Watt's bass amp (which will no doubt never be the same again). With a set of peerless classics on tap ("Loose," "TV Eye," "No Fun," "Real Cool Time," "Not Right," and, of course, "I Wanna Be Your Dog"—twice), special guest Steve McKay (from the Funhouse album) on sax and unfeigned enthusiasm for the material, there's little chance of this show being a dud, and it certainly ain't, but somehow it's not quite the transcendent experience I was hoping for, either. Maybe you had to be there to get the full effect. More interesting to me is one of the bonus features, a NYC Tower Records in-store performance. Iggy and the Ashetons run through much the same set as the concert, with Scott playing a beer case, Ron at his usual ear-bleeding volume and Iggy "explaining" the meaning behind the songs, nearly all of which are about sex and drugs used to combat Midwestern boredom, in a hilarious parody of VH1's Storytellers. Whether that parody is intentional or not is open to question, but Iggy's a smart guy and I'm sure he was aware of the ridiculousness of the situation. Iggy & the Stooges: Live in Detroit isn't a perfect document, but, considering the limited appearances the Stooges make these days, it's probably as close as most of us are going to get, and in that respect it's solidly satisfying. Michael Toland [buy it]