Tribute band lookalikes go cutting edge
LONDON (Reuters) - Going under the knife is not compulsory but being sculpted as the perfect lookalike sure helps in Britain's burgeoning tribute band business.
Get an Elvis nose job, have a Michael Jackson facelift or fit Freddie Mercury false teeth and Psycho Management will lap you up.
Patrick Haveron, inspired to hunt pop chameleons after watching Bjorn Again doing their Abba act at a university gig, now has 237 tribute bands on his books at the management company.
"Number 238 is set to be Razorlike," said Haveron, a leading light in the alternative music universe that boasts its own stars, devoted fans and "Glastonbudget" festival -- a surreal three-day gig in a field in central England.
"If you are a fantastic lookalike, you will get a lot of work," he told Reuters in an interview.
"We have got a guy who has been under the knife four times to keep up with Michael Jackson's visual changes. That is dedication.
"We have got a British Elvis who was promised a contract in Vegas if he had a nose job. He got the nose job but still hasn't got the job. The guy from Killer Queen has got his own set of Freddie Mercury teeth," he said -- though at least those falsies can be removed after the show.
The tribute band business is as fickle and fashion-conscious as the real thing. Chameleons abound.
Gavin Munn, a former actor with a passion for karaoke, switched from being British star Robbie Williams to playing Billie Joe Armstrong in the tribute band Green Dayz.
"You have to stay ahead of the game," Haveron said. "We had a Geri Halliwell lookalike whose career didn't last very long. Then she became Shakira. Now she plays Pink."
He has 15 Abba bands on his books and 10 Queen tribute groups. "Everyone knows the songs. It says what it does on the tin. You will get the greatest hits," he said of the acts who charge anything from 1,000 ($2,000) to 10,000 pounds a night.
Half the fun is making up the name. "Fake That says it all. Pink Fraud is another classic," Haveron said.
Many acts are failed pop stars who never made it on their own.
"The easiest way to play a nice gig with a responsive audience screaming and throwing their knickers at you is to be in a tribute band," Haveron said.
He is spared the outrageous egos of the real stars. Irony works wonders. Fans lap up tribute bands and singers who do not take themselves too seriously.
"We had a George Michael who played in a toilet. MTV hired him as the cloakroom attendant who was dressed in a police outfit for one of their functions. People loved it," Haveron said.
