Morrissey Will See You in Far Off Places

No panic, but rather excitement on the streets of El Paso as the last of the international showmen made a long awaited return to the southwest stage. Morrissey performed Wednesday night at the El Paso County Coliseum to adoring fans, young and old alike.

The anticipation was palpable in the coliseum as fans were treated to Morrissey's ever present fondness for camp upon the big screen as foreign videos from the 50's and 60's were displayed, culminating in a short silent audition piece for James Dean. An apparent idol of Morrissey's, Dean's handsome face was plastered behind the stage in homage to the late and great.

Kicking off with Smiths gusto in the form of "The Queen is Dead," Moz, the ever consumed performer, belted out his English charm with energy he's maintained for well over 20 years. Backed with a newly revamped band in cleverly suave and identical outfits in the vein of Robert Palmer's classic "Simply Irresistible" video, only unlike Palmer, Morrissey opted for men.

Whipping his microphone cord about as a prop, Morrissey hit a high with "You Have Killed Me," the fast paced single from his most recent album. The song reaches the ranks of favorites such as "Suedehead," "Hairdresser on Fire" and "Jack the Ripper," all notably left off and missed from this particular concert tour.

The El Paso set list was a mix of new and old, combining many of his efforts on recent albums "Ringleader of the Tormentors" and "You are the Quarry," with classic Morrissey songs and songs rehashed from his stint as The Smiths front man. Some argue that when an artist goes solo from their famous band, they should leave the band's songs off their tours, while I argue that Morrissey, being the songwriter and voice of the Smiths has every right to break out with Smiths hits as needed, and fans seemed to agree with cheers when the opening notes of "Girlfriend in a Coma" radiated.