PETER MURPHY Live May 1st – Orpheum Theater, Tampa FL

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The weather in Tampa Florida was cold and wet; the rain poured down on Wednesday evening.   It was perfect weather to stay in doors, however,  the people who made the journey out to Ybor City were in for a very nice treat! Peter Murphy was playing at the Orpheum Theater.

For those not familiar with Peter Murphy, he is an actor, musician and songwriter. However in order to get to know Murphy, you would have to backtrack to the year 1978, when a little band formed by the name of Bauhaus, originally called Bauhaus 1919 in regards to the German Art Movement.  The name was shortened after a little while to just Bauhaus.

peter murphy

The band consisted of Peter Murphy (vocals), Daniel Ash (guitar), David J (bass) and brother Kevin Haskins (drums).  The group recorded a five song demo in 1978 which included the song, Bela Lugosi’s Dead.   After the demo they recorded the tunes, Dark Entries, Telegram Sam (T-Rex cover) and Terror Couple Kill Colonel.   The band gained success and did pretty well for themselves; they even got a minor cameo in the movie The Hunger, which starred David Bowie.  During a show in London the Bauhaus disbanded.  After the band broke up they went their separate ways.  Murphy did a solo career and the rest of the group formed Love and Rockets.

The Orpheum was pretty packed and fans were in for a nice surprise as this tour is called, The Mr. Moonlight tour consisting of all Bauhaus Material.   The crowd was a mixture of  people; some goth, some punk, and industrial fans along with the difference in age groups.

peter murphyThe lights went out and the crowd cheered with much anticipation as one by one, the members of the group took the stage.  Murphy looked good and sported a nice colorful flowing shirt; his hair slicked back in typical Peter Murphy Fashion.  Murphy and his band opened the night with King Volcano followed by Kingdoms Coming. The crowd cheered and clapped wanting more so after about three minutes the lights got dim and the group came back out on stage for an encore.   They started playing Burning From The Inside, which is about an eight to nine minute song and kind of a slow number however if you are a Bauhaus fan chances are you loved it. There is nothing like seeing certain songs performed live for the first time and this would be of those songs with a great bass line, nice guitar work and drums that sounded haunting, along with Murphy’s voice sounding eerie in a good way of course. Murphy made reference to David Bowie as they went into Ziggy Stardust, which was their number four hit on the charts. Murphy thanked Tampa and was gone.  Fans made their way out of the venue making stops along the way to the bar for one last drink or to the merchandise booth to get their hands on some memorabilia of this nights magic moments. The shirts were $30 and tour posters were $15; you could even buy an autographed copy of Go Away White, last studio album by Bauhaus for $30.  All in all, everyone had a great time and for the people who have never heard Bauhaus live before they finally got their chance to see Murphy belt out the tunes. The experience was pure magic and for all the fans out there waiting in the wings, “Lift your heart with soaring song and cut down the puppet strings, cull the curtain Raise the Roof” Peter Murphy will be in your town soon.

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