Thursday, Sept. 18, 2003 | 8:26 a.m.
Fischerspooner has performed to audiences in Paris, Rome, London and Berlin. They have appeared on the BBC's "Top of the Pops" and once received an invitation to participate in a British festival by David Bowie himself.
Yet Friday's Fischerspooner show at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay might be the most significant outing in the New York City electro-pop music and dance troupe's storied five-year history.
According to Fischerspooner co-founder Casey Spooner, a strong showing Friday could land the ensemble a permanent spot among the nightly attractions on the Las Vegas Strip.
"We're actually talking to people about coming to Las Vegas and putting up a permanent show," Spooner said in recent phone interview from a Brooklyn, N.Y., bagel shop.
"That's a big part of what this show is about, sort of showcasing it for all these interested parties."
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for Friday's performance, with Kenna on board as the opening act.
Judging from the snippets of Fischerspooner's live show included on the bonus DVD paired up with the group's debut CD, "#1," the production looks to be a natural fit for the Las Vegas scene.
Spooner is joined onstage nightly by an array of dancers and singers, along with an actor, all of whom dress in outrageous costumes complete with ornate headdresses and face paint.
Though the spectacle is set to original music, Fischerspooner's show is something more akin to a performance art exhibition than a rock concert.
Think of it as Blue Man Group for nightclub hipsters looking for the ultimate live dance experience.
Spooner gushed enthusiastically about his plans for Las Vegas.
"This idea of doing a larger project (in Las Vegas) is completely unbelievable to me, because in terms of what America has contributed to world culture, Las Vegas is one of the most important and significant inventions," Spooner, 30, said.
"To me, historically, geographically, theoretically, critically, artistically, Vegas is the pinnacle right now."
Created in 1998 by Art Institute of Chicago chums Warren Fischer and Spooner, Fischerspooner has earned overwhelming acclaim in the years since.
In 2002 British music magazine NME called the duo "the best thing to happen to music since electricity."
Celebrities have flocked to the ensemble's performances, with Lou Reed, Boy George and David Byrne just a few of the big names spotted in Fischerspooner's crowds.
Spooner said he never envisioned that when he and Fischer created their concept.
"That just sort of happened, but I like it because I feel like the project is all about simultaneously questioning and embracing celebrity," Spooner said.
"Constantly in the project, there's this wavering between what's real and what's artificial, what's authentic and what's false. Everything is sort of nebulous, and that confusion is what makes it interesting to me. So having real celebrities participating just kind of further escalates the confusion."
So why did Spooner and Fischer come up with their idea for such a unique live spectacle? The answer isn't "why" but "Y," as in Y2K.
"When we started working in the late '90s everyone was riddled with this fear of Y2K, that we were headed toward an imminent collapse," Spooner said. "So I wanted to do something celebratory. If I was gonna die and the world was gonna come to an end, I was gonna have a (expletive) blast, you know?"
Captivating as Fischerspooner's live production may be, it likely would not have made so many waves without strong musical accompaniment.
The 13-tracks on "#1" bring together a dazzling collection of electronic textures, updating 1980s techno beats built around memorable hooks. Spooner's vocals are joined by those of female guest vocalist Lizzy Yodder on pieces that are fun and listenable in or out of dancehall settings.
Onstage, however, Spooner does not sing. He unabashedly lip-syncs to the songs, instead concentrating on his duties as the menagerie's ringleader.
"That could evolve (into live vocals), but right now it just feels like we're still trying to show this original idea to as many people as possible," Spooner said. "But I think after this tour we'll start to change it a bit."
Fischer, who stays mainly behind the scenes, won't even be in attendance the Las Vegas show. He will be in Los Angeles, working on the group's second album.
So will Fischer's absence affect the all-important Vegas production?
"No, not at all," Spooner said. "He's completely useless when it comes to the live show. We just leave him behind his computer; that's where he belongs."
The outgoing Spooner, on the other hand, is most comfortable in front of a crowd, doing whatever comes naturally in the moment.
"I'm just being me. I've always been a ham-bone," Spooner said.
At the Bowie-curated "Meltdown Festival" show at London's Royal Festival Hall last year, Spooner's antics took on the stuff of legends, when he pulled one boisterous fan onstage for an unscripted new act in the performance.
"There was this guy up front, and we got into this weird tug-of-war match. He wanted some attention, so I decided to give him a lot of attention," Spooner said.
"I pulled him onstage and I tried to pull his pants off, but he fell to the floor and locked into a fetal position. So all I could do was spin him around and spank the (expletive) out of him and then pick him up like a big brick and throw him back in the crowd. It was fun, and I think he got what he wanted."
Thus far, Spooner has gotten everything he has wanted out of what began as a little more than a pop culture experiment.
Now, he has his sights set on Vegas. But if everything does work out as he hopes on Friday, might it be difficult for Spooner to leave the Big Apple behind for Southern Nevada's neon lights?
"It would be, but it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get to be best friends with Siegfried & Roy and Celine Dion," Spooner said. "I think I'm game for that for a year."
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