Fun. Joy. Love. Highlights of Sparks' Mad! tour in Europe

 

 

Fun, Joy, Love. Highlights of Sparks’ Mad! tour in Europe, June-July 2025

 

After four big shows in Japan (in Kyoto, Osaka and two in Tokyo), Sparks moved on to the European leg of the tour, beginning with two nights, 18^th and 19^th June, in London and a further sixteen dates in Manchester, Glasgow, Haarlem in the Netherlands, Brussels, Paris, Cologne, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Berlin, Milan, Bilbao, Dublin, Edinburgh and Wolverhampton. It was astonishing that with such a tough schedule over twenty-four days, the incredible energy and excellence of the performance was maintained throughout, despite having to contend with a severe heatwave that reached degrees into the 30s in some places.

The Band

The band was essentially the same musicians as for the Latte tour in 2023, with the exception of the new drummer, Darren Weiss, the brother of longstanding guitarist Evan Weiss. (As with the first band in the early 1970s, which included brothers Earle and James Mankey, the Sparks band once again has two sets of brothers.) As before, Evan Weiss and Eli Pearl were on guitars and Max Whipple on bass. A number of reviews commented on the superb work of the band and their energy, precision and commitment, praising their evident embracing of the range of music displayed in the set list. The French magazine Benzine remarked on the obviously proud collaboration of the young musicians with the (slightly older but forever young) Maels and the clear enjoyment they were deriving from the tour.

The Outfits

The band were in dark casual wear, while the stage was lit up by Russell’s eye-popping three- piece suits, in four different bright colours and designs. The flamboyant outfits, in bright or dark blue, red and yellow, featured Japanese images, many symbolising good luck, peace, longevity and happiness: peonies, red carp, cranes, stylised waves and dragons, and flowers like chrysanthemums and cherry blossom. The jacket was removed after a few numbers (unsurprisingly, given the temperatures) to reveal the patterned waistcoat over a black shirt. Ron, in contrast, wore a dark high-necked loose Japanese style jacket with dark baggy pants, except in Edinburgh where he donned his usual white shirt and a tartan tie (naturally). For some encores, he added a dark sweatshirt featuring an image of Mount Fuji, probably acquired in a recent souvenir shopping spree.  The odd hat appeared too - notably the baseball cap Ron assumed for his spoken version of ‘Suburban Homeboy’, bearing the legend ‘F**k the sun’ and the black Basque beret he flaunted at the concert in Bilbao. Always topical. In Haarlem (Netherlands), Sparks proudly showed off gifts from two inventive fans: baseball jerseys with Sparks on the front and the numbers 45 and 48 on the backs. Yes, it seems that there is a local baseball team called Sparks!

 

The Set List 

For this tour, the set list was another inspired combination of material from the new album, Mad! (already obviously familiar to many in the audience), the inevitable classic numbers and songs from seminal moments in Sparks’ career. It began, as was (and probably will always be) expected with ‘So May We Start’ from their movie musical Annette (2021) and, as in 2023, finished with ‘All That’ (A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip, 2020).  There was a distinct 1970s vibe, as seven of the songs on the list came from that decade, some of them rarely performed live: the stomping ‘Reinforcements’ (Propaganda, 1974), ‘Goofing Off’ (Introducing Sparks, 1977), ‘Academy Award Performance’ and ‘Beat The Clock’ (No 1 In Heaven, 1979), and the biggest surprise of them all, an extraordinary rendering of ‘Whippings And Apologies’ ( A Woofer In Tweeter’s Clothing, 1972).  At the Wolverhampton concert Russell looked slightly overwhelmed by the lengthy standing ovation received by ‘Goofing Off’, so early in the show. Two songs represented the ‘80s, ‘All You Ever Think About Is Sex’ (In Outer Space, 1983) and ‘Music That You Can Dance To’ (Music That You Can Dance To, 1986), which proved to be such a popular choice on the Latte tour.  Once again, despite the band being on a platform in semi-darkness at the back of the stage, much praise from fans has been lavished on Eli’s snake-hipped dance moves, especially in ‘Music That You Can Dance To’.  For some reason, which may or may not have been because of an imposed curfew, ‘All You Ever Think About Is Sex’ was omitted from the show in Cologne. (It was ‘all right with us’, though.)

Ron unexpectedly took centre stage for a spoken version of ‘Suburban Homeboy’ (Lil’ Beethoven, 2002), his idiosyncratic delivery as entertaining as in 2023’s ‘Shopping Mall Of Love’. The concert built to its climax with the classic ‘When Do I Get To Sing My Way’ which marked the renaissance of Sparks in the mid-1990s (Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins,1994) followed by ‘The Number One Song in Heaven’ (No 1 In Heaven, 1979) and ‘This Town Aint Big Enough For Both Of Us’ (Kimono My House, 1974), by which time, as reviewers remarked, the audience were beside themselves with delight.

The new songs from Mad! chosen for inclusion were ‘Do Things My Own Way’, which set out Sparks’ long held mission right at the start of the concert, ‘Drowned In A Sea Of Tears’, ‘JanSport Backpack’, ‘Running Up A Tab At The Hotel For The Fab’, and the anthemic ‘Lord Have Mercy’ which was the final song of the set.  These sounded even better live than on the album, although this fan at least would have liked to hear ‘A Little Bit Of Light Banter’ too. The heartfelt plea for the environment of ‘Please Don’t F**k My World’’ (A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip, 2020) provided a quieter interlude between high powered energetic numbers. Russell explained that they had thought this song appropriate for the times in 2020, and that things could hardly get worse – ‘Boy, were we wrong’, he added. As with ‘Lord Have Mercy’, the inclusion of this song was a subtle suggestion of the rage at the state of the world informing the title of the new album. The encore further highlighted this idea with ‘The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte’ (from the album of the same name, 2023) which was followed by the sublime, ultra moving ‘All That’ (A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip, 2020).  It is fair to say that the reception of most numbers was ecstatic at all the concerts, often with standing ovations at various points and even at the beginning, with loud cheers when Ron and Russell entered the stage.

Russell's voice seemed undiminished by age and unaffected by the heat, his singing as strong, energetic and expressive as ever. His repetition of his 1972 rendering of 'Whippings and Apologies' was extraordinary, and not a little unnerving!  

The Venues

              The venues were very varied, ranging from the historic to the modern. The Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith, London and the O2 Apollo in Manchester, are both Grade 2 listed buildings built in the 1930s in Art Deco style as cinemas and are notable for their white terracotta façades. Edgar Wright, director of The Sparks Brothers film, made a surprise appearance in Hammersmith to take the end of show ‘selfie’ for the band. The Salle Pleyel in Paris, a former classical music venue with balconies along three sides and a new one for Sparks, dates back to 1927. The Edinburgh Playhouse, first opened in 1929, is the largest concert hall in Scotland, while the Civic at The Halls in Wolverhampton (1938), with its balconies on three sides, has seen many of popular music’s greats on its stage. A more familiar venue for the band was the Cirque Royal in Brussels, with its circular auditorium reflecting its original purpose in the nineteenth century.  Sparks have played there before - in 2023 and 1975! The variety in styles of the more modern venues was striking too: the ultra-modern block of the Uber Eats Music Hall in Berlin, and, by contrast, the grand stone steps and colonnades of the curved Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow. The Konserthuset in Copenhagen, home to the National Symphony Orchestra, is a spectacular example of Scandinavian design both inside, with its wood panels, and outside – lit at night it resembles a large blue cube. The concert in Cologne was moved to the Live Music Hall, where, at the height of the heatwave, the temperature in the building was estimated by fans to be c.45 degrees, but despite anxieties about Sparks performing in the conditions, the show went on as usual. At the end, Russell introduced the band members as ‘sweaty number 1’ etc.  For the first time, Sparks played in Italy, at the Teatro degli Arcimboldi in Milan, which was built in anticipation of the closure for renovation of the famous La Scala opera house in 2002.

Many of these venues were fully seated, although, despite the largely vain restraining efforts of the security teams, large parts of the audience were on their feet dancing from early on. Although for numbers like ‘Music That You Can Dance To’, it would almost seem rude not to, such enthusiasm can, of course, be a bit of a problem because it is not always fair to people who want or need to remain seated, as comments on various fan sites shows.

              There were two outdoor venues in Europe: the BBK Festival in Kobetamendi, Bilbao, which also featured artists like Pulp and Kylie Minogue, and at Gruna Lund in Stockholm. At the latter amusement park, Sparks performed on a stage with a rollercoaster noticeable in the background, a fitting reminder of their cameo in the film of the same name that fans either like or hate. Unfortunately, there were technical problems here, with the sound system going down three times, including (ironically) during ‘When Do I Get To Sing My Way’, but the audience gamely sang along to fill in.

