Limp Bizkit returned to Las Vegas this week, co-headlining the Back 2 Basics tour with Korn, despite their ongoing feud with local X-treme Radio. X-treme's banners were all over the Joint, but if you listened to the station in the days leading up to the show, you'd only know of one band on the bill: Korn.
The Sin City tiff is just a microcosm of the controversy Limp front man Fred Durst has stirred up since his band first blew up a few years ago: fights with Eminem and Taproot; alleged affairs with Britney Spears and Halle Berry; the departure of inventive guitarist Wes Borland. Somewhere in there was some music, too, but that's not really the reason to check out the band anymore. At the Joint show, Limp's music was fine. New guitarist Mike Smith is as bland as his name, but he got the job done, and the rest of the band backed Durst admirably. There were some mediocre numbers from the band's new album, Results May Vary, along with hit singles like "My Way," "Break Stuff" and "My Generation" (but, alas, no "Nookie").
The most entertaining moments, however, came from Durst's brash displays of ego. Faced with a potentially hostile audience, he opted for antagonism rather than friendship, dedicating "Head for the Barricade" to "all the pussies that hide behind this" as he flashed his middle finger to the crowd. Although the boos were scattered and there were far more devil horns than middle fingers thrust in the air, Durst later felt the need to reaffirm that he didn't care if the audience hated him.
Better still was Durst's sad effort at a sing-along during his truly terrible cover of The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes." Eventually he had to take the microphone back, since no one in the audience knew the words. Luckily, the band followed the song with an energetic rendition of Nirvana's "You Know You're Right," more to the crowd's taste.
Although the response to Korn's headlining set was more enthusiastic (especially after the excruciating hour-long wait between bands), their straightforward show had nothing on Durst's performance-art bluster. Showcasing tunes from their upcoming album, Take a Look in the Mirror, they played with energy but little fanfare (singer Jonathan Davis spoke only to thank the audience at the end). The new music proved once again that Korn have no new tricks up their sleeves, only variations on the same nu-metal angst, which, admittedly, they invented.
Maybe they ought to take a cue from Fred Durst and start some controversy.