Pat Benatar preview

Pat Benatar
House Of Blues, Chicago
Friday, July 18, 2008

Everything that once was comes back again and again. Walk into an Express these days and you’ll find leggings, stirrup pants, and wide elastic belts for sale. Someone having an ’80s party? No need to scrounge thrift stores or those old boxes in the basement for an outfit – just head to the local mall. If the clothes are back, you best believe the music is, too. Here at the IE, a copy of freckle-faced Rick Astley’s greatest hits just came in the mail. If that’s not a sign of the impending apocalypse, what is?

Pat Benatar never really left the public consciousness (even if her recent tunes failed to attract attention or airplay), but headlining the House Of Blues annually after appearing at Chicago Ridge’s annual RidgeFest a few summers prior suggests the ’80s revival is working in the pop star’s favor. With the summer release of a two-disc career retrospective, Ultimate Collection (Capitol/EMI), Benatar hopes to attract a new generation of fans.

Chart-topping hits “Heartbreaker,” “I Need A Lover,” “Love Is A Battlefield,” and “We Belong” are like Pop Rocks candy – so sugary, so addictive, and so capable of inducing a stomach ache if consumed too fast or too often. But, if ingested only as a special treat periodically, the sweets and the songs can retain that nostalgic joy.

Just don’t mix with New Coke.

— Janine Schaults

Category: Stage Buzz, Weekly