MKNZ Ilirska Bistrica, Friday, 17.05.2002 at 22h:

Melted Men (USA) + Bobby Conn (USA)

BOBBY CONN

Some say that Bobby Conn is the bravest little man in Chicago's cut-throat entertainment industry. He's taken a stand and stuck to his message, ignoring the cruel barbs of cynical hipsters. Bobby believes in something bigger than how "cool" or "with it" he is, a rare quality in today's cluttered music scene. Despite a systematic press blackout, numerous civil suits and several death threats by orthodox Christians, Bobby rolls on tirelessly. He's a new kind of Christian. A new kind of entertainer. And young people are hungry for what he has to say.

He developed the "Continuous Ca$h Flow System" while incarcerated in a federal facility in Maryland, serving out a sentence for mail fraud. In his solitude he was struck by two things: firstly, that his illegal difficulties were due to his focus on earning rather than spending as much money as possible, and more importantly, that he was likely to be the Anti-Christ. Bobby now knew that time was short, the coming Armageddon would destroy humanity at century's end, so he had to reach people quickly. A natural performer and gifted musician in the popular tradition, he structured his "Continuous Ca$h Flow System" seminars around exciting, up-beat pop songs and presented it to typically jaded audiences in the underground rock scene. The response was overwhelming, and grows every show.

While Bobby loves performing for any audience, he especially loves touching young people. The idealism of youth is particularly suited to his message of immediate gratification while rejecting the acquisitive, material demands of capitalist culture. Bobby knows that creating a financial vacuum inside oneself is the best way to fill a spiritual void, and he demonstrates this regularly by distributing thousands of dollars in the form of $20 bills to every audience member. But with his gift comes a desire. A desire to spend. And spend. And spend yet more, creating a glorious Debt that promises, if not salvation, a thrilling high-paced life-style. And when the collective Debt of our generation grows large enough, the entire Pig System of Oppression will be snuffed out like a candle in a hurricane.

Bobby's music reflects his philosophy. He dismantles pop tunes in order to educate the audience, just as he dismantles United States currency by distributing it so freely. He performs the most moving songs of the past twenty-five years blending beautiful melodies and familiar song structures with his radical message. Jimmy Webb, Andrea True, William DeVaughn, Carly Simon, and Serge Gainsbourg are just a few of the great songwriters he pays tribute to. Bobby's own compositions reflect his years of heavy drug abuse in the punk scene, hallucinatory and brutal, yet tempered by his respect for craftmanship and professionalism. On stage he is a beacon of personal magnetism and steady confidence, backed by some of the most talented session musicians available. Yet he often flies into a frenzy, flailing impotently against unseen demons while screaming in mortal terror.

Understandably, many people are threatened by Bobby Conn, and are eager to discredit his ideas and criticize his performances. Generally, the older and wealthier a person is, the more he or she has to lose by adopting the "Continuous Ca$h Flow System", but the opportunities are there for everyone, no matter what their financial status. Fundamentalist Christians, with their moralistic and authoritarian interpretation of Christianity are particularly offended by Bobby's work. Bobby knows Christ to be a free-wheeling mystic revolutionary, who foretold of the destruction of his people's oppressors, not the neo-fascist, sexually repressed moralizing martyr orthodox Christians portray him as. And Bobby debunks the myths of the Resurrection and Immaculate Conception as lies designed to enhance the power of the Church. But even the most hardened evangelical could benefit by allowing Bobby Conn, the likely Anti-Christ, to replace the distorted version of Jesus accepted by most so-called Christians.

Bobby Conn has come a long way from that prison in Maryland. He's been carried by his faith and a magical ability to entertain. Won't you let "the bravest little man" into your heart? He has dedicated his life to his simple message, and wants to share it with YOU! Why? Because he loves you.