When the Stooges reunited for a handful of live dates in the summer of 2003, fans wondered if this was only a brief fling, or something a bit more substantial. To the delight of fans,
Iggy and the Ashetons decided to take it to the stage throughout the world -- playing subsequent shows over the next year in Europe and Japan. 2005's
Telluric Chaos chronicles a Stooges show from early 2004 in Japan (as with all the shows from this period,
Iggy and the Ashetons are joined by former
Minutemen bassist
Mike Watt and
Fun House sax blower Steve MacKay). Anyone lucky enough to catch the group around this time can attest that the group never sounded better, and
Iggy never screamed/performed as well as here, especially on such standouts as "1970," "TV Eye," and two readings of "I Wanna Be Your Dog." Except for only a handful of songs, almost all the tracks from both of the Stooges' classic releases, 1969's
Stooges and 1970's aforementioned
Fun House are represented, as well as a few of the "Stooges tracks" from
Iggy's 2003 solo outing
Skull Ring. Additionally, you get a brand-new/previously unreleased Stooges tune, "Idea of Fun," as well. Full of energy and boasting very good sonics,
Telluric Chaos is easily one of the best Stooges live albums to ever surface. ~ Greg Prato