REVIEW: Crowded House may have been touring the world if it wasn't for Covid-19.
Luckily for the band and their fans, New Zealand is one of the only places where live music is still happening.
The first five dates of the band's To The Island nationwide tour had to be rescheduled due to the Covid-19 alert levels being increased.
This meant a nearly sold out crowd at Christchurch Arena were the first to see Crowded House's revamped set on Wednesday night.
Neil Finn fronted the band, alongside his sons Liam Finn on guitar and Elroy Finn on drums.
Nick Seymour stared on bass and Mitchell Froom showed his talents across a variety of instruments.
Liam and Elroy, both celebrated artists in their own right, left the impression that the Finn name would live on in New Zealand music legend for some time yet.
The band got the seated audience singing and, eventually, standing and dancing.
"You're in good voice," Finn said of the crowd's vocal assistance on the night.
“We feel like the luckiest people in the world,” he said.
The band then launched in to a hit-filled set, including classics like Something So Strong, Four Seasons in One Day and crowd favourite, Don't Dream It's Over.
Christchurch-based Reb Fountain was the support act on the night. She and her band members were invited on stage with Crowded House to provide backing vocals for a number of songs, which they had learnt just hours earlier.
As the band left the stage after their set, the crowd was dreaming it wasn't over.
And rousing cheers for an encore meant that it wasn't.
Fans wondering if they would play another one of their smash hits Better Be Home Soon, were not disappointed, with a version as heartfelt as ever, supported by an audience in full voice.
It's safe to say everywhere Crowded House goes, they always take a crowd with them and leave them smiling from ear to ear.
