King Khan. Photo by Amanda Mattos

From the first time I heard the music these guys make, whether together as the King Khan and BBQ Show, or in any of their other many incarnations (King Khan & The Shrines, Mark Sultan’s unbelievably good solo album The Sultanic Verses, and so on,), I was in love. The nexus of garage rock, punk, and doo-wop could not be farther up my alley. In a world of electro-this and that, and sad-faced boys and girls singing sweetly, Blacksnake (King Khan’s… real name?) and Mark Sultan bring a refreshing dose of pure, dirty, fun rock ‘n’ roll to the table.

I’d heard tell of previous live shows – wild and raucous, unexpected guests, dancing girls – but hadn’t ever seen them myself. Last night, a tuxedo-clad magician named Leo Chips took the stage of the Rock and Roll Hotel, announcing that unfortunately, the King Khan & BBQ Show wouldn’t be able to make it tonight, but he was there to entertain us a bit. It was a silly bit of stage trickery, but it let the audience know that the Canadian garage rock duo would truly living up to their name. This wouldn’t be just a concert, it would be a show.

After a few minutes of cigarette jokes (apparently long thin brown cigarettes are very popular in this city; this was news to me) and crowd banter, the main act took the stage, with King Khan strapping on his guitar in a skimpy, sparkly green dress and glam wig, and BBQ picking up his bass and taking a seat behind his kick drum in a robe and turban. Leo Chips joined them on stage for the first few (and last few) songs, playing the organ and tambourine. The band’s recorded quite a bit together, so they had plenty of material to work from (including their most recent release, Invisible Girl).