On June 19, my friends and I entered the intimate confines of Phoenix Arizona’s beautiful Ikeda Theater with a high level of anticipation, because we are all huge fans of the legend we were about to see perform live. And in fact, my passion and admiration for this particular storyteller and his many impressive works runs deep. In the ’80s, this Master of Horror (a title that, while cool, is much too limited for this man — he’s a great filmmaker, period!) proved to be a fixture during my formidable years. I watched his films multiple times with an almost a religious level of devotion. For me, his greatness ranked right alongside Steven Spielberg’s, and he was one of a precious few filmmakers responsible for shaping my young, impressionable mind.
On this blisteringly hot Father’s Day, we drove 450 miles, all in an effort to see this icon on stage. After entering the venue, we slowly sat in our respective seats: Sheldon Demke and Peter Goodge in the fifth row, Cragun Clayburn (who happened to be celebrating his 30th birthday) and I in the front row. To say that we were excited would be a gross understatement. The lights dimmed, and shortly thereafter, out walked John Carpenter — the Master of Horror himself, the man responsible for many of the amazing cinematic treasures of my youth!
Carpenter wasn’t here to wax nostalgic about his many solid movie efforts, however. He was here to lead a band of very capable musicians (his son Cody among them) in a mesmerizing set comprised of selections from many of his most popular film scores, most of which he composed.
A 68-year-old Carpenter — with his long, gray, pony-tailed hair — confidently walked out on stage with his back-up musicians in tow. Decked in all black and furiously chomping away on his chewing gum, he would occasionally bust into a subtle dance move that slightly recalled a less manic Dieter of Sprocket’s fame (a character played by Mike Myers, of all people — How fitting is that?). This legend, a true master storyteller who has always been known for doing things on his own terms, had very little to say. He would ultimately let the music (and clips from his films in the background) do the majority of the talking. Why is it that Carpenter is able to do things his own way? Because, as jovial filmmaker Guillermo del Toro so eloquently put it in a series of affectionate tweets a few weeks back, “John Carpenter doesn’t give a fuck!” Of course, it doesn’t hurt that this legendary storyteller is supremely talented.
As John Carpenter stood there five feet in front of us, he lead his bandmates in the opening number: a rousing rendition of the title theme from “Escape From New York.” It literally sent chills down my spine. Sure, part of that was the stellar sound at the venue, but great sound doesn’t mean squat unless it’s supporting a great track. It was so intoxicating that I fully expected Snake Plissken to walk out on stage. Sadly, Plissken didn’t walk out on stage, but his glorious, eye-patched mug was amply represented in the background clips.
While minimalist in terms of actual crowd interaction, Carpenter — who up until this point had never actually taken his legendary scores on the road before — busted out some of his most memorable stuff, and engaged a transfixed crowd by way of his own unique brand of humor. During the title theme to the 1989 gem “The Fog,” actual fog would eerily seep out on to the stage and into the first few rows of the venue. A few numbers later, as Carpenter and crew simultaneously plucked sunglasses from their pockets and placed them over their eyes, it could only mean one thing: They were about to play “Coming to L.A.,” a wonderfully infectious track from the beloved cult hit “They Live.” It did not disappoint.
Another set highlight came in the form of Carpenter’s lone live cover track. As he and his band launched into “Desolation” from “The Thing” (arguably, the best film of Carpenter’s illustrious career), one could only assume that composer Ennio Morricone would be beaming proudly had he been in attendance at the show.
Of course, any John Carpenter fan is going to have his favorite Carpenter score, and while I have a deep-rooted fondness for all of his stuff, I’ve always been smitten by his work on “Prince of Darkness.” Putting aside the polarizing nature of the movie itself (I don’t give a shit what anyone else says … I love this film!), the score is positively brilliant, incorporating the moody, synth-heavy glory you come to expect from Carpenter, and this particular score is also in perfect keeping with the ominous sense of dread that flows throughout the film.
Beyond that, hearing “Vortex,” “Mystery,” “Distant Dream,” “Wraith,” “Night,” “Virtual Survivor,” and “Purgatory” in a live setting gave me an even greater appreciation for both “Lost Themes” and “Lost Themes II.” I’m not going to lie. Carpenter’s scores were the big draw for me on this particular night, but experiencing these newer tracks was quite the added bonus. Team Carpenter rocked these tunes good and proper.
The evening also saw Carpenter performing the title theme from his ’70s siege thriller “Assault on Precinct 13,” the title track from the underappreciated “In the Mouth of Madness,” and “Pork Chop Express” from the 1986 gem “Big Trouble in Little China.” And there was absolutely no way Carpenter would get through the evening without playing the main theme from his seminal horror film, “Halloween.” He would promptly do so after pledging his undying love to the horror genre. Suffice it to say that as mellow and entranced as the audience was throughout the evening, “Halloween” worked the entire crowd into an absolute frenzy.
The Master of Horror would end the show by pleading with his adoring fans to drive home safely, cautioning that should they drive recklessly, Christine might be out there waiting. With that, Carpenter and crew would close out the evening with “Christine Attacks” from his big screen adaptation of Stephen King’s bestseller, “Christine.”
Did an evening with the great John Carpenter offer up any disappointments? Well … admittedly, at an hour and 15 minutes, I couldn’t help but want more. I really wanted to hear the theme song from “Big Trouble in Little China,” but Carpenter doing lead vocals live was probably a little too much to hope for. It would have been great to hear “End Credit” from “Prince of Darkness,” too. That particular track might be the most effective piece of music in Carpenter’s entire arsenal, and that’s saying a lot. Having said that, there’s that age-old saying: “Always leave them wanting more.” That’s what Carpenter did, and he did it in all the right ways.
This was a truly special night. It was special in a way that’s really difficult for this fanboy to put into the right words; therefore, I’ll simply borrow from one of my favorite movies: John Carpenter came to Phoenix to chew bubble gum and kick ass! He never did run out of gum, and in the end he managed to kick a whole lot of ass.
John Carpenter is only a handful of dates into his tour. If you’re a fan and his tour stops in your city, I highly recommend seeing him. For tour information, click here.
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