“Chaos and Disorder” — from the 1996 album of the same title, released when Prince’s name was still an unpronounceable symbol — ends with the sound of a heartbeat. During a February 9 show at London’s 2,000-capacity Shepherd’s Bush Empire, it ended with an expansive psych-rock guitar freakout. The Purple One and his 3rdEyeGirl band tore into the song as the closer for the first part of their set, part of their stealth tour of small London-area venues.
The studio “Chaos and Disorder” has some elements that can sound dated — superfluous vinyl scratching, the phrase “new camcorder” — but this Prince-ly crew transcended that through sheer, showman-like instrumental fiyah. Prince also gave a nod to the show’s £10 cost, adding the lyric, “Back in the day, concerts used to cost $10 / Nowadays everywhere I look, it just ain’t allowed.” At this point, even getting the currency wrong is allowed for this man.
Watch the high-quality live video, which shows the line outside and adds a double-vision effect toward the end, above.
