Talking Heads defined the post-punk new wave sound in the late-70s and early ‘80s. They mixed a clipped minimalism with a taste for funk, rhythms from the African diaspora, and the possessed-nerd showmanship of frontman David Byrne.
Start Making Sense is a tribute band that honors the Talking Heads from the height of their career, when they morphed into a big band, with added keyboards, percussion and backup singers. Byrne’s style was captivating, with his dance moves that evoked a string puppet getting electric shocks. The frontman of Start Making Sense does a lot of the same signature gestures. Watching David Byrne perform his physics-teacher-gets-his-groove shtick was always weird, but watching someone else perform Byrne’s shtick is maybe even weirder.
Tribute bands trigger all kinds of discussions about authenticity and pop simulacra, but since Byrne is famously at odds with the other members of Talking Heads, superfans might find comfort seeing and hearing a replica of this band.
Start Making Sense performs at the Ballroom at the Outer Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden, on Saturday, Nov. 25, at 9 p.m. $15 to $18. 203-288-6400, theouterspace.net
