June 14, 2006 - INXS Concert at the Lobero
By Guest Edhat Correspondent Lisa Snider of Ojai Post

Don’t change for you, don’t change a thing for me!

1984: I’m a lanky 16-year-old dancing with my best girlfriend to the latest INXS hit. We’re doing that pogo-hop 80s dance and singing at the top of our lungs.

Don’t you get sad and lonely, you need a change from what you do all day!

1987: I’m sitting outside my university’s outdoor amphitheater near my dorm because I didn’t have enough money for a ticket to the INXS concert. My hair is long and permed and teased to a height about 4 inches above my head. I’ve got an INXS t-shirt on with stirrup pants. I am the quintessential 80s girl.

Sometimes you kick, sometimes you get kicked!

1988: I’m at an INXS concert in Irvine. The hair is still teased. I’ve just decided to switch majors from journalism to business, because at age 20, I have reached a point of maturity that makes life-changing decision-making a breeze.

We run, we hide, we wait and we want the good life, aw sure, you’re right, this ain’t, the good life, ahhhhh, elegantly wasted.

1997: I’m a bona fide adult looking to recapture the INXS glory days. The hair is thankfully flat. The lead singer, Michael Hutchence, is wasted and there’s nothing elegant about it. Sadly, within months, he is dead.

It ain’t pretty, after the show, it ain’t pretty when the pretty leaves you with no place to go.

June 14, 2006: I dragged my husband to the “new” INXS show at the Lobero. The glory days are recaptured while I sport the same t-shirt, paired with low-jeans instead of stirrup pants.

When StubHub started promoting the INXS Switch concert tour, I didn’t know what to make of it, so I logged on to see for myself what the auction-only ticket sales were all about. Sure enough, every ticket started at a dollar. I decided it was time for this Ojai gal to have an urban night on the town, so I picked up a pair for $30 a piece just 6 rows back at the historic Lobero. A friend got his for $13 each. The pair I originally wanted sold for $200. Still, I’m not sure how they made any money on the deal since the Lobero only has about 600 seats. I remember the days when they played to 30,000.

We arrived after dinner and drinks at Sevilla, which, if you haven’t gone you must (but that’s another article). Scott Stapp was the opening act and played to a pretty somber and somewhat sparse crowd, but he was entertaining nonetheless. As the punchline of many a joke because of his brief stint as lead singer of the now defunct rock band Creed, he has defied critics with his first solo album, The Great Divide. Sweaty and full of inspirational anecdotes, my husband said he could easily be hired as a motivational speaker. He wrapped up his act with his new song Justify, a hard angst-laden strain that appeases the Creed core fan base.

As the venue started filling up I made a bee line for the ladies room. There was a long line and as a result, a lot of girl talk happening. Knowing Edhat’s readers would be most interested in this aspect of the concert, I eavesdropped. “Where are you from?” “LA.” “Philadelphia.” “I was hoping Marty would win.” “I’ve been a fan since college.” “Your shoes are sooo cute.” “I hope they play a lot of old stuff.” “Is my thong showing?”

I made it back to my seat in time to see a digital clock countdown screened on the black curtain while AC DC’s TNT blasted us all out of our seats. When the song ended, the curtain flew open and INXS’s new lead singer, plucked from the reality show Rockstar, J.D. Fortune belted out Suicide Blonde. By that time, there wasn’t an empty seat in the house. The band was tight. Frankly, I think they were relieved to have a second shot at making a record and being on tour.

The crowd was not your typical lot of concert-goers; they were mostly mid-30’s to late-40’s, some with kids in tow. “Come along, Johnny, we’re going to see mommy’s favorite band!” Except for, that is, the front row of hot girls who looked like they had escaped from the Ford Modeling Agency. Ticket-takers were who you would expect to see at the Lobero: gray-haired docents, wild-eyed and ready to respond to the slightest bit of hooliganism.

The bass player wore leather pants. I think there is a law about men over 40 wearing leather pants. J.D. tried to channel the late Michael Hutchence’s penchant for on-stage sexual posturing. It’s as if the band said, “Look, mate [they’re Australian], you’ve got to sex it up for us.” Which he did, by performing a very naught act on the mic stand and since this is a family blog, I’ll spare the details.

Generously offering up the expected hits and weaving in new tracks in moderation, INXS played strong for about an hour and a half. Wrapping up with Don’t Change, J.D. encouraged the audience to move closer to the stage, which seemed to draw out the “real fans” and forced the Ford models to the fringes. In particular, I noticed a 40-something man flailing his arms overhead, running down the aisle and pushing through the crowd to shake J.D.’s hand. I think there is a law about men over 40 acting like fanatic schoolgirls, but since there were so many of them, I’ll reserve judgment!

While at times it did feel a bit like I was listening to a cover band, overall the new INXS managed to deliver. I think their days of playing to 30,000, though, may now be just a bittersweet memory.