Long Fin Killie

at T.T. the Bear’s
by Lex Marburger

Finally. Long Fin Killie were in town. When I first heard their album Houdini (Too Pure), I was overcome with admiration for this band that had rich, full music, a beautiful voice, and blatantly gay or bi lyrics. The album was a permanent fixture in my CD player for weeks. So could they live up to my expectations live? Oh, yes.

First of all, I couldn’t believe they’re a quartet. The amount of sound they produce is staggering, and almost all of it comes from the lead singer, a gorgeous black man who plays saxophone, violin, guitar, everything and more, and keeps his voice breathy and beautiful even as he blasts shrieking sax notes between verses. The mixture of chaos and pulchritude is stunning. I want to see more and more of them, and I want to ask why he keeps mentioning that he’s allergic to lipstick.