At one point in my life, the oh-so-dreamy 'NSYNC topped my list. (Yes, I have no shame in admitting that my high school hormones thought those five dancing boys were the best thing live shows could ever entail.) Then, as I matured, so did my musical tastes. After seeing Arcade Fire three years ago - when they drummed on the ceiling and shook the Larimer Lounge walls so hard that tarps, posters and wood chips fell on them, I was positive that no other show could top that. Soon enough, DeVotckha's shows landed them on my list of my all-time favorites.

Then came along this band that was beyond anything I was used to. This self-proclaimed Gypsy punk group was apparently huge in Russia and was making quite the buzz around the Fox Theatre about two years ago. Everyone was awaiting the appearance of New York-based Gogol Bordello and Ukrainian front man Eugene Hutz who puts cigarettes out on his chest and surfs a bass drum through riled crowds.

Their first Fox performance was well worth the wait. The band painted the room with contagious energy the second they hit the stage. The highlight for me was when the two woman percussion dancers lit the stage with their elaborate costumes and high-pitched, powerful vocals.

And even if the show turned out to be a complete disappointment, there was no way I could despise a band whose motto is "think locally, f*ck globally." You just know they're going to stir things up when they hit your city. You expect the unexpected.

When I saw they were coming to the Boulder Theater on Oct. 29 and 30, I couldn't help but one, want to be a part of the rowdy ruckus of a crowd they bring out, and two, validate my rather bold, continuing statement of "this is one of the best live shows you will ever see." If I was going to keep encouraging people to check out this band, I had to make sure they could mark my words.

Arriving to the Oct. 30 show heightened my anticipation when I joined a room full of costumed fans too eager to put off celebrating Halloween. People slowly poured in as the Brooklyn-based Dub Trio opened.

I was surprised to see a three-person band consisting of only drums, bass and guitar setting the tone for the diverse clan of Gogol Bordello. However, I quickly saw why they've been touring with these three guys. They blast heavy, hard rock while blending Reggae grooves and dub roots - but when it comes down to it, you can't quite tie Dub Trio to any specific genre. All three guys seem completely different - yet they pull it all together - loud and clear (literally).

So why would Gogol Bordello choose to tour with a band that's not quite like the rest? Let's take a glance at Gogol's make-up: Ukrainian lead singer, guitarist, percussionist; Russian violinist; Israeli guitarist; Ethiopian bassist; Russian accordionist; American drummer; an MC from Ecuador; two woman percussion dancers - one Thai-American and the other Chinese Scottish.

And if you'd like to know more about Pamela Racine and Elizabeth Sun, the stunning dancers, check out my recent interview with them following this review. They don't get nearly enough credit - so read up!

For the first six songs, I couldn't stop jumping, twirling, stomping my feet and clapping my hands. In fact, they made me want to break plates out of excitement (they were nowhere to be found), dosie doe with the stranger to my side (I did that a few times) and take repeated swigs from my bottle of vodka (obviously wasn't happening then and there). In other words, Gogol Bordello brings you and everyone around you to life.

It was nuts. I got elbowed in the skull by a red-faced, pointy-chinned devil - but it made me laugh. I almost saw "Marilyn Monroe's" breasts as her date propped her on his shoulders. Two scantily clad Indians' Afro wigs came inches to sticking to my arms as my hair dripped with sweat. One particular couple kept falling on their spilled drinks. I even saw the world's largest carrot (15-feet tall at least) rocking out in the back of the room. My view was blocked by a monstrously tall man - but his dateLittle Red Riding Hood was so adorably into it that I couldn't mind. And after being repeatedly bumped and pushed in the madness of the music, my friend asked, "Are we at a soccer game?" Nope - you're just attending a Gogol Bordello show.

