LIVE WIRE: It's not just women. Men also Gossip.

(Beth Ditto of Gossip invites the crowd to touch her inappropriately. © 2009 Sylvia McFadden.)

Before we get straight into Gossip, let's not forget about the MEN. It probably would have been a different show entirely if they hadn't warmed up the crowd the way they did with their energetic stage antics and irreverent subject matter. By the time they arrived onstage pushing 10 o'clock, the audience was getting restless and were anxious to dance. Clad in purple leotards and chain mail, MEN's set was full of techno cardboard cutout hands and finger-fucking references, not to mention a song about having sex with your gay friends to make gay babies. The crowd ate it up.

(JD Samson of MEN reliving his teenage days as a real estate mascot. © 2009 Sylvia McFadden.)

After MEN finished up, the crowd started getting really antsy, screaming out Beth Ditto's name and pounding their feet into the Commodore's bouncing floor. A drum beat followed and Beth emerged, strutting her way to centre stage. She's only five-foot-two, but she takes up space and demands attention. She is a force of a woman. I imagine wherever she goes, queer people and fat girls break dates and reschedule appointments just to come see her. She's an icon for fat women and gays alike, and she knows it.

With a voice clear and loud, Beth Ditto is an extremely powerful singer. Gossip's sound is upbeat and reminiscent of the 80s, though still very much rooted in modern dance rock. Guitarist Nathan "Brace Paine" Howdeshell looked like a hipster mad scientist fathered by Weird Al and acted the part too, hopping around enthusiastically with his Gibson Firebird the whole show.

(Beth Ditto, seen shortly after bench pressing her entire audience and snacking on the weak. © 2009 Sylvia McFadden.)

Beth wore a skintight black dress with her hair cut short and dyed bubblegum pink. Her eyes were done up to resemble 60s go-go dancer chic with painted-on swoops, and during one of her songs, she wiped her face with a towel and absolutely none of it came off. I can't think of anything short of car paint that sticks to skin with that kind of resolve, but it looked amazing so I'm not complaining.

In the encore, Beth hopped off the stage onto the dance floor. She's so short, she immediately disappeared amongst the bodies in the crowd, yet her voice still rang out strong and beautiful. After her last song, she demurely asked for help getting back up onstage. It was a quaint, if not a little awkward, end to an entertaining evening.

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Gossip played The Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver, BC on October 22nd, 2009. Special thanks to Timbre Productions.