Tuesday’s (Feb. 2) premiere for the sixth and final season of ABC’s “Lost” was so hotly anticipated that President Obama changed the scheduled date of the State of the Union address to avoid a conflict. The show about survivors of a plane crash on a mysterious island is a cultural phenomenon that has inspired fan activity of all kinds–including the world’s first “recap rock band,” Brooklyn’s Previously On Lost, who write clever pop interpretations of episodes and themes on the show, and released “The Tale of Season Four and the Oceanic Six” in 2008. Surrounded by inflatable palm trees, stuffed animals, and a cardboard cutout of series creator J.J. Abrams’ head, the band performed Tuesday night at Brooklyn’s Bell House for the venue’s “Lost” season premiere screening party.
Escaping the ‘Lost’ Island: Previously On Lost
The event for several hundred “Lost” faithful was sold out far in advance, and featured show-themed drinks (Dharma Beer), “boarding pass” entry tickets and a character-based taco bar (the Kate: poblano tamale; the Hurley: fried chicken and beans). Previously On Lost performed for an hour until 9 p.m., when the premiere episode was projected on a giant screen behind the stage, volume elevated to discourage any errant chatting.
“If the groundhog sees his shadow, I believe we get a seventh season of Lost,” said singer Adam Schatz, noting the coincidental holiday, before striking up “Just Wink,” a riff on the characters’ common cryptic dodging. Other tunes included love song “Be My Constant” (“If you slipped an hit your head my love would still remain the same/In a bit you might be dead from aneurysms in your brain”), and sing-along soul-jam “The Ballad of Sayid Jarrah” (“Siiii-eeed/Your boyish charm and Persian pri-eeed/It makes us feel alright insi-eeed/We understand your hands are ti-eeed, Siii-eeed”).
Previously on Lost at Bell House, “The Ballad of Sayid Jarrah”:
Last year, Previously On Lost was hired by ABC to accompany the season finale of “Lost Untangled,” ABC.com’s action-figure-and-paper reenactment of each episode (video here). During season six, the band will perform every Tuesday night at the Knitting Factory in New York “doing a weekly therapy session the hour before the episode,” says Schatz. Members of the band are also active in other musical projects, including Schatz’s “zombie jazz band called Father Figures” and “a hip-hop group called Berzerkulosis.” As for the fate of Previously On Lost after the series ends? “We’re going to recap the 2010 World Cup.”