After they performed "Start Wearing Purple," the show progressively tired me out. Maybe I didn't have enough dancing stamina to keep up with those performers and fans - but in my ears, the songs started to repeat themselves. And my hopes of seeing Hutz surf the crowd on a bass drum kept me waiting ... and waiting ... and, welp, nothing. I asked the merch guy if Hutz was going to do it. He laughed, "Ya know - he hasn't been doing it much lately. He's getting old!" Well, that man's stage presence is anything but old to me.

Just because I didn't have the physical energy to keep up with them, doesn't mean I don't adore my Gypsy punks with all my concert going might. Next time you have a chance to see them, be well rested, sport some tennis shoes, (sweat bands are strongly recommended) and, well, be prepared to get crazy. _____________________________________________________________

Now it's time to get to know the women of Gogol Bordello: Pamela Racine and Elizabeth Sun.

BH: I couldn't find any past interviews with just the ladies of Gogol Bordello. Is this your first? If not - who else have you interviewed with?

PR: I know, it's about time, right? Joking aside, it is quite rare, actually, that we do sit down and do interviews. There are the odd quips and snippets that we toss out on the go, but usually Eugene is the one sent to confess under the hot lamp on behalf of the band. He has sort of been our megaphone over the years. But now, there is a bit more diversity in giving interviews. Our audience is varied, as are we, so it's no wonder they like to hear reports from the many angles of the world of Gogol Bordello. Look at us; we are like a zoo of colorful and stripe-y animals. There is a lot of variation in age, gender, character, and life stories from one person to the next. If I were to visit with this collective, I'd want to pet the llamas as well as the piggies, too, metaphorically speaking of course...

BH: Where are you gals from originally and what makes your hometown unique?

PR: My mother is from Thailand, and my father is from Montreal/Vermont. I was born and raised in Vermont. Good ol' Essex Jct. Not a whole lot of bi-racial families there... I had some serious internal identity questions growing up. There was a Vietnamese family down the road, and that was about it for the multi-cultural society... I was raised on Thai cuisine, but my mom had to drive to a different town to the only Asian market, a Korean market, to get the ingredients for our food. In undercover missions, I would exchange an egg roll for a bologna sandwich with my next-door neighbor - a mini cultural exchange.

ES: East Kilbride, a town just outside of Glasgow. People describe it as being "The Polo-Mint City" because it has so many roundabouts (circular intersections) - it was also the first place to have a Mcdonald's drive-thru back in 1992. Amazing.

BH: How did you meet the boys in the band and when/how did you decide to join Gogol Bordello?

PR: Gogol Bordello started for me in Vermont. Eugene and his parents left the Ukraine through a refugee program that placed them in Burlington, VT. In high school, I went to punk shows, and at one of those shows, we eventually met through a mutual friend. We were on the same circuit for years. Recently on tour, an old friend told me she always remembered how he and I would be dancing, everywhere... clubs, living rooms, wherever. Fast forward years later to when we were both in New York, he started the band and asked me to be a part. It was pretty obvious that we had live wiring for performing, and we always had a strong chemistry, so we work together extremely well on stage. My first show was in 1998.

ES: They found me riding bareback on a horse in the middle of the Gobi desert in April of 2003. I had a cowbell and some wilted flowers with me. I guess they decided to hire me there and then.

BH: If you weren't in Gogol Bordello, what would you be doing these days?

PR: I don't know if I like these "what if" questions... I look at it like this: I have always done what I felt strongly about. It's led me to this place in life. So essentially, the question would be, "What if you didn't take risks and follow your guts, and scare yourself and work your a$$ off?" And honestly, I would have to answer that would be a shame and I would probably be somewhere, doing something that does not make me as satisfied or happy as what I do today.

ES: Probably training to be a contortionist

BH: What do you do when you're not performing with the band?

PR: If you saw our schedule, you would see that we tour about 8, 9, 10 months out of the year, every year. What do I do when I'm off? I sit down. Get massaged. Eat 3 square meals a day.

ES: Sleeping a lot; doing yoga; reading and eating an awful lot of Whole Foods produce

BH: Touring with that group must be crazy fun. What is a typical day and night like for you all when you have a show? Any rituals?

