If anyone ever doubted Girl Talk‘s across the board appeal should have been present at the sold out 2,500+ seat Jorgensen’s Auditorium on the campus of the University of Connecticut. It’s easy to think Girl Talk’s popularity is limited to Pitchfork readers, but it was obvious by the cultural cross-section in attendance that his appeal is universal.
When you go to see Girl Talk, you don’t go to see Girl Talk. Gregg Gillis is a handsome man by all accounts, but he is merely the wizard of this Oz. He is the man behind the curtain and you don’t need to pay attention to him, because the real spectacle is all around him. A group of select UConn students were chosen to showcase their best hour and a half of dance moves while Gillis jumped up and down in the middle of them and occasionally yelled inaudible things into the microphone. While the dance party on stage was impressive it was nothing compared to the dance party on the floor. A mash of kids grinding and dancing flooded the floor creating a eyeful to behold. Gillis just merely provided the soundtrack to a thousand or so college kids’ make session.
Not to downplay his contribution, the manic energy Girl Talk presents is only matched by the mash-up skills he possesses. A fairly straight forward chorus of Journey‘s “Don’t Stop Believin'” and Kelly Clarkson‘s “Since U Been Gone” got the biggest responses of the night. The night ended with a bastardized version of “Smash Your Head” with Elton John‘ “Tiny Dancer” being played in earnest to close out the night. A sweaty mess of kids poured out into the frigid New England night. Most ill dressed for the weather that awaited them but all satisfied that they had witness one of the biggest parties the well-known party school had ever seen.