The Lighting effects

              As in 2023, the lighting effects for this concert were original but relatively restrained. Behind the band, the lights surrounding square shapes changed to the beat and there were the obligatory moments of flashing lights from the centre of the squares. For this fan at least, the haze over the stage at the concerts I attended was rather too dark, which sometimes rendered the band at the back of the stage, and even Ron at his Ronald keyboard, almost invisible. 

Support Acts – no support acts! 

              Except in Paris, where the young French singer/songwriter Sam Sauvage performed a handful of his songs. With his blending of French chanson and pop influences (Bob Dylan, Les Rita Mitsouko and ….. Sparks!)) his observational and sometimes ironic lyrics, and the contrast between his formal attire and wild dance moves, he seems a good fit for Sparks. In an interview on BBC6 Music, Russell speaks of his discovery of Sam through his video for ‘Les Gens qui Dansent (J’Adore’)’ and his charming, cool and slightly rebellious performance. (Check him out.)

What the hell is it this time? Happenings and hitches

              It would not be a Sparks’ concert without some amusing happenings. Although not amusing for Sparks themselves, a number of technical hitches occurred which caused some merriment for the audience. In Stockholm, Russell had to ad lib about the heat. On the second night in Manchester, Ron abruptly got up and left the stage, to the audience’s consternation, leaving Russell to ad lib once again. At one point, Ron’s arm could be seen waving at Russell from the wings, seemingly urging him to fill in while a problem was sorted. Russell obliged with a guessing game of ‘Where’s Ron gone?’, his suggestions of shopping, visiting the sights of Manchester or to the bathroom greeted with varying degrees of approval from the audience. This was followed with a Georgio Moroder ‘joke’ in which the producer goes into a bar and says ‘We need a hit, boys!’ (presumably something Sparks heard from him all those years ago). When Ron eventually returned, the problem with his earpiece rectified, he proclaimed sternly that rumours that he had gone to the bathroom were false, before resuming his customary calm seat at the keyboard.

              In Brussels, Russell messed up the song order. He was describing ‘Please Don’t F**k Up My World’, when Ron again left his position and advanced to tap Russell on the shoulder and gestured him back to show him the set list on his keyboard. After peering closely, Russell laughed and said ‘there’s always something’, and announced they would do ‘Beat the Clock’ instead.  One of the amusing aspects of these small happenings is the audience reaction when Ron stands up unexpectedly, as though something momentous is about to happen. Of course, during ‘The Number One Song In Heaven’, it does – cheers resounded as Ron rose to do his famous ‘dance’, grinning madly and fanning himself afterwards. It was far too hot for this to last long though, and astonishing hat he did it at all.

The Speeches

              When introducing the members of the band, Russell played his usual game of pretending to forget about Ron, causing prolonged chanting of ‘Ron, Ron, Ron’ from the audience. At Wolverhampton, he (finally) introduced Ron as ‘on keyboard, composition and lyrics: that’s about all he does’. In Milan, he was presented as ‘il signore Mael, di Napoli’, which might have confused anyone new to the Mael world. At the final show of the European leg of the tour in Wolverhampton, Russell also read out the names of all the crew and their jobs, and thanked them warmly for making the shows so successful. He also included their manager Sue Harris, who had, apparently, even exceeded her responsibilities by picking them up from the train station!

As usual, at the end, both Ron and Russell spoke briefly, emphasising their gratitude at the heartwarming reception of their work and how this continued to inspire them to greater heights. Reviewers commented that they seemed reluctant to leave the stage as they soaked up the lengthy applause, and, indeed, they both seemed very moved by the audience reaction.

The Reviews

Without exception, reviews of concerts everywhere praised the exceptional and passionate energy of the performances (especially in the face of the heatwave), the inspired set list and the evident adoration of the audience. Classic Rock expressed this as ‘a hugely thrilling injection of joy and power’ describing Russell’s exuberant performance as that of a man half a century younger.  The longevity and yet sustained contemporary relevance of the band was admired repeatedly: ‘they have no business being so extraordinary’, concluded Classic Rock. The emphasis on joy and fun and the desire to create happiness was widely recognised.

And Finally…

              Sparks left us with the promise that they would be back soon and we all fervently hope that this will be the case. In the meantime, we hope that the US fans will love the shows as much as we have when the tour resumes there in September and that they will keep the photos, videos and comments coming so that we can relive and compare our memories.

Thank you, Sparks, for your sensational concerts, and thank you to the many fans for their views and photos on the fan sites that helped in compiling this piece.

 

Penny Brown

July 2025

 

 

 

 

 

             

 

 

 

How mad is Mad!?

 

 How mad is Mad!?

 

In all the promotional interviews for their new album, Mad! (2025), Russell Mael has pointed to the double meaning of the title word: both ‘crazy’ and ‘angry’, suggesting that it was an appropriate word for the times. In an interview with NME, he elaborated on this ‘everything feels like it’s completely out of control and the world is mad in all meanings of the word’. The exclamation mark in the title was specifically intended to reinforce that point. After the implicit and explicit political nature of songs on the previous album, 2023’s The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte, that I discussed in a previous essay in this blog, more of the same might therefore have been expected, given the almost daily worsening state of US and world affairs. So, how mad, in either sense of the word, is Mad!?

We can look in vain for specific references to events or name-naming. But Sparks have always avoided overt political comment and Springsteen-like political rants at live shows. However, in the NME interview, Ron admitted that contemporary events in the US have affected their work: ‘We don’t want to be lecturing or sloganeering, but if it can be done in a way that’s a little more subtle? Those events are hard to avoid everywhere in the world now, but especially in the US. …We try not to be directly influenced by outside events, but you can’t help but have it have some kind of effect on what you’re doing.’

Their views on contemporary society have nevertheless always been apparent in the characters and scenarios in their songs. In the case of Mad!, their approach seems to me to be even more subtle than in Latte, although some songs certainly reveal links with that album and, indeed, other Sparks’ songs.  However, the ‘prophets of fear and doom’ referenced in the last song on the album are, in fact, never far away. The focus, however, is on individuals’ fears and uncertainties and, in some cases, on their ways of surviving mentally without going mad.

Despite the dynamic self-assertion of the opening song, ‘Do things My Own Way’, there are a number of unhappy or bewildered characters in the songs on Mad!  One of the singles released prior to the album, ‘Drowned in a Sea of Tears’, for example, could be seen as the fate of the girl who was crying in her latte, now overwhelmed by an unnamed grief.  The young woman observed weeping in a café by a stranger, who can only hazard a guess that ‘the world is to blame’ when he sees more unhappy people taking her place, is here seen through the eyes of her partner. He is shocked to discover that she was not as happy in their relationship as he thought, that although she appeared bright and vibrant externally, she is in fact totally consumed by an undefined and perhaps indefinable despair which, despite his desire to help her, is clearly irreparable. The situation suggests a serious failure in communication between the couple, the private agony of the woman compounded by efforts to maintain a cheerful public face, her ‘greatest talent’. We learn nothing of her sorrow, the focus being on the speaker whose own sadness is that ‘I almost saved her, I was so very near’. In hindsight, he sees that he was blind in his inability to realise and ease her fears which makes the double tragedy more affecting.  In an interview with Variety magazine, a discussion of sincerity discourages the search for a Sparks -like cynical or humorous touch: the lyrics are intended as perfectly straightforward and sincere – ‘love sucking is twist enough’.  Ron says that ‘leaning into wit’ is something that sets them apart from other bands, so that writing the lyrics for a song like this is difficult (‘in the traditional definition of what sincerity is in a song, this is more that).  He adds: ‘So you try to make the lyrics as special as possible without kind of resorting to a slight escape into some kind of humorous direction’. ‘Drowned in a Sea of Tears’ then, according to Ron and Russell, is an example of a ‘lost relationship kind of song’, a common enough situation but seen in a fresh way, that hallmark of Sparks’ songs.  The video for this single, featuring theatre director and actor Tina Kronis, ends with her sitting weeping desperately in a car as it fills up with water, a scene that has an inherent touch of eery absurdity in its literal explicitness, but is nevertheless a painful one.

              The bold and uncompromisingly defiant nature, both lyrically and musically, of ‘Do Things My Own Way’, suggest that self-reliance and an energetic pursuit of your goals is a strong defence against being overwhelmed or oppressed. Russell has commented repeatedly that this has been their mantra throughout their career (‘a rallying cry we’ve kept to ourselves’), not succumbing to outside influences, and that in this case, ‘you can trust this narrator’.  Following on from Latte’s ‘It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way’ and ‘Not That Well Defined’, the singer rejects all authoritarian advice in favour of a sincere and confident autonomy: ‘unaligned, simply fine’. Surprisingly, a German review of the Berlin concert suggests that ‘Do Things My Own Way’ can be seen as a comment on President Trump’s governing style, an interpretation which I am inclined to feel would horrify the Maels.

