Of all the bands who regrouped for this years Coachella Festival, Crowded House were perhaps the most surprising. Neil Finn, both as a solo artist and with his brother Tim, had released critically acclaimed material and it seemed, after the death of drummer Paul Hester, an even further proposition. Whatever their reasons for returning, the good news is that it doesn’t sound like either a Finn solo record or a Finn Brothers record. This is, from the opening notes, a Crowded House record through and through.

Crowded House and Neil Finn, I’ll admit now, are one of my all time favourite artists. You might not guess it from my other reviews and as a founder of TLOBF, but there we go. We’re all full of surprises. When I first heard the comeback single Don’t Stop Now I was hooked. I was a little worried initially about them coming back, but this reminded me why I feel in love with them the first time around. The rich vocal harmonies, the upbeat rhythms and guitars and the almost anthemic chorus, which you can imagine being sung in concert venues the world out, all combine to create an instantly memorable tune. Neil Finn has always had a way to craft perfect pop songs. He’s possibly one of the most under-rated singer-songwriters of the 20th Century. Combine the single with songs like She Called Up, Even A Child and Silent House and you have a perfect an introduction to the Crowded House back catalogue as you could hope for. They’re all delivered with the same panache. Never one’s to take the most obvious route with a song, their music was always just left of centre. The buzzing and euphoric Silent House sends shivers down my spine every time I hear it. People look at me oddly as I sing the chorus as I walk down the street.

However, it’s not the perfect comeback. There are a few moments where they move into AOR territory that, quite frankly, disturbs me. The over-polished Say That Again is so smooth that it feels as though you could slip off it at any moment. The musical development that they undertook with Together Alone is sadly lacking. There’s none of the ambition that saw them, not only popular in the charts but also the darlings of the critics. As it is, this a safe and consistent return for the Aussie boys. All we can hope for is that, as they’ve stated their back for good and that this is no one off, they can recapture the previous spirit that saw them craft some of the most under-rated and yet wonderous music I’ve ever heard.
70%

Links
Crowded House [official site] [myspace]