Kerry jams with local band, Moby

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) did his best to appeal to younger voters Wednesday night when he joined electronic-music star Moby to put on a fundraising concert for his presidential campaign.

‘John Kerry Unplugged,’ a combination rally and rock concert, was held at the Park Plaza Hotel in the Imperial Ballroom, a lavish room with ornate carpeting, a vaulted ceiling, two balconies and three chandeliers.

Kerry played rhythm guitar with The PopGun Seven, a local reggae-rock band fronted by Kerry staffer Robert Fisk, for Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Tenth Avenue Freezeout.’ Kerry spoke to the crowd for about 10 minutes before the song, and afterward took time to answer questions for broadcast cameras.

Most of Kerry’s comments attacked President George W. Bush’s environmental, economic and diplomatic record. The senator closed his remarks with a vow to continue fighting the president.

‘I intend to run at [Bush] every day of this campaign,’ he said.

He then offered an invitation to the audience: ‘Let’s rock and roll!’

In addition to playing the Springsteen song, The PopGun Seven opened the concert with a five-song set. The band combines reggae, ska, pop, funk, and other musical styles, and has a look as unique as its sound keyboard player Johnny Snapps wore dreadlocks, a jacket and a powder-blue tuxedo shirt, as bass player Jonathan Noel wore a purple shirt with a red spotted ascot. Amongst that lineup, Kerry looked a little out of place, but he seemed comfortable.

Before the senator spoke, Moby played lead guitar for an impromptu cover band featuring members of The PopGun Seven, as well as two musicians Moby brought along guitarist Daron Murphy and vocalist Laura Dawn. The band played four covers: Guns ‘n Roses’ ‘Sweet Child of Mine,’ The Cars’ ‘My Best Friend’s Girl,’ The Standells’ ‘Dirty Water’ and Aerosmith’s ‘Walk this Way.’

Considering his electronic background, Moby provided a surprisingly strong, gritty lead guitar, ripping into solos on a hollow-bodied Gibson. He also provided lead vocals for ‘Walk This Way.’

Between songs, Moby joked with the crowd about the departure from his normal style.

‘I can’t sing to save my life, and I’m a piss-poor DJ,’ Moby joked before the set. ‘The only thing left was to start a cover band.’

The star also cracked jokes about the attackers who assaulted him outside of Paradise Rock Club this spring. His casual, relaxed demeanor provided a contrast to Kerry’s lively, but formal comments.

Moby, who has repeatedly voiced his support for Kerry in his online journal, said he became involved with the concert when he contacted the Kerry campaign and asked if he could help.

Between 600 and 700 Kerry supporters attended the event, which attracted widespread media attention. The attendees, who paid $75 each for tickets, were treated to hot dogs, pretzels, popcorn, crackerjacks and soda.

The crowd consisted of Kerry supporters of diverse ages, many of whom seemed dressed more appropriately for a cocktail party than a rock concert.

Tobe Berkovitz, associate dean of Boston University’s College of Communication, said besides fundraising, last night’s event was held to ‘raise Kerry’s image with younger, hipper voters.’

Berkovitz downplayed the possible effect the event would have on Kerry’s image.

‘It’s not going to win him the nomination,’ he said. ‘It will give him a one-day news blip.’

As of Wednesday night, the Kerry campaign did not have a final count on how much money was raised by the night’s event. According to the Federal Election Commission, Kerry’s campaign had raised $12.7 million as of the end of the last reporting period, which ran until the end of June. That was more than any other Democratic presidential hopeful had raised, including former Vermont governor Howard Dean ($10.2 million), Missouri congressman Dick Gephardt ($9.8 million), and Connecticut senator Joseph Lieberman ($8.2 million).

As of the same period, President Bush had raised $34 million for his re-election bid.