  The character in ‘Don’t Dog It’, the closing song on side one of the LP, however, lacks this self-confidence, seeking help from both science and religion on how to cope with life: ‘self-reliance was my game/ Shunning all advisors/ Still I felt my life’s in vain/ Sought out those much wiser’. However, from a holy man and a ‘philosophic Prof’, he receives only the enigmatic advice: ‘don’t dog it’, (an expression which I interpret as meaning ‘don’t drag your feet and get on with it’) and ‘shake it thusly and you’ll see the light’. This confirms the sentiment in the opening song ‘My advice, no advice’, a favourite line for Russell who said that, during production, he briefly silenced the music to highlight it.  In fact, the narrator here seems to take the advice as he feels more in control and ‘I no longer dog it’.

A very specific way of forging your own destiny comes in another song released as a single ‘Running Up A Tab At The Hotel For The Fab’, a satire of the speaker’s attempt to impress a potential partner with a celebrity lifestyle. His pose is as false as the fake identity of the guy in ‘Suburban Homeboy’, as he lacks the necessary to support his extravagance, and ends up in prison for debt, still unrepentant ‘Worth it all’. This song contains one of Ron’s particularly memorable rhymes ‘ Fromage, living large’ and is a humorous portrait of a wannabe celebrity/influencer which reveals society’s addiction in an age of rampant social media to fame, material things and their supposed status as indicators of human worth. It has been suggested that this was inspired by the notorious case of Anna Delvey (Anna Sorokin), a wannabe socialite and con artist who, masquerading as an heiress, forged multiple financial documents to fund her lavish lifestyle in fancy hotels, and, like our narrator, ended up in Rikers, also seemingly unrepentant in her courtship of the media.

We are back in familiar Sparks’ territory with ‘In Daylight’, which contrasts the cheerful melody of the chorus, ‘everybody looks great at night’ with the speaker’s insecurity about his looks. Reminiscent of many Sparks’ male characters who find difficulties in establishing relationships, and particularly of  FFS’s ‘Johnny Delusional’, who memorably described himself as ‘borderline attractive from afar’, this guy fears ‘daylight reveals me’. A similarly typical Sparks’ frustrated and suffering male and an apparently heartless and enigmatic female appear in ‘JanSport Backpack’, in which the woman’s backpack becomes, as Ron stated in the Variety interview, ‘a metaphor for just turning your back on a relationship’, inspired by noticing how many young women in Japan were wearing backpacks as a fashion statement. This illustrates once again how Sparks’ songs use an emphasis on detail to create common situations in a fresh way.   However, as in most Sparks’ songs, there are layers of unanswered questions: is the woman being secretive or is he being jealous and suspicious?  Underlying the relationship is a lack of communication once again - she returns every night but doesn’t say where she goes or what is in her backpack and he doesn’t ask. His line ‘why do you always treat me this way?’ harks back to the uncomprehending hurt of ‘Please, Baby, please (can’t you treat me better)’.  In contrast, the delightful ‘My Devotion To You’ has generated a number of interpretations, from the deeply personal to a general statement that everyone needs something on which to lavish their devotion. (Russell has said that they are both devoted to Sumo wrestling!)  Is it a song about Sparks’ fans, or about the relationship of the Mael brothers towards each other and Sparks? The cynical interpretation that it is about unhealthy emotional obsessions is not borne out, in my view, by the cheerful whistling and layered vocals that suggest the singer is, for once, casual and confident in this relationship.

An everyday annoyance, rather than an existential threat, appears in the minimalistic ‘A Long Red Light’, the repetitive and discordant tune full of unsettling and humorous sounds of which portrays the frustration of drivers stuck in traffic. The curt repetition of ‘Wait, wait’ highlights the obedience required of citizens, and perhaps not only in traffic. It would be fun to establish whether the length of the song actually reflects the length of time a red light can last on American roads. It contrasts nicely with the preceding song on the album, ‘I-405 Rules’, described by Sparks as ‘a love song to the city’, which compares the interstate highway, full of happy drivers, to all the exotic rivers of the world as it flows through Los Angeles. 

              The song that links both meanings of the word ‘mad’ and the themes of unhappiness and frustration most specifically with the contemporary situation in the US and beyond is ‘Hit Me, Baby’. The speaker feels in the grip of a nightmare, a thinly disguised metaphor for the reality of the times, which is ever evolving and increasingly terrifying, generating disbelief and horror. The ‘nightmare seems so real, and yet/ It’s getting weirder, getting weirder yet’.  The chorus ‘man oh man alive, where are their heads at/ Man oh man alive, how could they think that’ does not need to name names for anyone who has seen any news at all in the last months. He begs his partner to shake and hit him to wake him up (‘I gotta wake up, this cannot be true,) but nothing makes the ‘nightmare’ go away (‘I can’t believe that this is where we’re at’). The song presents various other unsuccessful methods of shutting out the sounds and images of his thoughts as the vocals wobble fearfully: unsettling music and sounds (described on the official lyrics video as ‘heavenly choir and metallic chugging’) and the ‘la la la’ of someone with their fingers desperately stuffed in their ears. But he remains ‘sweaty and filled with fear’, unable to wake up, a situation that looks unlikely to improve any time soon (‘I sense an avalanche of missed alarms’).

              The album finishes with two songs that clearly reflect a response to this situation.  ‘A Little Bit of Light Banter’, depicts a positive personal coping strategy for surviving without going mad even if you are angry mad. The couple here deal with life by ‘keeping things light’ when they go to bed, refusing to engage with the ‘heavy subjects’ that thrive in the daytime or bemoan their plight, avoiding arguments and stress by keeping their conversation to lighter and pleasant issues as a prelude to sleep. This keeps their relationship on an even keel and makes life bearable amidst the horrors of everyday. In this respect it recalls the fantasy routine of the couple in Latte’s ‘Take Me For A Ride’.  The humorous dismissal of nosey neighbours, the teasing marching motif at the end and the bouncy melody themselves suggest a resistance to depression and despair.

This is followed by ‘Lord Have Mercy’, a delicious number as anthemic as ‘All That’ from 2020’s A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip, itself written at an anxious time for humanity.  The singer here is also watching his sleeping partner and is deeply moved by the song she sings in her sleep, which flows ‘so gently from her lips/ As if the world were at its end’. Whether she is really singing or he is imagining it remains intentionally unclear, adding to the unique pathos of the situation.  Her song is a prayer for the calming of fears (rendered as ‘gentle breezes’ to ‘calm angry seas’) and for rescue from the ‘prophets of fear and doom’, a subtle way of highlighting existential anxieties. Although he recognises that ‘one song means nothing in the grand scheme of things’, the narrator’s tears flow, whether because he senses her suffering, unspoken when she is awake (as in ‘Drowned In A Sea Of Tears’) or because she articulates so well what he himself feels.  This song would seem to serve as a final reflection of Sparks’ feelings without any need for specificities. There is no doubting the sincerity of their response here, and it is no wonder that this featured as the last song on the set list, before the encores, for the recent Mad! tour.

              There is, of course, fun and joy in this album, not least in its musical brilliance, but it is also extremely moving and thought provoking in the subtlest of ways. The genius of Sparks is certainly something on which we can depend to lighten and comfort our fraught days.

Penny Brown

July 2025          

Cool Places - Sparks in Finland

              

 

                                                 Cool Places: Sparks in Finland

 

             Finland is a very cool place in many respects, not least because there are many Sparks’ fans there! However, the brothers’ official visits to Finland have been somewhat sporadic: there was, in fact, a lengthy gap between their first gig there in 1975 and their next appearance in 2008.  Nevertheless, the recent 2022 concert in Helsinki, as part of the European leg of an extensive Spring tour, showed that there is a loyal and enthusiastic fan base there, with members old and new.

 Early Days

             Sparks first came to Helsinki for a gig on 2 October 1975, as part of a brief European tour prior to their lengthy U.K. series of dates throughout the autumn. Ron and Russell were accompanied on that occasion by their British band members Trevor White (guitar), Ian Hampton (bass) and Dinky Diamond (drums).  The concert took place at Helsinki’s Kulttuuritalo (or House of Culture), a modern building designed by the renowned Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. The band played in the semi-circular auditorium in front of a simple bank of lights, Russell resplendent in long curls, red braces, short-sleeved white shirt and dark pants while Ron wore his customary formal white shirt and tie. The band were also dressed casually. The varied set list included songs from the 1974 albums, Kimono My House ('Talent is an Asset', 'This Town', 'Falling in Love with Myself') and Propaganda ('Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth'), and showcased new songs from the recently released Indiscreet (September 1975): 'Look, Looks, Looks', which opened the show, 'Get in the Swing' and 'Without Using Hands'.  For this last number, the band employed a dramatic device that was to bear fruit decades later as the concept behind the Two Hands One Mouth show: at the end of the song, the lights gradually dimmed to two spotlights, and then to one spot only on Ron's hands as Russell softly repeated the closing lines.  For an Encore they played 'Happy Hunting Ground' and 'How Are You Getting Home?' (Indiscreet) as well as 'Girl from Germany' from A Woofer in Tweeter's Clothing (1972). This range of material is a reflection of the astonishingly prolific nature of this period in the early career of the young Maels, and this gig, despite a microphone problem for Russell at one point, already demonstrated the characteristic energy and power that fans have come to associate with Sparks' shows. 

