POP MUSIC REVIEW : COHESION MARKS THE FURS’ FORUM SET

The standard line on the Psychedelic Furs is that the band started its career artsy, forbidding and hip, and over the course of five albums turned more pop, more commercial, more popular--and, say some early devotees, worse.

Partly, that’s true: The Melrose teens who came to the Forum to screech at the Furs on Wednesday were a far cry from the Anglophile doom ‘n’ gloom fans who frequented the band’s club dates seven years ago.

And true to form, the Forum fans reacted most enthusiastically to the songs written when the band was abandoning its early post-punk dirges for brighter melodies and more beats per minute.

Still, the 90-minute show seemed cohesive. As soon as singer Richard Butler strode through the swirling smoke blanketing the stage, twirled a couple of times, turned up the collar on his fringed leather jacket and began singing in his deadpan monotone, it was clear that this band’s stock in trade is still stylized drama and a dense, formidable murk lightened only occasionally by saxophone and keyboards.

It might be murky arena-rock rather than murky post-punk, but on stage the difference between the two styles seemed slighter than on record. Even with the odd pop tunes such as “Love My Way,” the band for the most part churned out an impressively massive wall of dense hard rock, some of it danceable and some simply moody.

But its very cohesiveness also meant the show lacked much variety, especially since Butler has a limited repertoire of moves and a dramatic but equally limited voice. Still, the show made it clear that whatever the Furs’ detractors claim, the band hasn’t sold out. (Nor, by the way, did the Forum.)

Also appearing was Andy Taylor, the former Duran Duran and Power Station guitarist-turned-scruffy hard rocker. With a little help from guest guitarist Steve Jones, Taylor showed he has his power chords down pat; all he needed was some help carrying a tune and writing a couple more memorable songs.

But Taylor didn’t need any help cultivating a brash rock attitude: Though his set had apparently run overtime and the houselights had been turned on, he ignored a couple of impatient stage managers and played a cocky version of T. Rex’s “Get It On (Bang a Gong).”