LIVE REVIEW: Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra @ Fillmore, SF 9/26/12

Amanda Palmer MCed the entire show Wednesday night at The Fillmore. She introduced each opening act dressed in a long grey kimono. First Chad Raines, Palmer’s guitarist attempted to out-Diva Palmer with his wild dance rock trio, The Simple Pleasure. Then there was a sideshow husband/wife team that spit bananas at each other, hilarity ensued, and it ended with the guy completely naked. Then Ronald Reagan took the stage, not the president, but an ’80s pop saxophone duo cover band. Ronald Reagan brought charm and silliness to a few of the worst songs the 1980s had to offer us, Bonnie Tyler‘s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and Journey‘s “Don’t Stop Believing.” Each song was met by horrendous sing-a-long with an element of atmospheric car crash. Ronald Reagan left the stage to chants of “four more years,” of course we wanted more.

The fans of Amanda Palmer are the best people to see a concert with. They are the confident outcasts with the best styles who never seem to fit in. The audience is a beautiful freak show, full of self acceptance; people you wouldn’t normally see out at a concert. But they come out for Palmer and together we bask ‘neath the glory that is Amanda Fucking Palmer. She is weird and beautiful and she’s a rockstar and she makes you feel like you are one too, and you are.

Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra played a solid set; recent songs off the Theatre is Evil (2012) release, “Grown Man Cry,” “Want it Back,” and “Smile;” as well as a couple of Palmer’s hits from her Dresden Dolls days, “Missed Me” and “Girl Anachronism.” The lighting and sound engineering was stellar. That woman can fucking perform: costume changes, instrument changes, crowd surfing, and a general love for the audience. Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra left the audience feeling warm and satisfied. It was a good show.

Click here for more badass photos of the night.