 Interviewers beware!

             The day before the live show, Sparks took part in an interview for Finnish television that became increasingly surreal. The very young-looking band are sharing a large chocolate cake while Ron talks seriously about what he perceives as the current fashion for conservatism. Pressed on this by the interviewer, he claims that the age of idealism is over, and there seems to be nothing to be in favour of any more. When he stresses that this is not meant in the political sense, Russell interjects that Sparks are certainly not political, a strategy that, with a few notable exceptions, has remained largely true to this day. Ron’s assertion that perhaps the new fashionable movement is hedonism prompts Russell to indicate the chocolate cake as proof! When the discussion moves on to differences between America and Europe, Russell asks whether ‘Finland is part of Europe, in a Finnish person’s mind?’, a somewhat surprising (although possibly philosophically profound!) question that elicits a curt ‘Yes’ from the interviewer. The interview takes an even more surreal turn as, at the moment that they are asked about their project with the famous French star Jacques Tati, the chocolate cake slowly collapses, enabling Russell to say that that precisely sums up the state of the project. This interview was not shown on the next morning current affairs and entertainment programme Tasavallassa Tapahtuu as planned, but was shown on another entertainment show, Iltatähti, on 21 October.  Sparks were clearly already showing off another of their undoubted talents: wrong-footing unwary interviewers!

 Some years later….

             Finland was not blessed with another live concert until 16 June 2008, when Sparks appeared at the Tavastia-Klubi in Helsinki. Videos on YouTube of some of the concert begin with a shot of the imposing doors of the club. Finland was one of the first countries in Europe, along with Estonia and Lithuania, to see live performances of songs from Exotic Creatures of the Deep (2008) after its première in London at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on 13 June at the culmination of the 21 x 21 Sparks Spectacular. Before the show, Ron did an interview with journalist Hannu Björkbacka, who tells us that he was the only journalist left after an extended sound set-up delay, and admiringly describes Ron as ‘a friendly and humble craftsman’. Against a background hub-bub of activity, Ron is remarkably relaxed and forthcoming about Sparks’ mission of ‘pushing the limits of what pop music can do’. He describes how, prior to Lil’ Beethoven (2002). they threw away about twenty songs because they felt that they were ‘going through the motions and not pushing themselves’, which he found painful, because each song is his ‘little baby’. They then went into the studio without any songs to explore a new sound, a writing process that they have followed ever since. Bjӧrkbacka, referring to the song ‘Strange Animal’, asks about the ‘emotional core’ of a song, and Ron agrees that their music always strives to work on two levels. When asked whether he sees Sparks’ music as entertainment or art, he reveals that he looks to Cole Porter and Gershwin for inspiration in achieving a blend of simplicity and sophistication, rather than contemporary pop. Inevitably, the discussion turns to the 21 x 21 Spectacular, which Ron says was inspiring for them on many levels, not least because some of the albums that had not been successful commercially were actually great when performed live, because they had a strong band, and ‘some songs were pretty good’. He also hints that there is hope of a compilation video of the event, because all the shows were filmed from one central camera. (We are still waiting for that one, Ron!). When pressed about future plans, he speaks about the five years they had spent on developing a screen version of the Japanese manga comic Mai the Psychic Girl in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and that there were still hopes that a full-length film might see the light of day. It is impossible not to admire Ron’s calm and kindness in this informative interview which took place at clearly a very hectic point in the day.

         Ron also says in this interview that, as they have not played in Finland for a long time, they have included a number of songs from throughout their career in that evening’s show. Indeed, the generously long and wide-ranging set list included five songs from Exotic Creatures ('Good Morning', 'Strange Animal', 'I Can't Believe That You Would Fall For All The Crap In This Song', 'I've Never Been High' and 'Lighten Up Morrissey') as well as a mixture of favourites and numbers less frequently played live from earlier albums: 'Up Here In Heaven' and, of course, 'Amateur Hour' and 'This Town' from Kimono My House (1974), 'Propaganda', 'At Home, At Work, At Play', 'Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth', and 'Something for the Girl With Everything' (Propaganda (1974)), 'Get In The Swing (Indiscreet (1975)), 'Goofing Off' (Introducing Sparks (1977)), 'Number One Song In Heaven' (from album of the same name (1979)), 'When Do I Get To Sing My Way' (Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins (1994)), 'Suburban Homeboy' from Lil Beethoven (2002) and 'Dick Around' from the 2006 album Hello Young Lovers. This huge and varied programme was not only to encourage Finnish fans, old and new, to explore earlier albums and ‘catch up’, but reflects Ron and Russell's perception of what works well in live performance and the constant innovation and consistently high standard of Sparks' work over four decades.

Finnish treats

             This Helsinki gig also had some further especially memorable moments: the audience were stamping and clapping in anticipation before the start of the show and for the opening number 'It's a Sparks Show Tonight', Ron took to the stage alone and mimed to the song while doing a mini-striptease, throwing his long mackintosh into the audience. He also caused a sensation by appearing for the Encore in a T-shirt embellished with a picture of an elk and the words 'Finnish Playboy'. Russell was, for once, more conservatively dressed in a long-sleeved black T-shirt, with black braces and red pants and a matching jacket that was removed at some point. Russell demonstrated his skill for delighting a crowd by speaking in Finnish, proclaiming his liking for things typically associated with the country; salmiakki (salted liquorice, which is delicious but an acquired taste), Fazer (a make of chocolate), Iittala (Nordic homeware design), the children's book favourite Moomin and, of course, Finland (Suomi). Each item was greeted with cries of surprised delight, admiration and 'Thank you' from the audience. He had clearly been well coached! This strategy, when on tour, of addressing a few introductory words to the audience in their own language, even if only briefly, always creates an affectionate rapport and is another example of Ron and Russell's close attention to the details of successful performance.  This endearing episode, and the closing moments of the gig, as Russell introduces the band, this time in English (Jim Wilson and Marcus Blake (guitars and backing vocals, both from the band Mother Superior), Steve McDonald (bass) and Steven Nistor on drums), can be seen on YouTube. These were the same musicians, as Russell points out, who played the 21 nights of the Sparks Spectacular in London. Their reward for sticking with them throughout that marathon, was to play in Finland, Russell announces to rapturous applause. After the last encore, 'Suburban Homeboy', Russell shouts out 'moi, moi' (bye bye) as the ecstatic audience finally allows the equally delighted band to leave the stage.

 A new venture

             Ron and Russell were back at the Tavastia-Klubi again in 2012, this time alone for a performance on the Two Hands One Mouth tour. There had been a short break since the show in London on 13 June 2012, which they have described as a trial run of the stripped back format, and the tour came via gigs in Latvia and Lithuania to arrive in Helsinki on 7 October. Despite their anxieties about appearing for the first time without a band and the greater exposure and focus on Ron and Russell that this entailed, the tour was going down a storm, and the Helsinki show was no exception.  Beginning with Ron's solo performance at the keyboard of the gorgeous overture, which was greeted with repeated cheering and clapping along with the beat, the show consisted of a massive list of twenty songs from throughout their career including some not so often seen in live performances (notably 'Sherlock Holmes' from Angst in My Pants (1982), 'Under the Table With Her' (Indiscreet (1975)) and excerpts from The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman (2009).  The songs were apparently chosen for their viability in the reduced and concentrated musical medium. In various interviews at the time, Ron and Russell explained that they had discovered that not all of their repertoire was suitable for this treatment, and that they wanted to maintain the same power, aggression and urgency as though they were playing with a full group.  The format was particularly nerve-wracking for Ron, who had to play alone live with neither band nor computer to support the music, which had to be recast for keyboard alone. The new arrangements are, in fact, magnificent. A huge benefit in their view was that the more intense focus on the vocals foregrounded the lyrics and emphasised their wit and subtlety, as well as the amazing range of Russell's voice, as they were not competing with a 'sonic blast'. A specially written piece, ''Two Hands, One Mouth', a song with a fairly blatant double meaning (which was more evident in live performance, as the audience in Finland as elsewhere quickly grasped), brought the show to a close.