PR: Crazy is relative. For me, it's normal to swear like a Russian soldier, normal to drink vodka out of the bottle, normal to boogie down in parking lots or kiss rocks in Barcelona, normal to go to bed at 6 a.m., normal to meet a hundred people in a day, and normal to wake up in a different city or country everyday... It is wonderful, to be honest. And yes, we do have rituals - but they are secret!

ES: Wake up and find coffee immediately. Usually stroll around the town we are in. Find Internet and get connected. Before the show, Pam and I usually do yoga for about an hour to warm up. We take that very seriously as we try to avoid as many injuries as possible.

BH: What are your favorite cities to perform in and why? Any specific restaurants or stores you recommend in particular places?

PR: Barcelona, New Orleans, New York, Chicago, seaside towns in Portugal and Italy... These are places with one thing in common; a sense of human spirit, these people respond to music, and thus we respond very positively to them. Eat Spaghetti Vongole anywhere in Genova.

ES: Barcelona is great. It's very beautiful with elegant architecture and the people really know how to enjoy life! They like to eat well and party hard!

BH: Your outfits are stunning. Where do you get most of your clothes and accessories?

PR: Thank you! Our costumes have sort of a story of their own... Many hands have helped in creating the essence of the costumes. We've had sort of different eras of people who have made them along the way. Always handmade, we've taken pride in creating them. We have to be sure that aside from them looking the part, that they can also withstand the demands of the show. Elizabeth and I are constantly mending and pinning because our clothes must be as much of work horses as she and I are. If it's too flitty - it's out! Right now, we're rocking these sequined pants that broke my home machine when I was sewing them. So they pass the hardcore test!

ES: Pam usually does all the sewing and design, and I try and go out and source items for us too. Eugene, Pam and myself usually collaborate and bounce ideas off each other.

BH: Pam - I've read that you've surfed the crowd on a bass drum with frontman Eugene Hutz. How does one practice something like that? Have there ever been any tragedies? And Elizabeth - have you surfed the crowd on the drum? If not, why not?

PR: We don't practice this. Yes, Eugene and I sort of tag team in this regard. I'll do it, or he will or we will, but not always. It's dependent on certain criteria... There HAS to be a trust between me and the audience, among other things. In Brixton Academy, to an audience of 4,500, I went out on the drum and almost returned to the stage half-naked. There were some rabid man-animals in the maddening-crowd-frame-of-mind that sort of lost their heads and started to rip at my clothes... Obviously, the caution bar raises after having experiences like that.

ES: -There's no way I could play my cymbals and sail on that thing.

BH: I haven't heard the new album Super Taranta yet. Do you agree with Gene when he says it's "pure orgasmo hysteria?"

PR: I'll discuss the album with you when you hear it! Get on with it!

ES: Funny. I still haven't heard it either. If you do before me, can you let me know what YOU think?

BH: With Halloween and all - have you changed up your costumes at all? If so, what have you been sporting?

ES: I might wear my hair down instead of in a bun.

BH: What bands are you obsessed with these days

ES: DUB TRIO.

BH: Tell me your most embarrassing experiences while on tour. Mostmemorable?

ES: Most memorable moment was at a show in San Francisco at Slim's when a girl in a wheelchair was lifted up and crowdsurfed to Eugene while we were performing "Troubled Friends." That was a truly magical moment.

BH: Craziest event you ever played? Were you with the band when they were playing Russian weddings?

PR: The Russian weddings only happened when the band was a trio, sort of a prelude band to the current line-up. I played one wedding. It was in the woods. They weren't Russian, but they were a lovely couple of incredible artistic talent and they threw a celebration with hand held banners and bonfires... That was ages ago. They still come to every New York show. I remember this hilarious story between our old accordion player Sascha, one of the bridesmaids, and a fire bucket, but I don't think it's appropriate to tell!

BH: Thank you so much for your time, ladies. What an awesome opportunity this was. Best of luck to you both!