Haircut One Hundred is an interesting band. You hear that very-eighties name and, if you're yet to be initiated, your mind immediate goes to the glorious but undeniable silliness of the likes of Kajagoogoo. But then, anyone already ordained into the cult of Nick Heyward should no better. A keen student and fan of post-punk/art-rock collectives like XTC and the Talking Heads, Heyward has been a pop star and teen heartthrob for portions of his life, but he's also a very serious muso type.
The story of Haircut One Hundred is actually relatively short, despite stretching across multiple decades. There was only one album, 1982's Pelican West, before Heyward left to go solo. The rest of the chaps gamely attempted to soldier on, releasing the critically ignored Paint and Paint in '84. The recent reunion has yielded a new album, Boxing the Compass, which dropped in the summer.
Unsurprisingly, they don't play anything from Paint and Paint now that Heyward is back in the ranks. But the beloved debut and the new effort were both well represented at the Teragram Ballroom in Los Angeles.
They opened with new newies: "Someone" and "The Vanishing Point," before pulling out "Nobody's Fool." The set is a solid reminder of this band's jazz and world music influences; there's a undeniably funky groove to Haircut One Hundred that, even at the majority of the audience's vintage age, is impossibly danceable.
The hits were all present and correct. "Love Plus One" and "Fantastic Day" brought the venue to life, though predictably the highlight was the genre-classic "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl."
It's been so long, but it's great to have Haircut One Hundred back.