Helsinki loves Sparks

Russell, who wore a brown suit with cut-off pants (for which he seems to have a penchant) and black shirt, introduced himself and Ron, in short-sleeved dark shirt, in Finnish and later, addressing the audience as 'Suomi-ystävät' ('Finnish friends'), proceeded again to list his 'favourite' Finnish things. This time, he says, he loves not just Panda's liquorice and Graavilohi (a Nordic speciality of cured raw salmon in dill, which receives an amusingly mixed response from the audience), but a range of celebrated Finnish artists and designers: Esa-Pekka Salonen, the orchestra conductor, Alvar Aalto, the architect and furniture, glassware and textile designer, and Marimekko, the celebrated design house known for its fabrics for home furnishing and fashion. Furthermore, Ron loves Aki Kaurismäki, the screenwriter and director, who with his director brother Mika Kaurismäki, founded a film production company and the Midnight Sun Film Festival. This engaging saunter through aspects of Finnish culture (relatively unfamiliar to most people in Britain) is enlightening, and it is easy to imagine that they might indeed appeal to the Maels' own tastes and interests. The delirium all this appears to unleash in the Helsinki audience only abates when Ron initiates the lush introductory bars of 'Singing in the Shower'. This tour, which was to go on to Norway, Sweden and Germany in mid-October, was, as fans will know, immortalised in the superb live album Two Hands, One Mouth, Live in Europe (2013), although the different locations of the numbers are not identified, apart from Russell's final speech before the title song, which is clearly addressed to 'all our friends in Manchester'.  (Thank you, Russell.)  In an interview with Ron from Helsinki airport published on 15 October in the Sabotage Times, as well as asserting that he was buying cans of reindeer meat on sale at the airport as souvenirs (well, he would, wouldn't he), he spoke about their movie projects, Mai the Psychic Girl and The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman, and a new project, work for which was then about a third of the way through. One can only speculate that this refers to the screenplay for the movie Annette, directed by French director Leos Carax and released in 2021, unless there is another major project being kept under wraps.

Hippopotamus sighted in Finland

            The subsequent Revenge of Two Hands One Mouth tour did not play in Finland although it did reach Sweden, nor, for some reason, did FFS, the inspired collaboration between Sparks and Franz Ferdinand, perhaps because their hugely successful European tour in 2015 concentrated more on appearances at music festivals.  However, Sparks' fans in Finland will have been delighted to be amongst the first to hear songs from the new album, Hippopotamus, live, at the Flow Festival on 12 August 2017.  Of course, we know that this date is Ron’s birthday and Sparks posted a picture of Ron in front of a shop window containing a Moomin toy, and the words, ‘Happy Birthday Helsinki Boy’. On the 15^th, we were treated to a picture of Russell at the Moomin pop-up exhibition at Stockmann, the famous department store in Helsinki. The Flow Festival, founded in 2004, is a celebrated annual urban music and arts festival that takes place in the grounds of the old Suvilahti Power Plant on a number of stages and features not just Finnish and international musicians, but the visual arts, films, design, talks, food and drink. The line-up of the highly praised new band consisted of Zach Dawes (bass), Tyler Parkford (keyboards), both of whom are from the Los Angeles band Mini Mansions, Evan Weiss (guitar, from Junk), Taylor Locke (guitar) and seasoned Sparks drummer Steve Nistor on drums.  Ron and Russell were there as well, of course! Their outfits were coordinated stripes, a look subsequently adopted by many fans. Ron stood out in an elegant striped jacket and tie, while Russell’s striped top worn with loose cut-off pants over bare legs and black shoes with red laces divided opinion everywhere. They played four songs from Hippopotamus ('What The Hell Is It This Time', 'Hippopotamus', 'Edith Piaf Said It Better Than Me', 'Missionary Position') and nine of their best-known numbers. As elsewhere on this tour, the band’s energy, enthusiasm and enjoyment were evident and infectious. They were greeted and applauded as warmly as ever, but shortly after their set the heavens opened for an epic rainstorm.  Fortunately, as we know, Sparks are waterproof so 'nothing of a liquid nature was gonna mess with them'! Or, as Sparks commented on their ‘Helsinki, kiitos!’ post, thanking fans for their warm welcome, ‘Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth’!   At least Sparks-loving festival goers went away happy.  Although the second Hippopotamus tour of 2018 did go to Scandinavia, playing in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, it did not this time stop over in Finland.

New tour, old haunts

Of course, all the dates for the 2020 tour in support of the widely acclaimed new album A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip had to be postponed because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as did the rearranged dates in May 2021, but Sparks made the brave decision to go ahead with the tours of the US and Europe in April/May 2022. The European leg was extensive, and featured concerts in Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius as well as in Helsinki on 3 May, at the Kulttuuritalo, where they first performed in 1975. Taking advantage of the extra day between gigs, two pre-show photos on the official website featured once again Russell’s liking for the Moomin stories. This time he is pictured standing before a picture of the mischievous Little My on the window of the Moomin store, and with a large model of the cold, lonely Groke, who has clearly found a friend at last (their expressions in this one are remarkably similar!)  An added bonus was a picture of both Russell and Ron on the stage of the Kultturitalo before the show.

This event surely brought back memories for both the boys and anyone who was fortunate enough to be there 47 years previously!  When Russell referred to this during the concert, Ron bent down and put his head in his hands in disbelief, while a fan at the front of the audience enthusiastically waved his original 1975 ticket, to Russell’s delight. The other members of the superb five-piece band (guitarists Evan Weiss and Eli Pearl, newcomer Max Whipple on bass, Steve Nistor on drums and Tyler Parkford on additional keyboards) were suitably impressed! As elsewhere, Finnish fans were surprised and pleased at the set list, which opened with ‘So May We Start’ (from their recent award-winning movie, Annette), and mixed songs from every decade of Sparks’ career, including ‘Wonder Girl’, ‘Tips for Teens’, ‘When Do I Get To Sing My Way’, and some numbers seldom performed live (‘Under the Table With Her’, ‘I Married Myself’, ‘The Shopping Mall Of Love’, and ‘Music That You Can Dance To’). In fact, two of the latter produced moments cherished by fans throughout the tour: Russell gazing lovingly into a hand mirror in ‘I Married Myself’ and Ron’s spoken narrative in ‘Shopping Mall’, especially the intonation and fist pump of the repeated ‘Yeah’. The Encore finished with an emotional rendition of ‘All That’, which, together with the hilarious ‘Lawnmower’ and the operatic ‘Stravinsky’s Only Hit’, were the only numbers from A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip. The audience were apparently a little reserved though very appreciative at first, but were on their feet dancing towards the end of the show.

There was no co-ordinated band colour scheme this time – Russell dazzled in bright yellow pants paired with a short dark woollen jacket accessorized with a Hello Kitty pin, while Ron wore a sombre outfit of a long, collarless coat and loose, wide-legged pants (with no tie!). The rest of the band were dressed in unobtrusive dark casual wear.  At one point, Russell donned a nautical cap (ylioppilaslakki) worn by high school graduates in Finland which is popular in May Day celebrations. In fact, hats were a bit of a feature on this occasion: guitarist Eli Pearl wore his beret, and Steve Nistor on drums also, unusually, had a hat. Another pleaser for this specific crowd was Russell’s speech in Finnish, once gain listing his particular Finnish favourites. His tastes (for salmiakki, cookies, reindeer and Marimekko) have not changed much over the years, it seems. As usual, the audience were impressed and delighted.

New collaboration, old friend

A long and glorious career stretched between these two Kulttuuritalo concerts, and, with the Edgar Wright documentary, The Sparks Brothers (released in summer 2021) and their own musical movie, Annette, chosen as the film to open the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, Sparks were riding higher than ever in the music firmament. Their activities in 2022 included another link with Finland: the release of ‘Your Fandango’, their collaboration with Todd Rundgren (who produced their first album), is accompanied by a stunning video by Finnish media artist Liisa Vääriskoski, in which an elegant woman in an eighteenth-century portrait comes to life and embarks on an Alice in Wonderland-like excursion through fantastical scenarios. Visually gorgeous and characteristically humorous, the video is a surreal collage of images, including various cameos of Ron, Russell and Todd, that brilliantly complements the complexity of the music.

Latte off the menu

            The European part of the 2023 world tour, featuring songs from The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte, did not reach Finland, perhaps in part because of appearance commitments at festivals and because an extensive programme of concerts in the US and, later in the year, Japan and Australia, lay ahead. It seems, at the time of writing, that the 2025 Mad! tour will not play there either, but it is always possible that new dates will be added. Finnish fans certainly hope to get to see their heroes play live again soon!

