Review by Val Tapia
Photos by Fred Kuhlman
Promoter: Lucky Man (https://www.luckymanonline.com/ )
Venue: Marquee Theater, Tempe, AZ (https://www.marqueetheatreaz.com/ )
Date: Wednesday July 30th, 2026
New wave stalwarts The Fixx returned to the Marquee Theatre on Wed. July 30 for a performance that, while sonically precise, struggled a bit to recapture the dense, high-voltage energy of their Sept. 2025 stop at the same venue.
It could be rightly argued that the main reason for this shift was due to the night’s structural layout and poor promotional transparency. Last year’s show ran as a general admission, standing room only gig (like MOST of the Marquee shows) that pulled in nearly 1000 people.
Conversely, this particular show drew a noticeably smaller turnout of 650 people, according to Marquee box office staff. This drop-off can be likely attributed to the Marquee’s lack of reserved seating for last year’s show. Which perhaps alienated older factions of the band’s core demographic.
Ironically, the Marquee actually added limited reserved seating for this year’s show, roughly 250 seats. However, they did it quietly and without adequate marketing. Meaning that seating configuration change failed to entice the missing attendees from last year.
In fact, several fans at this year’s show were surprised (if not upset) that there were even reserved seats to begin with. In short order, the blame lies directly on the Marquee and Luckyman Concerts for that disconnect. Simple as that.
To the band’s immense credit though, they refused to treat this show as a predictable legacy jukebox, choosing instead to considerably revamp their set list for their summer 2026 run of shows. The definitive lineup of The Fixx, which still consists of lead vocalist Cy Curnin, guitarist Jamie West-Oram, bassist Dan K. Brown, keyboardist Rupert Greenall and drummer Adam Woods dug a little deeper (pardon the pun) into its extensive catalog to unearth rarely-heard material.
Sure, while it may have irked some casual fans expecting nothing but hit singles (which several were indeed played), it ultimately demonstrated a refreshing degree of artistic integrity and creative curiosity.
Kicking off the paltry 90-minute, 17-song set with Beautiful Friction followed by How Much Is Enough?, the band was in fine form as usual. However, a glaring omission in the set this time was Lost Planes. It was played at last year’s show to roaring applause, and one that definitely caught fans off guard for sure. It’s a song with a Peter Gabriel bent to it and quite frankly, I bet that quietly, he wishes he would have written it. But I digress.
One hit that doesn’t ever get old is Are We Ourselves? from 1984’s Phantoms. Not to mention Driven Out, perhaps the “lost classic” of the band’s singles from the 1980s.
It’s important to say that the revamped set list during Wednesday’s show allowed the band to showcase its enduring musicianship and tight sonic chemistry. Proving that they view their body of work as a living, breathing entity rather than just a mere museum piece.
And yet, because of the lower attendance this time that was scattered across a (limited) newly-seated, poorly communicated floor plan, the energy lacked somewhat throughout the show. It just shows that even a highly commendable artistic pivot within a band’s set list can be undercut by disjointed venue logistics. This was unfortunately one of those times.
Who knows, perhaps The Fixx will consider heading to the Mesa Arts Center the next time they head to the Valley? I have no doubt that most of their fans would be very grateful if they did. But again, I digress.
The final verdict? 3.5 out of five stars.
The FIXX
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2026, All Rights Reserved
Alibi
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2026, All Rights Reserved
