POP MUSIC

Scissor Sisters

The 9:30 club was transformed into a discotheque Sunday as New York's Scissor Sisters took the stage. "D.C., it's time to forget your problems!" cried lead siren Ana Matronic at the start of the 75-minute set.

And she was right: After all, it's difficult to focus on the bad things in life when behind the performers there's a wall-size projection of nude breasts bouncing to the music.

Now this was a show. The '70s-era-dance darlings/cabaret act consistently kept up the energy and vibe of what they deemed a "party" all night, with sparkly costumes, laser lights and even tap-dancing.

Few members of the sold-out audience stood still during such numbers as the fabulously unrecognizable cover of "Comfortably Numb," the Scissor Sisters' first hit, which took Pink Floyd's somber classic and illuminated it with all the colors of a disco ball.

The set included a couple of lovely ballads, and they also proved that they could throw in some rock and even a bit of honky-tonk without losing their dancehall-mark style.

Perhaps the most impressive part of the evening, however, was the encore -- because of the two songs, the Bee Gees-esque "I Don't Feel Like Dancin' " and Elton John-mimicking "Take Your Mama," it actually felt like an encore.

The group left 'em begging for more instead of counting off a few seconds before returning to the stage as is the unfortunate fashion these days.

Even after the band reappeared, Ana and her sidekick in spectacle, the indefatigable singer Jake Shears, held out longer.

True divas; truly divine.

-- Tricia Olszewski