 

Penny Brown

March 2025

 

Sparks 'Favoured nation' - Japan

  

                                    Sparks ‘Favoured Nation’ – Japan

 

            If Japan is Sparks' favoured nation, as stated in a Newsletter of 2000 (vol. 19, no. 4), the love affair is entirely mutual. It is not an exaggeration to say that they are lionised there, and their live shows attract large, rapturous crowds. Ron and Russell have made numerous visits over the years, and have many friends there, including the members of the band Salon Music, Hitomi Takenaka and Zin Yoshida, with whom Russell has sung on two of their albums. The same Newsletter announces the first live shows to be played in Japan, in January 2001, and features a picture of the geishas from the Kimono My House cover, one giving a V-sign, with the caption 'We've been waiting for you!'.  This iconic album cover from 1974 is an early example of Ron and Russell’s love of all things Japanese: the two women dressed as geishas in Karl Stoecker’s photo were Michi Hirota and Kuniko Okamura from the Japanese Red Buddha Theatre company that was performing in London at the time. Their pose with smeared make-up, one winking at the camera, has been described by Madeline Bocaro as ‘laughing in the face of album art, while at the same time making history as one of its greatest examples’. Michi later attended the Kimono My House performance at the 21x21 Sparks Spectacular in London on 18 May, 2008 in full geisha attire.

         Ron and Russell’s trips to Japan have been documented in many pictures posted on the official website in recent years: posing outside shops, Russell with a Hello Kitty poster, a Tokyo Midtown Halloween picture complete with bats and masks, Ron behind a line of cardboard Japanese figures, and Russell with an array of suitcases at the airport in 2017 in front of a sign saying ‘Welcome to Tokyo 2020’ (‘You’ll be there (in the future) if you don’t do nothing foolish!’). Of course, we realise now that, sadly, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics advertised here were to be postponed because of the world-wide pandemic. Russell also posted photos from his trip to Japan and South Korea over Christmas and New Year 2019. In the same 2000 Newsletter, it is suggested that the Japanese aesthetic seems to parallel that of the Maels, and hence the mutual attraction, an idea that certainly would merit further exploration. Sparks’ love of Japan emerged fully when, after the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, Sparks’ management announced that, because Ron and Russell had been so shocked by events and had many friends in Japan, they wished to help in some small way by donating a month’s income from the Sparks Mart (‘retitled The Shopping Mall of Love) to the Red Cross Tsunami Appeal.

Spreading the word

          The January 1999 Newsletter (vol 18, no.5), entitled 'Sparks Land in Japan. Special Travel Edition,' its cover adorned with Japanese writing, recounts Russell's short-notice visit to Tokyo to spread the word to 'a land as yet deprived of the Sparks experience in the flesh'. In order to remedy this situation and 'spread Sparks’ intelligence over the globe', he had a busy schedule of meetings, interviews, press promotion, and, of course, power shopping and dining. He met with the directors of Flavour of Sound, the company responsible for the distribution of Sparks' records in Japan and was interviewed for Rocking' On magazine by the well-known Japanese pop journalist Hisae Odashima, who surprised him by saying that Sparks were viewed as like that other duo The Carpenters (the first and probably the last time that comparison had been made!). The 1997 album Plagiarism had been widely distributed in Japan with translations of the titles and lyrics into Japanese, and a commentary by Ron. Sparks' newly released back catalogue had also been exported to Japan by Oglio Records and Russell was pleased to find lots of Sparks’ records in the shops. We also learn that his friends from Salon Music filmed him for an hour-long programme on Sparks for Japanese digital T.V., but, unfortunately, I have been unable to find out more about this. Russell was at this time apparently learning Japanese so it is to be hoped that he will be quite fluent by now! There is also an image of him holding a traffic cone with Japanese writing, the caption announcing that this is a limited promotional item for Plagiarism, available in Japan only. Buyers beware!

Early activities

             It is stated in this Newsletter that Ron's and Russell's last visit together was in 1984. They appeared on a television variety show called 'Funky Tomato', broadcast in 1985, which featured a video of 'All You Ever Think About Is Sex' and the boys giving the weather forecast. However, Russell did sing as a special guest on Salon Music's album This Is Salon Music (released 1987) and on a delicious cover version of Soft Cell's hit number 'Say Hello, Wave Goodbye' (track 9, featuring Sparks), on Salon Music's 1988 album O Boy. There are pictures of 'Russell's South East Asia trip' in the early 1987 Sparks Sounds newsletter (vol.13 no.1), which display a typical tongue in cheek view of life: Russell outside a Tokyo deli, with the Head of Sparks Japanese Record Company (a large robot), and (close your eyes now if you are of a nervous disposition), 'searching for a bit of nooky in Tokyo's Shimokitazawa district'. Oh, Russell!

 Mai the Psychic Girl

         Fans of Sparks will be aware of the years Ron and Russell spent in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including some time in Hong Kong, devising a movie musical of the Japanese manga comic Mai the Psychic Girl and attempting to find the funding and support to bring it to the screen. Unfortunately, in the highly competitive, mercurial and cut-throat world of movie making, the venture never came to fruition at that time despite attracting the interest of several eminent directors, notably Tsui Hark and Tim Burton.  Little detail is known about the project itself apart from some information given in interviews, and this is largely about the practical difficulties. Of the two hours or so of music written, only four of the songs are in the public domain and can be found on YouTube.  It is not difficult to see why this particular manga with its dramatic plot and stunning, detailed artwork captured the imagination of Ron and Russell, and why it was, and still is, an attractive proposition for a movie given the continuing interest in super-heroes, monsters, megalomaniac villains and evil international conspiracies.  (See my piece on Mai in the Sparks Newsletter 23:1 for further discussion.).  It is still to be hoped that the Mai project might be revived one day (cue Edgar Wright?), especially now that Sparks have gained international recognition for Annette, the movie musical directed by Leos Carax that opened the Cannes Film Festival in July 2021. It would also be good if the rest of the music written for Mai could be made available for fans to enjoy.

 The first live shows …and a collaboration

             Fast forward, then, to the promised gigs in January 2001. On two nights (January 22 and 24) Sparks played in Quattro Clubs, situated above department stores, in Osaka and Tokyo respectively, and on both occasions, were supported by Salon Music. The concerts celebrated the 2000 album Balls, which had been released and widely distributed in Japan by Flavour Records in a much sought-after black jewel case. Ron and Russell were accompanied by Tammy Glover on drums with a background of balloons that changed colour with the lights. If the set list was the same as elsewhere on the tour, it would have consisted of a mixture of several numbers from Balls, including, of course, ‘Bullet Train’, and earlier favourites. Russell demonstrates once more his love of stripes in a pair of baggy pants with wide horizontal strips and an equally baggy sweater.

         A collaboration had been mooted between Sparks and Japanese band Pizzicato 5, whose leader, Yasuharu Konishi, had apparently met with Russell after the Shepherds Bush gig in September 2000. The result was a song called (appropriately) 'Kimono', which appeared on the Çà et là du Japon album released on 1 January, 2001. The female vocalist Maki Nomiya sings in both Japanese and English, and at one point Russell intervenes to say ‘Hi, this is Sparks. Kimono my house’. In the 2000 Newsletter referred to above, this was described as potentially a very useful collaboration, as Pizzicato 5 were influential taste setters in music, media and fashion circles in Japan.

Hello Young Lovers

             It was to be five years before Sparks' next formal visit to play in Japan, when the 2006 Hello Young Lovers tour arrived in Tokyo (20 October at Shibuya-O-East) and Kyoto (at the P. Hour festival, Kyoto University Seibu Hall, 22 October). This album built on the critical acclaim of the radically innovative Lil' Beethoven (2002), and Sparks had announced in a press release in 2005 that it would be 'elaborate, excessive, adventurous, more extreme, with lots of vocals', with 'much more diversified instrumentation'. The energetic live band consisted of Steve McDonald (bass), Josh Klinghoffer (guitar) and Steven Nistor on drums. At the first show, Sparks were supported by Netsuzo and the intriguingly named Spank Happy, featuring Maki Nomiya, and at the second, by Watts Towers and Spank Happy.  As in London, the show was in two halves, the first featuring the Hello Young Lovers album in its entirety, and the second a Sparks Show of favourites ('This Town', 'Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth', 'Something For The Girl With Everything', 'Tryouts For The Human Race', 'Suburban Homeboy' and some surprises (including, to delighted acclaim, Russell's masterpiece 'Pineapple'!) The stunning visual effects were an outstandingly innovative feature of the Hello Young Lovers tour; the marching soldier boys (Ron and Russell), the cat headed figures, and, perhaps most memorably, Ron fighting with a screen version of himself for 'The Very Next Fight', and playing a constantly shape-shifting virtual organ for 'When I Sit Down To Play The Organ at the Notre Dame Cathedral'.  Both Ron and Russell and the band, who were behind a black mesh curtain, wore dark clothing for these gigs, not to distract from the visuals, although Russell added a red scarf in the second half.

