No fun? Iggy's reunited Stooges play cybercast

03/21/2007 12:29 AM, Reuters
Jonathan Cohen

A frustrated Iggy Pop barked at camera operators and grew tired of answering questions from fans during a "secret show" with his reunited punk band the Stooges in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The nine-song set was taped at a soundstage on the 20th Century Fox lot for Internet broadcast next month on Yahoo! Music. About 300 fans gained access through the band's Web site or through a local radio station.

The show included two breaks where Pop and brothers Ron and Scott Asheton took chairs at the front of the stage to respond to inquiries from the older-skewing hipster audience.

"I'm starting to feel like Paula Abdul sitting here," Pop joked at one point, heavily tanned and bare-chested as usual.

Each break required staging and camera adjustments, and Pop was not keen to see the momentum dissipate during the brief delays. "I'm getting annoyed," he said, chomping at the bit to play the next song.

The set list included: "Loose," "I Wanna Be Your Dog," "T.V. Eye," "No Fun," "1970," "Fun House," "Skull Ring," "Trollin"' and "My Idea of Fun," the last two tracks coming from the band's new album "The Weirdness," its first studio release in more than 30 years.

Pop, 59, dived into the crowd during "I Wanna Be Your Dog," and invited the audience up on stage to dance with him during "No Fun." After the show ended, he casually walked around the floor, thanking people, hugging them or shaking their hands, and signed a few autographs.

The lineup was rounded out by California punk veteran Mike Watt, subbing for late bassist Dave Alexander, and saxophone player Steve MacKay, who could barely be heard above the din.

During question time, Pop was asked about his slim physique. He credited tai chi exercises, "but I'm not spiritual about it." He cryptically added: "I had a benefactor, and when I hit about 45, he just went, 'You're either gonna be like the potato, or the dude."

Guitarist Ron Asheton later said, "We read a lot. We don't take drugs," prompting much laughter from everyone.

Asheton, who said he used to forage for food from a supermarket Dumpster in Los Angeles after the Stooges broke up in 1974, said the reunion was the highlight of his career.

Concurred his drummer brother, "This is the finest moment."

The band will embark on a 10-city U.S. theater tour beginning April 5 in Washington, D.C.

Reuters