by LORRAINE CARPENTER

In Fischerspooner's world, irony is as commonplace as Dior threads, vernissage wine and arts-council grants, but don't think they're not passionate about their work. Their show's built-in fuck-ups, thespian frills, intense choreography and stunning design are both hilarious and majestic, and absurd juxtapositions have marked their career from the moment starving artists Warren Fischer and Casey Spooner debuted at a Manhattan Starbucks.

More recently, but still starving, their gig at the inaugural Electroclash festival in New York cost $50,000. By contrast, their album, #1, set them back $80, manufacturing and software aside. With one CD's worth of samples, Fischer built the darkly-hued, sensual electro to back Spooner's spicy lyrics and pricey performances, boost "electroclash" and pack dancefloors from L.A. to Milan to Japan.

More recently still, the act was signed to the U.K.'s Ministry of Sound label (Capitol/EMI in North America) for a reported £2-million, and yet they're neither rich nor famous. They've appeared on Top of the Pops, with and without Kylie Minogue, yet they've only topped the charts in Germany. And they're loving it. Uh-huh, that's right.

This weekend, Montreal will witness the final performance of #1, featuring a rare appearance by Fischerspooner's pet socialites - paparazzi photographer Sandra H. and curator Lady Y-Von - along with their cast of dancers, singers, actors and a guy named Peanuts. Those are the artists, but the Mirror spoke to Spooner about the audience.

Mirror: Is it true that you were pelted with food at a U.K. show last year?

Casey Spooner: It is, it is.

M: What kind of food was it?

CS: At first I thought it was a piece of pizza, but it was actually a prêt-à-manger sandwich. They've got these damn prêt-à-mangers all over London. I was cursing them! But apparently it was a friend of a friend and they considered it a compliment, which I did too, because Royal Festival Hall was the largest venue we'd ever headlined in - it was a very formal symphony space with 2,000 plush velvet seats - and I was terrified that there was gonna be this void, that people were gonna be really restrained and absorb all the energy. But when I started the show and that happened, the audience immediately jumped up, they were interacting with us, so it was positive. Obviously, we didn't set out to have a traditional music career.

Slip 'n' slide

M: Based on the things you've done on stage, like the technical problems -

CS: Oh yeah, the "technical problems," in quotes? I love that.

M: Hee-hee. But I'm sure some people assumed the sandwich guy was a plant.

CS: There actually was a plant in the audience, who was heckling us, and there was a real audience member throwing food, which missed me, by the way. But the mayonnaise was a problem. A cleaning crew came in between songs and swept the sandwiches across the stage, so the entire stage was slippery with mayonnaise residue and the dancers were in tears! We had eight dancers in that show and they were all crying because they were doing incredibly difficult, athletic choreography and they were afraid they were gonna fall down and bust their asses like in fucking Showgirls.

M: Whoa. But do real audience members ever insinuate themselves into the show?

CS: Yeah, it happens at nearly every show, one way or another. I love it when they come up on stage 'cause I like to do question-and-answer interviews.

M: What do you ask them?

CS: How do they think the show's going, what were their favourite parts, will they take their pants off, and then I'll ask the audience, "Do you want this person to take their pants off?" and of course the crowd goes crazy and the person's freaking out 'cause all of a sudden they're up on stage being challenged to do something that makes them feel vulnerable.

M: Do they ever take you up on the challenge?

CS: Oh yeah! One girl came up on stage, took her top off and made out with Peanuts, and I was insinuating I would make out with her but I just couldn't do it 'cause she had really bad breath, so I tossed her back into the crowd. She was also being abusive to one of the performers, and when someone's doing something like that, they just desperately want attention, so I love to give it to them, and usually they get so much attention that they don't want it anymore. It's all a big, exciting mind game. Performing live just makes me do crazy things.

With Playgroup, Colder, Blackstrobe, Tiga and Drama Society at Metropolis on Saturday, Oct. 25, 9pm, $45

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