             The DVD of the Hello Young Lovers show at the Kentish Town Forum, London, on 30 September 2006, called, unsurprisingly, Dee Vee Dee, has an interesting extra feature entitled 'Highlights of the Japan tour'. This includes footage of Ron at Tokyo airport and consulting a map, and of a somewhat bewildered Russell in the street. Shibuya is an area of Tokyo known for its youth culture, glamorous stores, restaurants and night life, and one of its most iconic images is the Shibuya ‘scramble crossing’, an extraordinary intersection deemed to be the busiest in the world, with multiple pedestrian crossings in all directions where hundreds of people can cross at the same time. Surrounding the crossings is a dazzling array of huge screens and advertising signs. Russell is also seen in the countryside at what appears to be a temple, and with a small group of elementary school children who proudly declare their names in English (‘who don’t like kids?’). Their journey to Osaka on a bullet train (what else?) is documented, with some grumbles about carrying their own luggage ('Did the Beatles have to carry their own bags?', asks Russell) and views of the rapidly passing scenery. We are also shown the boys arriving at a meeting in Tokyo and the signing of records and the Sparks Guide Book (discussed below) at Tower Records in Osaka. Finally, there are brief glimpses of the show, which clearly played to a packed audience.

 A Sparks Guide Book

             The year 2006 was an extremely productive one for Sparks in terms of promotion, as it also saw the publication of a Sparks Guide Book (1971-2006) edited by Yuichi Kishino. Containing a variety of material - essays, cartoons, games, photos, discography - with text in Japanese and English, this book has recently been made available again through the Sparks website. Although occasionally frustrating for non-Japanese-speaking fans, the translated essays and interviews, including Ron and Russell interviewing each other (in English, of course!), contain a number of interesting moments. For example, the Japanese translations of their song titles are sometimes a little strange: 'Angst In My Pants', was allegedly translated roughly as 'Elephant's Dilemma' (although this may be one of Ron's legendary deadpan jokes). The extended interview by Ayesha Keshani and Yuichi Kishino draws out many useful insights about the process of writing and recording. Ron and Russell speak eloquently and honestly of their belief that there is strength in the very ambiguity of where they fit in the musical scene just as there is depth in the ambiguity of some of the lyrics; that they tend to see things cinematically and their songs as three to four minute movies without the visuals; that they strive always for freshness and new forms, including an ambitious stage musical; that they dislike the musical and lyrical predictability of current pop music, preferring unexpected juxtapositions and 'quick cuts'. The last lengthy piece, again by Ayesha Keshani, 'Drama Without Equal...In Its Strange Intensity', is clearly the work of a super-fan, coining the term 'Sparksjoy' for the 'greatest pop band the world has ever seen' and focussing on their self-presentation, citing Sparks' strength in their 'polarity, unity and impeccable self-parody'.  One might add constant self-reinvention and sheer genius to this, of course. Also interesting is an A-Z of people name-checked in Sparks' songs, which produces some bizarre juxtapositions: Scarlett O'Hara, Sergei Eisenstein, Shaggy, Sherlock Holmes, for example. The brief comments by Ron are often tongue in cheek if not downright hilarious: for Emmanuel Kant, for example, he writes 'Philosopher, but more a name that gives an adolescent band a chance for a double entendre'.  Indeed.

Introducing Exotic Creatures of the Deep

             Shortly after the mammoth achievement of the 2008 21 x 21 Spectacular in London, Sparks flew to Japan to play at the Fuji Rock festival at the Naeba Ski Resort, Yuzawa, on July 26. This is Japan’s largest outdoor musical event, drawing more than 100,000 fans over three days in a stunning mountain setting about an hour and a half from Tokyo by bullet train. Organised by concert and festival promoters Smash, the festival consists of seven main and several minor stages, with beautiful walks between them. Japanese fans were therefore amongst the first to hear songs from the new album Exotic Creatures of the Deep.  Sparks' manager Sue Harris has described the atmosphere at this show-stopping performance at the Orange Court Stage: 'You looked out and there were thousands and thousands of young Japanese fans just going crazy'. Thanks to their label and a great promoter, Japan was really 'getting Sparks', she adds. They put on a full show of numbers from Exotic Creatures of the Deep and ten other songs. The band consisted of Steven Nistor on drums, Marcus Blake and Jim Wilson on guitars and Steve McDonald on bass, and the show employed all the projected images seen elsewhere. Videos of both 'Good Morning' and 'Suburban Homeboy' can be seen on YouTube.

             Exotic Creatures returned to Japan in April 2009 with the same line-up, with Sparks playing three shows to 'totally appreciative and freaked-out crowds' as guitarist Jim Wilson recalled. This time a different approach was taken: the first night (April 23) at the Shibuya O-East, Tokyo, was entitled ‘Exotic Kimonos’ and featured Kimono My House in the first half and Exotic Creatures in the second, for the next night (‘Heavenly Creatures’), they performed Number One Song in Heaven and Exotic Creatures, at the same venue, and for the third at the Sun Big Cat Club in Osaka (‘Then and Now’), a mixture of songs from the past and present. As a tribute to the occasion and the locality, six geishas were hired to parade the stage for 'This is the Renaissance'.  The boys do love a kimono or two.

 Fashion favourites

             On that subject, the Maels’ fondness for Japanese clothes and artefacts is evident. Recent images of Russell at home reveal several Japanese iconic ornaments in his house (including a picture of Mai the Psychic Girl and a model of Astro Boy, characters from Japanese manga comics) and both Ron and Russell have spoken of, and demonstrate in their outfits their liking for Japanese fashion. Russell has been captured on camera with a Hello Kitty phone case and for the fortieth anniversary of Kimono My House in 2014, both came on stage wearing kimonos. Of course they did. Russell has said that he prefers the yukata, a casual shorter summer kimono, and at the BBC One Show in 2017 he appeared in what looked like an hakama, loose floor-length pants (like a divided skirt), as worn by the samurai. These were customised in a uniquely Sparks way, however, teamed with a black and white checked jacket, striped sweater and long scarf, and certainly created an interesting effect when he performed!

An idea born in Japan

            A new direction for Sparks began to take shape when in January 2012, Ron and Russell were invited to perform at Tokyo's O-West club as guests at Yuichi Kishino's birthday concert, which Ron described as an informal affair, like playing in someone's living room. They played only a handful of songs ('Propaganda', 'Dick Around', 'Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth', 'This Town', Change', 'Something for the girl with Everything' and 'I Married myself'), and the experience of performing alone without a band apparently gave rise to the concept of a whole stripped back show with just the two of them, with no added instrumentation, backing vocals or special effects. Thus, the wonderful Two Hands One Mouth was born.

             In January 2013, Two Hands One Mouth arrived for shows at the Shibuya Club Quattro in Tokyo (8 January) and at the Umeda Club Quattro in Osaka (9 January) where it played to enthusiastic audiences. After the marvellous Overture, played by Ron alone on stage at his keyboard, wearing a dashing beret, Russell bounded on in a brown suit with cut-off pants and striped socks to sing a lengthy set of twenty numbers from different stages of their career, including of course the standard favourites, a few surprises (the brief 'Wedding of  Jacqueline Kennedy to Russell Mael', 'Under the Table With Her') and excerpts from their 2009 pop opera The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman, for which Ron played Bergman. This range of material was a superb demonstration of 'the essence of Sparks', highlighting the core elements of their work and their uniqueness in an intensely dynamic way.  Ron's and Russell's ability to do more than justice to songs that originally demanded more complex arrangements allowed the listener to focus more directly on Ron's interpretation of the melodies and Russell's energetic delivery of the lyrics, no longer having to doing battle with a ‘wall of sound’. The shows concluded with the exquisite, specially written 'Two Hands, One Mouth', a typical Sparks song with ambiguous lyrics which clearly delighted audiences everywhere. The shows were a triumph; as the video of 'Rhythm Thief' on YouTube reveals, there is no reserve on the part of the audience, their cheers reaching almost manic proportions at the end. This format proved so popular in Japan that Sparks were invited to appear again as a duo at the 2013 Fuji Rock Festival on 26 July, a date that interrupted an unusually lengthy tour of the USA.  For the festival, the set list differed to include 'BC' and 'Angst in My Pants'.  Around this time, a brief video was made of Russell in a karaoke bar in Tokyo, hat clamped on his head and tambourine in hand, singing along to ‘This Town’. He keeps his eyes on the TV screen (fearful, obviously, of forgetting the words!) and nearly falls off his stool striving for the final high note. What one would not give to have been present on that occasion!

