Yet all that weirdness is understandable (sort of). What rsquo;s impossible to comprehend is how BNL can play ldquo;Wrap Your Arms Around Me rdquo; - a painful and earnest ballad about a violent, cyclical relationship - then parody the OK Go dance complete with Sharks and Jets snapping.
But the band focuses too much on slapstick.
There rsquo;s a reason fans erupted at the first chords of ldquo;Brian Wilson. rdquo; The song may be funny, but it rsquo;s no joke. It was also their best performance of the night.
In that vein came opener Mike Doughty. The former Soul Coughing frontman delivered profoundly simple and sublime pop. Counter balancing his singer/songwriter side, Doughty and band blasted through some hip-hop and free jazz inflected grooves.
BNL, take notice, this is how you mix pop with power, fun with funk. Barenaked Ladies at Agganis Arena, last night.