Pet Shop Boys: Disco's Electric Jolts

THE PET SHOP BOYS' Neil Tennant is one of the chattiest and most erudite pop stars around. And while it's been 25 years since Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe first met, and 20 years since Pet Shop Boys' debut, "Please," the 52-year-old crooner still talks about his art with youthful enthusiasm. The Pet Shop Boys are known for elaborate stage shows, and Tennant told Express the current tour — which includes a stop at DAR Constitution Hall on Sunday — "is a theatrical production, but it's not going to be as grandiose as in the past. You've got three generations of Neil and Chris in the show," represented by dancers.

"We're old enough now we can have two separate younger generations," Tennant laughed.

The Pet Shop Boys are touring behind "Fundamental," another strong CD of dance-floor-filling electro-pop, but there's a message behind the boogie.

Before Pet Shop Boys started recording the album, Tennant said, "We wrote down a manifesto. We wanted to capture the mood of the world at the moment — the tension, the fear, the fundamentalism, the media — but also do it through satire and humor."

The CD's first single, "I'm With Stupid," is both funny and funky, with Tennant examining the relationship between George W. Bush and Tony Blair. But rather than going straight for the "Bush is dumb" broadside, Tennant examines the question, "Is stupid really stupid/Or a different kind of smart?" considering that the president always seems to get his way.

Plus, the tune works as a twisted love song. "I like where the political and the personal meet," Tennant said.

After 25 years the Pet Shop Boys haven't slowed down a single BPM, and 2006 has been one of the duo's busiest. In addition to "Fundamental," the U.S. release of the duo's two-CD best-of compilation, "PopArt," just came out. Meanwhile, in England, there's a new concert CD, "Concrete," and a documentary, "Life in Pop." There's also a book, "Catalogue," which examines the band's ornate concerts, striking videos and crisply designed record sleeves. "It's this great, big, thick art book," Tennant said dryly adding: "You look at it and think: 'We've produced lots of stuff, haven't we?'"

» DAR Constitution Hall, 1776 D St. NW; Sunday, 8 p.m., $55-$75; 800-551-7328.

This post was written by Express contributor Christopher Porter
Photo courtesy PEROUI/EMI