A collaboration that certainly worked

             Upon the release of the Two Hands One Mouth Live In Europe album in March 2013, Sparks suggested that this would most likely be followed by a move in some new and, hopefully, surprising direction. Their next venture succeeded on both counts: the collaboration with Franz Ferdinand that produced the super group FFS, a superb album and hugely successfully live shows. The formula for the live shows was a winner: a combination of new songs from the FFS album and covers of songs by both groups that produced intriguing new versions. Russell and Alex Kapranos shared vocals on all the numbers with Ron on keyboard as usual, backed by members of Franz Ferdinand: Nick McCarthy (guitar), Bob Hardy (bass), and Paul Thomson (drums). A highlight was ‘Collaborations Don’t Work’, which paradoxically demonstrated that on this occasion they definitely did. One of the many festivals played was the Hostess Club All Nighter on 15 August, 2015 at the Summer Sonic festival, in Chiba, Japan. The only concession to eccentric stage gear for this show was Russell’s striped poncho. The next day, the Tokyo Reporter review claimed that FFS were ‘the real highlight of the night’, and that for the first time that night, the event really felt like a festival. It also describes the set as a little like ‘drunken karaoke’ (!), and that ‘Russell could hardly contain his excitement at playing in front of a large crowd of kids’.  There are videos of ‘When Do I Get To Sing My Way’ and ‘Call Girl’, and Franz Ferdinand’s ‘Do You Want To’, on YouTube, but the quality is poor because of the lights and crowd.

 The Hippo years

         And so, we come to Hippopotamus, yet another reincarnation of Sparks as a live band, and the album that took them to number seven in the UK charts, for the first time in forty years. Once again, Sparks demonstrated their ability to produce something fresh, dynamic and incredibly varied both musically and lyrically in terms of wit, emotion and drama, with echoes of elements of different stylistic periods. The hippo came to Tokyo for two nights, 24 and 25 October 2017, at the Kinema Club, Tokyo, where the audience was as enthralled as they had been everywhere else on the tour. The new band, consisting of Zach Dawes on bass, Tyler Parkford on additional keyboards (both from L.A. group Mini Mansions), Evan Weiss and Taylor Locke (guitars) and Steven Nistor on drums, were superb and the coordinated striped outfits were a nice touch. Ron's striking striped jacket and tie contrasted nicely with Russell's striped sweater, Japanese-style loose cut-off pants and bare ankles above formal lace-up shoes. The by now iconic drawing of the hippo was featured on the big drum.  Unlike the Lil' Beethoven, Hello Young Lovers and Exotic Creatures of the Deep shows, the new album was not performed in its entirety, but mixed eight new numbers with earlier classic favourites. 'What The Hell Is It This Time', galvanized audiences everywhere from the start, and the wistful 'Probably Nothing' was followed by 'Missionary Position', 'Hippopotamus', 'Scandinavian Design', 'I Wish You Were Fun', and 'Life With The Macbeths'. It was a treat to find FFS's 'Johnny Delusional' included in the Encore. The audience can be seen in YouTube videos to be revelling in this thrilling blend of rock, synth pop and opera, bouncing up and down and clapping along delightedly. The second Hippopotamus tour also reached Japan in summer 2018, after a further tour of the U.K. and Europe, with two shows, 18 August at Summer Sonic once again and 20 August at ‘Summer Sonic Extra’ at the Shibuya club, Tokyo, with a partially new line-up of Evan Weiss and Eli Pearl (guitars), Patrick Kelly (bass), Alex Casnoff on additional keyboard, and Steven Nistor on drums. A glimpse of Russell addressing the audience in Japanese is featured in a video from this gig. Is there no end to the man’s talents?

After the pandemic

         Because of the cancellation of concerts for two years because of the pandemic, it was to be 2022 before Sparks returned to Japan.  In the meantime, of course, the release of Edgar Wright’s documentary The Sparks Brothers and the acclaimed Sparks’ authored movie musical Annette had significantly increased their international profile. Among pictures posted on this trip were Ron and Russell standing outside Shibuya station, their shows advertised on a huge billboard above the entrance. They played three concerts on this visit, two of which were festivals, to a huge crowd at the Chiba Sonicmania  (19 August) and at Summer Sonic in Osaka (21 August) and a standalone Sparks show on 22 August at Shibuya WWX in Tokyo. along with a partly new band line-up: Evan Weiss and Eli Pearl (guitar), Max Whipple (bass), Steve Nistor (drums) and Tyler Parkford (additional keyboards). While the band wore dark outfits, Russell stood out in bright, yellow trousers, and Ron wore dark wide-legged trousers with a stylish long jacket and a dark polo neck top.  The lengthy set list was as in Europe, although ‘Edith Piaf’ and ‘Get In The Swing’ were omitted. Included were two songs from acclaimed Sparks’ authored movie musical Annette (‘So May We Start’ and ‘We Love Each Other So Much’) and three from A Steady Drip, Drip,Drip: : Stravinsky’s Only Hit’,  ‘Lawnmower’, and, as a final song, the anthemic ‘All That’.  The latter, like ‘May We Start’, has now become an iconic part of a Sparks’ show, and forms a very emotional closure.  Russell sang one chorus with only the audience’s clapping as accompaniment before the band joined in again. Also in the set list were songs from various earlier albums, with some welcome surprises like ‘Tips For Teens’, ‘Under The Table With Her’ and ‘The Shopping Mall Of Love’.  There are always many endearing moments in a Sparks’ performance, and amongst them on this tour were Russell sitting on a stool, Sinatra-style for ‘I Married Myself’, during which he produced a hand mirror and said ‘Hi Baby. How you doin’?’ and sang the rest of the song gazing lovingly at his reflection.  Ron’s dance is always a showstopper, with its slowly built anticipation as he carefully removes and folds his jacket, but his monologue in ‘The Shopping Mall of Love’ also caught the imagination of fans everywhere. At the 22 August show, Ron nearly fell over during this song and grumbled ‘small stages’, to Russ’s surprise. At the end, Ron donned a white tee shirt with Japanese writing on ( I wonder what it said?).  On Sat 20 August, there were promotional activities for the Sparks documentary, The Sparks Brothers and Annette in Tokyo including a Q and A where they answered questions asked in Japanese by journalists.

 Instant Latte

             Making up for lost time, Sparks were on the road again in 2023 on a tour that culminated in the ‘dream come true’ performances at the Royal Albert Hall in London and the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.  Again there were three shows in Japan: 22 July at the duo music Exchange, Tokyo, 24 July at the riverside Nanba Hatch in Osaka, the largest music club in Japan, and 25 July at the Line Cube, Shibuya, Tokyo. They entered, appropriately, to the twinkling notes of ‘Take Me For A Ride’, and the set list consisted of songs from 14 albums, including several songs from the new album: ‘The Girl is Crying In Her Latte’, Nothing Is As Good As They Say It Is’, ‘It Doesn’t Have To Be That Way’, ‘We Go Dancing’ ‘Escalator’, and a short version of ‘Gee That Was Fun’. A elsewhere, the audience was surprised and delighted by the unusual choices, some of which, like ‘Beaver O’Lindy’ and ‘Bon Voyage’ and ‘Music That You Can Dance To’, have rarely featured in concerts. The band line-up was substantially the same as in 2022, though without extra keyboards. The combination of Evan Weiss and Eli Pearl on guitars, Max Whipple on bass and Steven Nistor on drums produced a fantastically exciting sound that has been widely praised by reviewers and fans alike. The energy was palpable and the tightness and precision faultless. The buzzing techno background of some of the songs from the new album translated well to the band format and, if anything, some fans felt that the songs were even more striking in live performance. The band also seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely! 

         The outfits of the band, who remained on a slightly raised platform at the back of the stage, were dark and casual. Ron surprised in a pair of wide grey jogger-type trousers with a light stripe down the sides, paired with a white shirt under a dark jacket, and a tie. Once again, the most colour on stage was Russell’s striking two-tone red and black jacket worn with dark trousers and shirt. Russell’s energy throughout was astonishing, his leaps, twirls and skipping covering the whole width of the stage.  The lighting for the shows was sophisticated and stunning, featuring a background grid of rectangles filled with lights which constantly changed to form different patterns, spelling Sparks during ‘So May We Start’ and ‘Beaver O’Lindy’ letter by letter, as Russell spelled it out. The arrangement was particularly effective during ‘Escalator’ as horizontal rows of lights ran up and down behind the band, as were the spotlights, including the highly dramatic blue spotlight on Ron at his keyboard in ‘Number One Song in Heaven. It is heartwarming to see the warm welcome and huge appreciation of Japanese audiences and the love from Japanese fans on fan sites.

In the future

             In early March 2025, Sparks posted an image from a promotional tour to Japan for the new album, Mad!.  Once again, three concerts in Japan are planned, on 8, 10 and 12 of June in Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo, before they embark on the European leg of the tour, so Japanese fans will be amongst the first to hear songs from Mad! live. The response is sure to be as enthusiastic and appreciative as ever. We know that Ron and Russell will be thrilled to be performing again in some of their favourite venues.

Penny Brown

March 2025