Crowded House • September 18, 2024 • Red Butte Garden Amphitheater
Reviewed and Photographed by Kevin Rolfe
Outdoor Summer concerts are dwindling down. Temperatures are dropping and concerts are moving back inside for the next several months. It’s been an amazing season this year at Red Butte Garden. We couldn’t end the season without heading to the amphitheater for one last show. Seeing Australian rock band, Crowded House was the perfect way to end our coverage of this year’s series. It was a brisk night. The cool temperature didn’t deter fans. People just bundled up and as the show went along they warmed up.
Crowded House is a band that for some reason I have never seen before. I’ve listened to them over the years and remember when they came on the scene in the mid-eighties. I know they were supposed to play Eccles Theater within the past few years but something happened to where it was cancelled. Crowded House frontman, Neil Finn even eluded to the canceled show and wondered why they hadn’t returned to Utah in so long. Regardless of the reason, we were glad to see them.
The first thing I noticed was how good everyone sounded. Finn’s voice still sounded great. I always find great relief when I hear a vocalist from a band that has been around for a while and has their voice intact. And Neil Finn sounded great. Songs like “Recurring Dream” and “Teenage Summer” set the tone of how good this night was going to be.
Crowded House has become quite the family affair. Both of Neil Finn’s sons are part of the current lineup. Younger son, Elroy opened up the concert and later joined Crowded House on drums. We also heard from Liam Finn on guitar and backing vocals. Liam took lead vocals for “The Howl”. A track on Crowded House 2024 release Gravity Stairs. I thought he sounded great. People in the audience nod to each other their approval.
The audience rose to a new level when they heard the all too familiar intro to Crowded House’s smash hit, “Don’t Dream It’s Over”. I have to say that I was part of the throng that went crazy when this song started. I’m not sure I knew that I would be so excited to hear this song. But I loved hearing it live. The band sounded amazing, and the crowd sang their hearts out.
As the show went on, I noticed this group of really young people near me. They had to be in their early twenties at the oldest. Throughout the concert I noticed them singing every word to every song. Even the new ones! And when a song came on that wasn’t quite as familiar to the majority of the crowd, they knew it. So when “Don’t Dream It’s Over” started, you can imagine how excited they were. They were going crazy. As if they were at a Harry Styles or Taylor Swift concert kind of crazy. It was pretty great.
My favorite song of the night followed right after “Don’t Dream It’s Over”. From the first moment I saw the video on MTV, “Something So Strong” has been one of my favorite songs. To hear it live was long overdue, but worth the wait. The crowd was up and dancing. People were singing along. Especially the young people by me. It’s a great song and was perfectly placed in the setlist. It was the song before the final song of the main set. The main set ended with another classic, Weather In You”.
The crowd, to no surprise, cheered for Crowded House to come back. They obliged and gave Red Butte Garden a much-deserved encore. They opened the encore with the great, what I guess is technically a cover, “I Got You” by Split Enz. The band Neil Finn was in with his brother Tim before Crowded House. It was a song he wrote so I’m not sure if it’s technically a cover but I digress. The audience loved this. I foolishly did not expect this song to be played so I was elated.
Earlier in the show, a group of people put up a huge sign. I was never able to read it and apparently neither was Neil. He went back over and asked what the sign said. Apparently, people were asking Crowded House if their friend/ family member, Kragen, could come up and sing. It was amazing because he was in fact invited up! He joined the band and sang part of “Love This Life”, “Throw Your Arms Around Me”, and a ton of vocals on the final song of the evening, “Better Be Home Soon”. I have to say, Kragen sounded really good! It was impressive that he was able to get up and sing in front of this crowd, in front of this band he loves, and be on pitch. It was an awesome way to close out the show.
After a night light this, I hope Crowded House realizes that anytime they tour The States, they should be stopping in Utah. The show was excellent, and the crowd was clearly ecstatic to have them here. I hope I’ll have the opportunity to see them again. It was a great show and a perfect way for Utah Concert Review to close out their coverage of The Outdoor Concert Series at Red Butte Garden.