Kanye Surprises Almost Acoustic Christmas Crowd

Posted on Dec 15th 2008 2:59AM by Steve Baltin
Comments

Kanye West has proved repeatedly he knows no fear when it comes to playing live in front of unusual audiences, taking an afternoon slot at Coachella and delivering his notorious Bonnaroo performance in the past.

Well, the night after appearing on 'Saturday Night Live,' West lived up to his daring rep by surprising the very alternative Almost Acoustic Christmas crowd, which included Gwen Stefani, Courtney Love and Jenny Lewis, among others. Sandwiched between Franz Ferdinand and Paramore on a bill that also included the Cure, the Killers, Death Cab for Cutie, Vampire Weekend and Scott Weiland, West did an unannounced 20-minute set.

Backed by a seven-piece band and playing mostly new tunes, as well as 'Homecoming,' West thanked L.A. alternative station KROQ for letting him play and reveled in the standing ovation that greeted him from start to finish. While West, who took the stage without an introduction, electrified the crowd, setting off a slew of cameras, his was not the only highlight of the night.

Previewing songs from their forthcoming album, Franz Ferdinand turned in a raucous, crowd-pleasing performance that ended with a rousing singalong of 'This Fire.' And the Killers also showed themselves to be crowd favorites, getting the audience up from the opening 'Human.' However, for Killers frontman Brandon Flowers, the stars of the night were headliners the Cure. "Without the Cure, we wouldn't be here," Flowers told the audience at one point." So to be playing with them is astonishing."

But leaving little doubt as to who was the biggest star there, even with the likes of Gwen Stefani, Courtney Love, and Jenny Lewis in the audience, West got the cameras flashing almost nonstop during his set.