After 40 Years, Sparks Returns to Ignite Dallas Crowd

Brothers Russell and Ron Mael’s musical stylings have been anything but conventional over the past five decades, and yet they are among music’s most underrated geniuses. Embellishing elements of pop music with operatic vocals, synth-heavy melodies and songs about everything from stubborn erections to manifesting one’s own destiny, Sparks is your favorite band’s favorite band. And at Texas Theatre Wednesday night, a sold-out show, including a who’s who of the North Texas music and art scene, made it apparent that although Sparks has always remained just shy of wide mainstream success, the duo’s authenticity and winning dynamic pump up a crowd like few others can.

Sparks last played in Dallas 40 years ago. Audible throughout the crowd were many longtime Sparks fans recalling that 1983 show to one another. Also among the crowd were kids, a few of whom were enjoying their first ever concert. The band kicked off the set with the appropriate “So May We Start” from the 2021 rock opera Annette starring Adam Driver and featuring the Mael brothers. This led to the title track from their latest album The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte.

Sparks’ unbeaten formula of songwriting is thanks in part to principal songwriter Ron’s use of repetition of words and phrases in unique patterns. The line “my baby’s taking me home” is used 85 times, almost consecutively, in the song of the same name, and yet it’s truly one of the band’s best tracks and drew a massive crowd reaction.

Throughout the night, Russell skipped, pranced and danced around the stage like the showman he has always been known for. Juxtaposed to that, Ron maintained his po-faced, stoic demeanor while sitting almost completely still behind his keyboard. Few moments saw Ron break character into a smirk, and at one point during the song “The Number One Song in Heaven” he even stood center stage to deliver a comical running man before settling back into his apathetic act.

Another comical moment occurred after the seventh song of the night, “It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way” off their latest album, which included a brief, sentimental introduction by Russell. It was musical whiplash as it immediately led into the band’s 2000 techno-ish song “Balls,” which includes the lyric “all you need are balls/to succeed are balls” and garnered laughs and cheers among the audience. It was a prime example of Sparks’ wide lyrical range and humor.

Throughout the show, bright white stage lights were cast on the crowd, and it was obvious that the Mael brothers were interested in seeing who their audience was. Even after 50-plus years of performing, the genuine excitement and awe from the stage was obvious and refreshing to see.

The most energized performance of the night came during the 15th song of the set, “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us” off the 1974 album Kimono My House. This song is a great example of how far ahead of its time Sparks was. It didn’t chart in the U.S., and the band hasn’t charted in the here since the 1990s, but its cult following remains unchanged to this day.

It’s generally agreed that Sparks influenced the eventual subgenres of new wave and synth pop in the ’80s, and continues to influence today with bands such as Of Montreal and Franz Ferdinand. And the recent resurgence of popularity is thanks in part to the 2021 music documentary The Sparks Brothers, directed by Edgar Wright, including interviews from many iconic acts that have drawn influence from Russell and Ron over their musical odyssey, including Beck, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Fred Armison and many others.

The Dallas show, third from the last on their tour, included a two-song encore and a crowd photo from the stage, with Russell donning a cowboy hat and thanking “y’all” for coming out. The concert felt almost like a victory lap for two brothers who have managed to keep their idiosyncratic style and creativity — not to mention ability to continue working amicably with one another — going for 52 years. And after 26 albums, the show was certainly an abbreviation of their longtime, career-spanning catalog of earworms and dance tunes. But it was clear from the theater’s seats that after waiting 40 long years to hear their favorite band, fans would wait another 40 more if they had to.