I have a bet, bookies. I’m sure this article, this little ditty about a concert in the city of burned out lights, will get me more hits than anything I’ve ever written anywhere before. You know why. And sorry fellas. You came to the wrong place.

I have a second bet for the music lovers who made it past the title. If a garage rock band, especially one singing in a non-English tongue (kudos to those resisting the imperial forces, in league with Chewy, Han, and Luke), has the savoir-faire to brand themselves as racy and then puts on a spectacular visual show, it doesn’t really matter if anyone knows the lyrics — or any song differentiation at all, for that matter. In case you’re wondering, that’s a compliment. And in case you’re wondering, I’m talkin’ ‘bout 54 Nude Honeys, the Japanese "dirty rockers" (garage punk) who (dis-)graced  the stage of La Maroquinerie in Paris last night.

It wouldn’t be fair to continue with the Nude Honeys without saying something about the impressive opening act, Rodeo Massacre. As you know, sometimes the opening act is utterly missable. One often finds only about one-quarter of the main act audience even deigning to pull their little ostrich heads out of the sand for it. It’s significant that Rodeo Massacre played to a full house. This is a band to watch. The charismatic lead singer Isabel Lindqwister is a gospel choir bird and a jazz dive diva from Stockholm. The band is a Stockholm-Paris musical commute. It’s not really garage. It’s not blues. It’s a great postmodern pastiche that is clearly influenced by the mods. Lindqwister, a Swede in Paris, has a bluesy soulful voice that recalls Kelly Hogan and The Detroit Cobras in contemporary indie settings. Like the main act that followed her, Linqwister’s stage presence competes with her extraordinary vocals. Her straight blonde bangs into the eyes and mane descending to the derriere give her an unforgettable magnetism as she grooves around the stage as if at mod revival party. Rodeo Massacre was a fantastic prelude to the spectacular 54 Nude Honeys.