Reunited Blondie Rocks '200 Cigarettes' Party

02/12/1999 4:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Steven Mirkin

(2/12/99, 1 a.m. PST) - To anyone who grew up in the punk era, 200 Cigarettes may seem like a period piece. The movie, which takes place on New Year's Eve 1981, stars some of today's hottest young stars and Courtney Love, who was there the first time around.

To celebrate the movie's release, who better to perform at the party than the reunited Blondie? The most successful band to emerge out of New York's late-'70s CBGB scene, in the early '80s the band was at the height of its popularity. With bands such as No Doubt and Garbage drawing on its legacy, Blondie has returned with No Exit, and "Maria," a single that harks back to new wave. The song just topped the British charts, outselling Blur and the Offspring, and making Blondie the only band to have a U.K. No. 1 single in the '70s, '80s, and '90s (LAUNCH, 2/9).

At the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles, original members Debbie Harry, Chris Stein, Clem Burke, and Jimmy Destri performed an 80-minute set that mingled their past and present, although it was obvious that the invited crowd was there to hear old favorites, such as "Hanging On The Telephone," "Dreaming," and "Call Me." The latter was given a rousing garage-rock arrangement. However, new songs such as ska-inflected "Screaming Skin" and "Boom Boom In the Zoom Zoom Room" got tepid responses. Even the appearance of members of Mobb Deep and the Wu-Tang Clan on the album's title track failed to get the crowd going.

No Exit is due in the U.S. on Feb. 23.

Features on Garbage and the Offspring are available now on LAUNCH.com. Look for an upcoming Blondie feature and full Blondie concert review soon.

-- Steven Mirkin, Los Angeles

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