by Smoochie McBride
Again the doors open to the Crowded House. The “frenz” thought it was the “enz,” but they are celebrating in the midst of a “reunion” album and world tour. The album is called Time On Earth, the first new record from the group in over 14 years. Although drummer Paul Hester, whose life ended tragically, is no longer spending his time on earth, his imprint and spirit live on through these songs from surviving members Neil Finn (vocals, guitar) and Nick Seymour (bass, vocals), along with Mark Hart (guitar, vocals) and drummer Matt Sherrod. The new album, along with key appearances at Live Earth and Coachella, more or less kicked things into overdrive for a triumphant 2007 comeback.
From those tuneful past favorites to the mesmerizing new songs, Neil Finn’s melodies ring true with a familiar renaissance of energy, life’s trials, and lyrics that are hard to shake. Although Finn originally intended to record Time On Earth as a solo album, the singer-songwriter found solace working with Seymour in the aftermath of Hester’s passing. Once the call went out to bring Hart back into the fold, a reunion seemed inevitable. Sherrod appropriately filled in for Hester and Crowded House was back in business.
With the word out that the band was playing a few West coast gigs, we ambled down to San Diego without too much of a fuss and found our way to Shelter Island. A little past eight, we strolled into Humphrey’s By The Bay, a cosmopolitan restaurant/hotel/1,400 seat outdoor concert venue situated on the San Diego Bay. We instantly grabbed a couple of Stone IPAs and took our seats as Liam Finn, Crowded House leader Neil Finn’s son, finished his solo set. A gentle sea breeze washed over the mellow, well-to-do crowd as anticipation for Crowded House intensified.
Hard to believe that over 30 years later, from the ashes of New Zealand’s legendary Split Enz, Crowded House is back with something new and meaningful to say. Time On Earth is ripe with the sort of pop hooks and melodies that always separated Crowded House from their new wave contemporaries. It features an appearance on two tracks from the Smiths’ Johnny Marr, a song co-written with the Dixie Chicks for political prosperity, and an array of musical idioms fortified with essential harmonies and backbeats.
The new record’s cover artwork features child-like drawings and diagrams constructed of newspaper clippings from various New Zealand/Australian periodicals that form buildings trees with bird nests. It was designed by Seymour and integrated as backdrops for the current Crowded House tour stage show. Other than that, there aren’t too many bells and whistles. Crowded House is more about music than flash-in-the-pan theatrics and props. Like their previous album covers, Time On Earth represents an innocence that’s been lost since the 90s, when Crowded House was at the peak of their powers. But watching the band on stage, that innocence returned, if only for a couple of hours.
Tonight, the group had no problem getting the audience excited when they hit the stage at around 8:45 with “World Where You Live” from their 1986 self-titled debut album. From their, it was a virtual cornucopia of hits and sing-alongs — “Whispers And Moans” “Weather With You” (Where’s Tim Finn when you need him?), “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” “Something So Strong” and “Pineapple Head,” among them.
The songs from Time On Earth slipped into the group’s repertoire without too much trouble. “Don’t Stop Now,” “Say That Again” and the Lennonesque “Pour Le Monde” were all well received. Hart proved to be the band’s most versatile instrumentalist, switching from six-string to 12-string to pedal steel, to embellish the band’s tightly woven sound. As if that wasn’t enough, Liam Finn joined his father and the band on stage, and the sound was enriched even further.
Fortunately, it wasn’t all sweet and light. During the encore, Finn acknowledged the curfew by suggesting, “Fuck the curfew!” just to show everyone how rock and roll Crowded House is. Of course, a few well-coiffed rockers like “Fingers Of Love” and “Distant Sun” helped to seal the deal.
In the end, the show was a memorable and enlightening experience for fans and non-fans alike. As they wind down their tour and prepare to record a follow-up next year, we can only hope they leave the door open in the Crowded House from now on. Then we can spend more time with them on earth.
