Crowded House @ AdelaideEntertainment Centre(13/11/2007)

Thu 22nd Nov, 2007 in Gig Reviews

Tree backdrops, greyhounds, mass sing-a-longs, Neil Finn confessing his pleasure at being mismatched for Rod Stewart and stamping on microphones. These were but a few of the things that happened during Crowded House at the Entertainment Centre on Tuesday evening.

Touring for the first time in ten years, the anticipation was high for Crowded House in Adelaide after the tickets had sold out in five minutes months earlier. And they certainly delivered.

Supporting act Augie March opened the show, promoting songs from their album Moo, You Bloody Choir . Then enter Crowded House.

Pop-rock veteran Neil Finn walked onto the stage greeted by a wave of cheers, along with fellow band members Nick Seymour, Mark Hart and former Beck drummer Matt Sherrod .

The show opened with Private Universe and then onto songs like Don’t Dream It’s Over , new song Don’t Stop Now and Fall At Your Feet , accompanied by a mass sing-a-long from the audience. For a man in his fifties, Neil Finn’s voice was still as strong as it was twenty years ago and was equally hypnotic.

“This song is for Sharon. This whole show is for Sharon,” said Neil to his wife, launching into the heart-felt Message For My Girl.

The performance was accompanied by magnificent lighting and backdrops, such as trees, fireplaces and a caravan, all slowly being added to throughout the concert to create a simulation of a – œcrowded house’.

Pre-encore, the band walked off and released a dozen greyhounds onto the stage, much to the confusion of the audience. As the dogs were taken backstage, Neil returned to the microphone saying “I don’t know either. But it worked, didn’t it?”

The next few songs included Take the Weather With You , in which Neil and Nick Seymour got experimental and stamped on their microphones for bass, took the guitar video cameras captive and walked around stage with them and played around with the audience.

The band then performed Not the Girl after a fan had thrown a paper plane with it printed inside, following with a much awaited encore of Better Be Home Soon .

Easily one of the best performances I’ve ever been to, the entire show was eleven out of ten in regards to the music, the singing, the interactivity with the audience. And the extra point for the additional use of dogs on stage.