The reunion of The Boomtown Rats finally crosses the pond with news that Bob Geldof and Co. will play a pair of U.S. shows late next month in New York City and Boston as part of “The Big Session,” a three-act package that also will feature Irish groups The Stunning and Mundy.
The U.S. dates — Sept. 26 at New York City’s Terminal 5 and Sept. 28 at the Royale in Boston — are on sale now, and precede a full U.K. tour this October and November (see dates below).
Geldof reunited with the Rats last year for the first time since 1986 to perform at the U.K.’s Isle of Wight Festival, and, since then, the group has played sporadically throughout Europe.
The Boomtown Rats, between their formation in 1977 and that ’86 split, scored a number of U.K. hits, including “Banana Republic,” “Like Clockwork,” “Lookin’ After No. 1″ and chart-toppers “Rat Trap” and “I Don’t Like Mondays,” the latter of which remains their only well-known song in the U.S.
Below, check out full tour dates, plus video of the reunited Boomtown Rats performing “I Don’t Like Mondays” at the UK’s Rewind Festival this past weekend.
Boomtown Rats tour dates:
UNITED STATES
Sept. 26: Terminal 5, New York City, NY, USA
Sept. 28: Royale, Boston, MA, USA
UNITED KINGDOM
Sept. 13: Heartlands Festival, Pool, Cornwall, UK
Oct. 11: GB Alt Festival, Skegness, Lincolnshire, UK
Oct. 18: Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton, UK
Oct. 19: 02 Academy, Newcastle, UK
Oct. 20: 02 ABC, Glasgow, UK
Oct. 22: 02 Academy, Sheffield, UK
Oct. 23: 02 Academy, Liverpool, UK
Oct. 25: Ritz, Manchester, UK
Oct. 26: Engine Shed, Lincoln, UK
Oct. 28: Assembly, Leamington Spa, UK
Oct. 29: 02 Academy, Bristol, UK
Oct. 31: Pyramids Centre, Portsmouth, UK
Nov. 1: 02 Academy, Oxford, UK
Nov. 3: The Junction, Cambridge, UK
Nov. 4: 02 Academy, Leicester, UK
Nov. 6: 02 Academy, Bournemouth, UK
Nov. 7: The Forum, London, UK
Nov. 9: Great Hall, Exeter, UK
Video: Boomtown Rats, “I Don’t Like Mondays,” Rewind Festival, UK, 8/17/14
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
TAKE MY MONEY!!!!
Two stateside shows?
“Hope bites the dust . . . “
Why is it that UK audiences can’t shut their gobs and listen to the music rather than insisting on an atonal sing along.
At least they’re making a halfway decent fist of it. Beats that one prat who kept yelling “Johnny Fucking Marr” when he joined R.E.M. onstage a few years ago.
No one’s innocent in this.
I think Kate Bush has the right idea. Ban mobile phones with cameras from venues. Watch the damned concert and treasure the memory!
Tony Wilson on not putting the Boom Town Rats on So It Goes.
“I get a lot of credit for the 42 bands I put on television for the first time – but, to my real credit, only I know the 533 bands I didn’t put on television. I was right about every single fucking one of them, including The Boomtown Rats – fuck off.”
Chicago, lads!
yawn.
They need the fookin’ money.