Unplugged Fastball paves “The Way,” followed by The Fixx’s “Wake Up” call after almost a decade

Photos by Andy Argyrakis

The 1980s met the ‘90s through now when new wave/alternative rock groundbreakers The Fixx teamed with fellow alt-rockers Fastball at Turner Hall Ballroom in Milwaukee.

Fastball, who on this particular night was comprised of singer/guitarist Miles Zuniga and vocalist/bassist Tony Scalzo, got the cross-generational crowd warmed up with unplugged editions from the platinum breakthrough, “All The Pain Money Can Buy,” through late 2019’s “The Help Machine.”

Given the stripped down format, the guys were loose and open to the natural flow of the show, opening with “Fire Escape,” sampling several solid latter era albums and eventually making their way around “You’re An Ocean” and even Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s “From The Beginning,” all with tightly woven harmonies and acoustic interplay.

The mega ballad “Out Of My Head” started the sing-a-long, though the power pop punch of “The Way” clearly topped it, while each managed to avoid sounding dated, despite being cut a couple decades ago.

The classic line-up of The Fixx followed in the headlining slot, transcending the days of constant MTV airplay for an all-around sense of timelessness, which could especially be heard in the earlier inclusions “Are We Ourselves?” and “Built For The Future.”

As the 90-minute set progressed, so did the pace of haunting and hypnotic hits such as “Deeper And Deeper,” “One Thing Leads To Another,” “Stand Or Fall,” “Red Skies” and “Saved By Zero.”

There was even an area debut of “Wake Up,” which continues in the group’s sociopolitical call to arms tradition, also marking Cy Curnin and company’s first new single in almost a decade.

The communal “Secret Separation” wound down the evening, officially signaling the end to The Fixx’s absence as of late, plus providing one final example that these English imports are very much in their performing prime and still appreciated in America.

For additional information on The Fixx and Fastball, visit TheFixx.com and FastballTheBand.com.

For a list of upcoming concerts at Turner Hall Ballroom, visit PabstTheaterGroup.com.