MICHAEL MONROE - Chinatown Shocks, Monroe Shakes, Troc Rocks: Kicks Off Tour!

Before there was Axl Rose, there was HANOI ROCKS, the wild, degeneration of a Finnish act featuring flamboyant frontman MICHAEL MONROE, he of the frilly shirt and tight fitting jacket (think Prince), shimmying, bouncing, sweating and doing splits all over the stage. Past substance abuses and age (he'll turn 50 next year) have slowed the manic tendencies, but onstage, he's still a jumping Jack Flash! Outside the venue, people were asking if it was an '80s (costume) party, the chicks in short shorts/hot pants driving the Asian business men crazy.
 

So on the initial date of his North American tour, the blonde wowed the couple of hundred onlookers. The first night of the tour, there were a couple of glitches, including the lengthy no-show by the band following a rousing introduction by local DJ Jacky Bam Bam (Rena, himself a former glamster with SCARLET FEVER) and Monroe's struggles with a tethered mic, but otherwise a high energy rock n roll show. The frontman alone possesses more vibrancy than most full bands half his age. Ah, that old showman mentality! He looked healthy (it WAS just the initial night of the tour!) taking the stage in a black leather vest, a red satin one beneath (no shirt), and a saxophone (which made periodic returns throughout the evening), for 'Trick Of The Wrist', off his new Sensory Overdrive album. The leather vest disappeared after a couple of songs and by the encore, Monroe had lost the red one as well, donning a more traditional, black satin number. There would be four more newbies in the set ('Got Blood', '78', 'Superpowered Superfly' and 'Bombs Away'), mixed in with the old classics. Whipping the mic around, or inverting the stand to use as a crutch, Monroe was constantly fidgeting with something, even strangling himself with the mic cord. When he wasn't doing that, chances are he had the sax, or a harmonica, as on 'Motorvatin', the first Hanoi tune to be aired. Amongst the solo material, 'Dysfunctional' and 'Hammersmith Palais' were highlights.
 

Sure, most in this crowd never saw GN'R before Appetite, but in Monroe's show, it's easy to see how, in the pre-Internet era, a band could "steal" a foreign act's sights/sound and publicize it in a big media market, like LA! 'Back To Mystery City' is like a proto-GN'R template. Not sure everyone understand how difficult it is for a Finn (especially 30 years ago) to be a real frontman, especially in a cock rock band. That's monumental! Perched on the monitors, they belted out 'Not Fakin It'. The later part of the show, starting with the aforementioned 'Mystery City' was a string of '80s delights, a succession that also included 'Malibu Beach Nightmare', the proper set ending 'Dead, Jail Or Rock N Roll' (complete with audience song titular chorus) and an encore of 'I Wanna Be Loved', 'Taxi Driver' and finally a cover of The Stooges' 'I Feel Alright', a band who had a similar vibe to Monroe's current and former act. During 'Dead, Jail...' he jumped into the photo pit, to reach the crowd, harmonica still in hand. Nothing compared to the encore, where he first climbed about 15 feet above the stage, atop the stacks of house amplification. From there he proceeded to tightrope walk on the ledge of the second tier balcony, stopping to sing along the way. A medley of samples from other tunes was injected into the encore including early rapper GRAND MASTER FLASH's 'The Message' and GOLDEN EARRING's 'Radar Love'! It's all about having fun, onstage and in the crowd. Afterwards, the band came out for a FREE signing/meet and greet. Ain't no school like the old school.
 

More photos can be found in a gallery here.