Remember that obnoxious little half-relative you used to run into at extended family gatherings?
You know, that rather unsavory little cousin whose contemptuous sneer and steely eyes were, though threatening, still vaguely intriguing, perhaps for the expertise in mischief they seemed to promise.Now, imagine him all grown up with his own rock 'n' roll band and maybe you get the idea behind John Lydon and Public Image Ltd.
This is, of course, none other than the inimitable Johnny Rotten who, as lead singer for the outrageous Sex Pistols, inspired a new generation of musicians and shook up an industry grown fat and lazy with success.
What matters today is that the man who now goes by John Lydon still has a thing or two to say and sing. And if Tuesday's delirious reception at the Fairpark Coliseum is any indication, there are plenty around who are willing to listen.
But the world has changed, and so has Lydon. PiL's music, although basic and gritty, has a sophistication and strong melodic component that would have been anathema to any self-respecting Sex Pistol fan.
Lydon, too, seems to have evolved. On stage, he still shows some of the anger and contempt of his earlier persona. But much of it seems exaggerated, perhaps verging on self-parody.
In fact, it became clear, after only a few songs, why Lydon prefers small venues. For while Mick Jagger, Pete Townshend and the like have mastered the sort of grand gestures that are intelligible to the 50,000th fan watching the show with high-powered binoculars from the outer darkness of Shea Stadium, Lydon opts for subtlety and shows a remarkable economy of gestures, expressions and movements. The maniacal roll of his eyes, the curling sneer on his lip, his impish prancing around the stage - all would be lost even in an arena the size of the Salt Palace.
Perhaps nothing showed how far Lydon has come than an exchange with an overzealous fan who was spitting on the stage. Now, this was a perfectly acceptable form of homage during the punk heyday. But Lydon would have none of it Tuesday night.
"OK, there's always got to be one, and here he is," Lydon said, pointing at the offending fan. "Keep it to yourself. And anyone who's standing next to him pop him on the head for me. There. Now, don't you feel stupid?"
But PiL is not a one-man show. Indeed, Lydon is ably assisted by John McGeoch on guitar, Allan Dias on bass and Bruce Smith on drums.
Highlights included "Warrior," "Happy," "Disappointed" and "Brave New World" from their newest album, "Nine," along with old hits like "Seattle" and "We Want Your Body."
The opening set from Flesh For Lulu passed like a slow blur in that musical purgatory before PiL took the stage. Still, I hesitate to be too hard on them, because they try hard and they produce basically pretty honest music - little synthesizer, lots of volume. And they do seem polished, well-rehearsed and not entirely derivative.