There is something special about seeing a show at the Hollywood Bowl, especially on a cool fall evening. On this night, the legendary musician and composer Danny Elfman performed an amazing career retrospective show, spanning nearly 50 years of his musical journey. It was an evening that mixed his amazing years with Oingo Boingo, his countless movie scores, and his modern solo work together. There was something for every discerning Elfman fan — and plenty for the uninitiated.
On this night, Elfman had the French-Canadian electronic band Johnny Jewel x Desire opening the show. This was the first time I had ever heard their music or seen them perform. Their music was a mix eccentric electronica, spoken word lyrics, and graphic avantgarde visuals on the screen. Combined with their leather outfits, it was quite a spectacle. While electronic is not quite my jam, they put on a good performance and the crowd really got behind them. I did quite enjoy the mix of the harder edge sounds of the keyboards with the singers very pure pop sounding voice.
Overall, the sound and aesthetics were a great match for Elfman.
As the large ensemble band, including an orchestra (with former Oingo Boingo member guitarist Steve Bartek conducting), multiple drums and percussion, and a typical rock band, gathered onstage, Danny Elfman moved from the shadows with a guitar to the front spot to a loud cheer. Dressed in his typical black sweatpants and baggy black t-shirt, with his shoulder-length red hair, Elfman and company launched into a recent solo track, “Sorry”, from his 2021 album Big Mess. The song is a grinder, with a harder edge, with biting lyrics, and an almost strange combination of later Boingo sounds and his scoring.
Now, while I do love Elfman’s movie scoring and enjoy some of his modern solo work, I am — first and foremost — a huge Oingo Boingo fan! I am one of those Orange County Boingo nerds who got to see them play numerous times at venues of every size here in SoCal back in the 80s and 90s. I still go see the Former Members of Oingo Boingo play every chance I get. So, every time I get to see Elfman, I always look forward to him playing Boingo songs. First up on the night was a classic Boingo tune, but slightly deeper cut, “Insects”. Now, I will say, I have grown more than accustomed to hearing Boingo songs played the way they originally did, so it took me a moment to realize what song was being played, as it had been modernized a touch.
But it was still a great song, and I always love hearing him sing the tunes I love.
The night moved on to the first of many of Elfman’s movie scores, this night starting with the main title from Spider-Man. It’s always a treat at these shows to watch Bartek conduct an untraditional orchestra, many decked out in Converse and diverse outfits. One violinist was wearing leather pants and a leather bustier! But it is also cool to listen and pick up on all of the music Elfman has composed and played and how it all carries so many similar themes.
Next up was another newer solo release from Big Mess, “Native Intelligence”, that he collaborated on with Trent Reznor — a composer and, of course, the genius man behind Nine Inch Nails. When Elfman performs one his newer solo songs, the visuals for them are a bit shocking and bizarre. Most of them involved either gelatinous morphing shapes or body parts. It is a bizarre perfect pairing for the essence of his solo work.
A formula became clear for the night, for the most part, on how the set list would play out: solo song, score, Boingo, with some exceptions. The next song in the set list was one that got a lot of the crowd on its feet dancing and singing along: “Nothing to Fear”, a classic Boingo tune. This time, however, there was no mistaking what song this was. The band played the tune damn close to the original and it was glorious!
Following this was a break in the pattern; they played another score, this time accompanied by video from the movie Pee-wee’s Big Adventure! The band played the song “Breakfast Machine”, in a wonderful homage to the late great Paul Rubens, who worked with Elfman on a couple of projects, including A Nightmare Before Christmas. It was both a fun and playful song, while at the same time being a bit sad for the nostalgia factor.
Remember that formula I thought I had cracked — scratch that.
Next on the list were back-to-back Boingo songs. First up was “Just Another Day”: a darker song lyrically, with an upbeat tune behind it. It’s one of my favorites of all time. The second Boingo song in a row was “Grey Matter”, where Elfman took some modern liberties on the lyrics. It was awesome and, aside from the lyrical changes, it was really true to the original. The two songs had a lot more people on their feet, which was funny to watch some of the reactions from box holders at the Bowl not used to people standing and dancing.
Up next, one of my all-time favorite holiday classics A Nightmare Before Christmas and three classic tunes back-to-back. As the lights dimmed between songs, Elfman dawned Jack Skellington’s trademark coat with tails and began singing “Jack’s Lament” with the movie playing on the screen in the background. Following this was “This is Halloween” and “What’s This?” It was so well done and Elfman’s voice, the actual voice on the songs in the movie, was spot on. It was a small taste of what you see when he puts on his “The Nightmare Before Christmas” live show. If you have never had a chance to see that show, do not miss it the next time he does it! It is simply awesome.
Following the Nightmare mini-show, they played several more songs from his solo work, his scores, and Boingo, including “Mars Attacks”, “Insanity”, “Devil Take Away”, a medley from “Beetlejuice”, the “Simpsons”, and “Only a Lad”. All of these were met with great fanfare by the packed Bowl.
Before the next song, Elfman took some time to chat with the crowd, introduced a few people, and then explained that the next song was a world premiere — being played for the first time ever.
He then moved into “In My Head”.
It was hard to describe the genre perfectly, but I might say it lands somewhere between modern rock meets Alice In Chains. Maybe psychedelic? Don’t quote me on that. By now, the shirtless Elfman, sporting his amazing collection of tattoos, was in his full rock god element. The lighting and visuals for the song approached almost a psychedelic like feel. It was awesome and it was a single that should garner attention from fans. It was good, really good.
The final set included more of the mix of solo, scores, and Boingo tunes, most notably “On the Outside” (a song Elfman said he had not sung in over 30 years), “Ain’t This the Life”, and the crowd favorite, “Dead Man’s Party”. This led to the inevitable short break, crowd chanting for more, and the obligatory encore.
As Elfman emerged for the final encore, the crowd took to their feet and was ready for more. For the final set of the night, Boingo fans were treated to three straight diehard favorites. First up was the fast-driving “Who Do You Want To Be”, but it had a bit more of a metal/punk edge. It was an awesome modern take. Second to last was another one of my favorites — “No One Lives Forever!” This song had the Bowl bouncing and singing loudly. It is always a great live song. Wrapping up the night was “Wild Sex”. It was the perfect way to close out an amazing set and perfect night of music, celebrating one of the greats of music. Elfman only does a few shows each year, do not miss him the next time he plays!
Photography by Randall Michelson/Live Nation-Hewitt Silva
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