Gary Numan - Buffalo Billiards, SXSW, Austin TX - March 14, 2014

[London] It was a SX Miracle – we walked into this show without a wait, a delay, … Or maybe a sad statement on what the kids today know about good music… Or a sad statement on how old we really are. So I’m not exactly well versed in Gary Numan but am so profoundly a fan of “Down in the Park” that I was very enthused about this show. I see him as a predecessor for all the synth punk stuff I can’t get enough of now. I was also prepared for him to be a huge disappointment because I also see him as a goofy oddity of the 80s (“Cars”) and someone who is now really really old. Well turns out he’s fierce – all eyelined, sinewy biceps, and arms snaking to the heavens. This was probably my favorite show of SXSW. Industrial dance, synth punk, goth. I developed crushes on both guitarists – the younger one in particular reminded me of a minor fling of my early 20s with guitarist with skater flop hair I had completely forgotten about. It quickly became apparent Numan is a dead ringer for Nine Inch Nails, which just intensified my little nostalgic moment with the 90s. I was kind of ashamed for him that he was so derivative, but then redeemed him with a fantasy that I’d found the headwater of all 90s industrial music. Seems it’s more the former, as Rockboy says his new material is a lot harder than his earlier material, which was confirmed through later investigations. In the end, I like his new material a lot and “Down in the Park” the most. And he didn’t play it at the show.