Daisann McLane, Rolling Stone, 3/8/79

New Year's eve in New York

There is something perverse about choosing
a Talking Heads concert for your New Year’s
Eve entertainment. David Byrne’s nervous,
ululating vocals and computer-programmer
impressions of life in this modern world
are exactly what you want to forget on
December 31st. Nevertheless, Talking Heads
sold out the 2600-seat Beacon Theater; either
enough people found the irony of the occasion
amusing or they like the band too much to
notice what day it was.

Those who came expecting to delight in Byrne’s
synaptic contortions probably were disappointed;
this was the most sedate performance Talking
Heads have ever presented in New York. When
the group debuted on the city’s New Wave circuit,
Byrne’s eccentric presence was the Heads’ focal
point. His singing and convulsive maneuvering
made up for the band’s musical weaknesses.
But that’s changed: with two albums and three
years of performing under their belt, Talking
Heads have evolved into one of the best musical
units in rock & roll. Byrne hasn’t gotten any
saner--his anxious vibrato still recalls the
cluck of a hen in heat--but the band has gotten
much tighter. Now the Heads’ music does most
of the talking.

At the Beacon, keyboardist/guitarist Jerry
Harrison shared the spotlight with Byrne.
They engaged in extended instrumental interplays
that were at once concise and inspired.
Harrison took several long, playful organ solos,
stretching songs like "Stay Hungry" to twice
their original length. Most of the songs in
the Heads’ repertoire have been similarly
redesigned. "Psycho Killer" now starts out
with a hard, percussive keyboard riff; "Artists
Only" creeps along at half its recorded speed.

No new songs were unveiled at this show.
Indeed, it seems as if Talking Heads are so
fascinated by the possible musical permutations
of their past work that they haven’t felt a
need to invent any new material. Like their
producer, Brian Eno, the Heads appear to be
more intrigued by the process of music than
the finished product. They are rewriting,
not writing, and consequently their performance
was both exhilarating and disappointing.

It figures that Byrne wouldn’t pay much
attention to New Year’s. Some minutes past
the stroke of twelve, he glanced at his watch,
mentioned that it was after midnight and resumed
the performance. Time, like Talking Heads’
material, is a process that continues to unfold.