Photos and review by Chris Besaw
There are many things to do on a warm Thursday evening in June, but I decided to take a drive down to Harrisburg, PA to catch the Lords of Acid at Venue XL Live.
I had never been to venue XL Live before, so I did not know what to expect. However, after gathering up my gear and heading towards the venue, I saw a sea of vinyl, cat suits, colorful club attire, and leather, so I knew I was in the right place.
Immediately after getting my pass and heading to the stage floor, the show kicked off with the opener, DJ Alleykat. She set the tone for the evening, decked out in a vinyl nun costume with devil horns, she fit right in with the evening’s lineup. I enjoyed her blend of progressive house and melodic techno. She played a thirty-minute set that got the early crowd revved up and ready to dance.
Next up was an artist that I was familiar with for her work with the industrial music titan, KMFDM. Lucia Cifarelli took the stage to perform her solo music. She kicked off her set with an upbeat, haunting song called “Girls Like Me” off her 2021 album I am Eye. It may not have been as hard hitting as KMFDM, but I had no problem getting into it. She kept the music coming with “To Be Alive,” “Dark Horse” and ended with the title track off her recent release “No God Here.” I have to say since I had not seen Lucia do her solo music live before, I really enjoyed the change of pace with this stuff and would definitely see her solo again. She is an incredibly talented artist both visually and musically, and I look forward to seeing her again in the future.
At this point, the floor at XL Live had filled in as everyone was eagerly waiting for Little Miss Nasty to take the stage. If you aren’t familiar with Little Miss Nasty, are a hard rock and metal themed burlesque show that started in Las Vegas in 2012. Since then, they have cultivated a strong fan base and have continued to build their act every time I have seen them. The Little Miss Nasty show is unfiltered, unabashed, and powerful. The troupe, led by the incredible Gina Katon (Aka Gina the Eastern Block), brought to the crowd a fiery, empowering, and seductive show with incredible acrobatics, superior choreographed dancing complete with heavy metal, EDM and hard rock music that kept the audience engaged. They know how to work the crowd, that is for sure. A highlight of their set was getting to hear them perform “Buried in Sin” off their album, Weapon of Choice. The women took a bow and left the crowd wanting more.
It was time for the evening’s headliner, the legendary electronica, EDM band, Lords of Acid. I have not seen this band since the mid-90s and was really looking forward to their performance. After a brief intro, Praga Khan followed by Lord Thrall, Galen Waling, and Creighton Emrick took the stage and started things off with “Voodoo-U.” I was curious about how Carla Harvey’s voice was going to mix with their music as I was used to her performing in heavy metal bands, but it melded perfectly with the beats.
Some of my favorite moments from the show were getting to hear some of my favorite tracks live, “Do what You Wanna Do,” “Rough Sex/Take Control,” “ I Sit on Acid” and “Out Comes the Evil” a parody of “Pop Goes the Weasel.” Other highlights included, Carla bringing two superfans onstage where the gentleman proposed to his fiancé in front of all the fans. Thankfully, she said, “yes” and it was clearly a beautiful moment for the two of them. I also must mention the part when Carla was winging a naked blow-up doll above her head prior to unleashing it into the crowd for the song, “Rubber Doll.” Carla did a wonderful job connecting with the fans, which is another reason she is the perfect fit.
After an amazing ninety minutes of upbeat, hard hitting, and liberating music it was time for the band to call it a night. I was not disappointed at all and was glad I had the opportunity to see them live again after so many years. It was a fun and interesting night of music and dancing, and I highly recommend checking out this lineup.
Set list:
• Voodoo-U
• Do What You Wanna Do
• Lover
• Drink My Honey
• Mr. Machoman
• The Power Is Mine Coda
• (A Treatise on the Practical Methods Whereby One Can) Worship the Lords
• Rough Sex / Take Control
• Rubber Doll
• Pussy(Round)
(Carla pulled a bunch of girls from the crowd onstage.)
• I Sit on Acid
• Scrood Bi U
• The Crablouse
• Encore:
• Out Comes the Evil
(Carla Performed half the song in the crowd)
• Get Up. Get High
Thank you please check out my photo highlights from the show.
