The consensus for those at London’s O2 seems to be that Led Zeppelin put on a hell of a show, which for any fan of the band is nice to hear. It isn’t often, though, that a band of Led’s magnitude – and there are few – return and get panned. The show, called a “one off” event, now appears to have set the table for a tour. Rumor spread last week about a Led-at-Bonnaroo-2008 performance, and now word has it they’re thinking NYC’s Madison Square Garden as well. The nostalgia rolls on.

Nostalgia Acts: It’s practically a genre right now. Led followed the lead of The Police, who toured last summer to strong reviews. The money for legendary acts returning after decades apart is simply too much, and thankfully they bring energy to the stage and make it all worthwhile.

But what does it feel like to a fan in the stadium? At Bonnaroo 2007, where The Police began its US tour, the show thrilled us. Yet there’s something different about catching The Police now versus the prime of their day.

It’s the same for any legendary band, really: Led Zeppelin 2007 is different than its 1970’s version. How could it be any other way? The Rolling Stones, though still a great live act, are past their prime. The Police put on a show far superior to any cover band, but it wasn’t what it was twenty-five years ago.

Not that there’s anything wrong with a band regrouping and touring. It’s fantastic, in fact, but the words “Nostalgia Act”…well, you can’t help thinking about them while you’re watching.

It’s a guarantee that more than one fan at O2 felt, “This is great, but there’s something missing.” That “something” is hard to define, but it might be this: Way back when, at a time when Led was the biggest band in rock, they were fresh and new, free of the weight of their place in history. In the years since its prime, the band has become mythical. That’s generally the way it is with greatness: You appreciate it more after it’s gone.

Michael Jordan the Wizard only made you appreciate his 1993 version all the more.

But who the hell cares? It’s still Led Zeppelin. Why call it a Nostalgia Act?

The tag Nostalgia Act applies to bands that broke up long ago and return for a quickie tour and quicker buck. But how about the bands that never quit? The Grateful Dead played until its heart and soul literally died. It’s hard to say, exactly, when Aerosmith and U2 retired. And that’s because they didn’t. Widespread Panic seems to tour endlessly, and the boys aren’t getting younger. But you ask diehard fans how it went this summer, and some will tell you it was the best tour yet. The reviews will likely be the same next year. No one looks at their graying mugs because the band still lives in The Now.

Phish called it quits in a letter by Trey Anastasio to its fans, saying specifically that the group didn’t want to become a Nostalgia Act. Some destroyed Anastasio for it, but many understood what he was driving at, right or wrong: There’s something different about Led Zeppelin 2007 than 1977. It’s been called, in recent weeks, a “trip to the museum,” which may be a bit harsh, but only because it’s a bit true.

That said, who cares? If you had a chance to watch a live performance by Picasso, would you do it? Even if he was lying in a hospital bed, barely able to raise his arms? Of course. And from the reviews of Led’s O2 show, it was far from a hospital bed performance: They raged.

Viva la Nostalgia Act Era.

Photo by Guano