Wtorek 4 Wrz 2007, 19:38

If I didn't completely love Crowded House before, I do now. But first, the supporting acts:

A scruffy, bearded Liam Finn, son of Neil, opened the show solo with guitars, drums, loops, and a theramin. While the boomy great hall did him no justice, his humor, his frenetic energy (oh, was this a vision of Neil in days gone by!), and gorgeous Finn ™ voice carried through. If his uncle and father weren't hitting things out of the ballpark lately, I bet we'd be hearing more about Liam. But as we know, the world is big enough for two Finns, why not three?

Pete Yorn was definitely hampered by the hall. Most of his songs had the same-sounding instrumentation (Minibar on three guitars, bass, drums) and the drummer was slamming on his set for no conceivably good reason. I liked a few songs but it was excruciating to listen because of the excess noise. They also did a cover of the ubiquitous whistling Peter Bjorn and John song, which was much more listenable than the original.

The band came on to an uproar and went into There Goes God from Woodface, of all songs. Hilarious and awesome choice; however, it really separated the audience into fans (me and the man) and radio listeners from the 80s (half the folks in the cheap seats including the people on both sides of us). I don't usually try to remember set lists but I actually tried this time:

- There Goes God
- When You Come
- Say That Again
- Age of Aquarius changed to Capricorn as sung to a front row lady Nick was "courting" from the stage.
- Nobody Wants To, which was a bit on the slow side but still lovely.
- Don't Stop Now
- Distant Sun
- Hole in the River
- Silent House
- Whispers and Moans
- You are the one to make me cry
- Throw Your Arms Around Me
- Don't Dream It's Over/Dream (All I Have To Do) medley with disco ball!
- Pineapple Head
- Locked Out
- Something So Strong

Encore 1:
- Mean to Me
- Sister Madly
- Weather With You

Encore 2:
- Steppenwolf's On The Road Again/A song I didn't know!
- You Sexy Thing/Transit Lounge
- Better Be Home Soon

Almost every song was flawless with a few tempo issues on Nobody Wants To. Neil was in fine voice and hit every high note confidently. Liam and the other band members joined in often on backing vocals and they were right in tune and time with each other.

I know some Crowdies have expressed disappointment that the new band isn't as energetic/funny/quirky as before. I have to say that they're wrong. Yes, the new album is a bit low mood-wise but it's to be expected, given the events that inspired their reunion. During the show, they were very much alive and very much hilarious and quick witted. And it was great to see Nick Seymour out and about, bantering with Neil and ruling the low end. I look forward to hearing the much-rumored album in the works with everyone contributing.

Also, Nick designed the set using much of his artwork from the album. Many of the touches were subtle but very effective and worked well with the setlist. To begin with, the set only had the three-limbed tree from the cover but there were many hidden delights. Other set pieces included two little skyscrapers that rose and fell, and his only slightly garish but fun touch: a disco ball that sent single letters of the new Crowded House font all over the walls during Don't Dream It's Over.

Go see their show if you get a chance. It's a must see.