By Mason Falor

My expectations for famed ‘80s band Crowded House at Hayden Homes Amphitheater in Bend weren’t high as it was my first time as a listener and my first time at the venue. 

The concert opener, Amble, felt more engaging than Crowded House in both presence and musical composition. Amble is composed of Robbie Cunningham, Oisín McCaffrey and Ross Mc Nerney who hail from Ireland, according to their website. They have an acoustic, almost American country sound when playing. To their credit, they raised the bar quite high. Amble’s songs each had a background story or heartfelt sentiment, which the band members explained to the crowd before each song.

Their overall feel was homey and soft. They had emotion behind their strums and words. Each melody was genre appropriate but unique enough to feel fresh.

Amble’s penultimate song for the evening, “Of Land and Sea,” featured heavy lute usage as well as a solo. The song was about going to an island and just enjoying people; the vibes fit the crowd and each line the band sang carried emotional weight.

Hayden Homes is an outdoor venue with vendors lined up in front of the stage. The layout of the amphitheater was easy to follow with plenty of space to navigate crowds and a litany of bathrooms. I didn’t struggle to find a vacant porta-potty. However, overpriced concert Tees, $70 to be exact, and equally expensive food were about the only options.. The vendors served alcohol at stands, but for the most part the only thing I could see was name brand beverages on sale for double or triple their normal retail price — a concert venue staple.

As for Crowded House, perhaps they are carried by their nostalgia factor, or they satisfy a musical niche. However, I’m neither old enough nor versed enough in ‘80s nostalgia to understand why I overheard a crowd member behind me describe them as “musical genius.”

The band was composed of some original members like Neil Finn and Nick Seymour, plus a new addition in the drummer’s seat, Liam Finn, Neil Finn’s son. They walked together onto the stage after a mild break post Amble’s stage departure and immediately delved into their opening song, which I was unfamiliar with.

Crowd members seemed to enjoy that first song, and quickly fell into vocalized sync when the band played “Teenage Summer” from their new album,  a decent mix of rock and longing vocals — a vibe the rest of the album shares.

Spliced into the concert following “Teenage Summer” were some of their historical hits, including “Fall at Your Feet” and of course “Don’t Dream It’s Over.” Of course, Crowded House fans know these, but what struck me as odd was the lack of audience participation for a major chunk of the songs outside of the hits. At other concerts I found audiences to treat  performances like  karaoke sessions. 

I didn’t seem to be the only one not feeling the vibe of the band .

The band was soon back on track with another new song, “Thirsty,” which was enjoyable. Interestingly, after a few more hits, most of which were slow tempo, Crowded House played the song I’d been waiting for. “Magic Piano” is what I imagined the band to sound like the whole time — psychedelic bass lines, expert guitar usage, rock vocals, and splicing in piano.

I don’t know if my expectations were off or perhaps my research was poor, but I left the venue feeling like it was a good experience, just not everything it was cracked up to be. Crowded House sounds fine live, perhaps better than other bands sound by comparison, but what they don’t match is their own recorded vibes.

I spent the drive from Eugene to the concert in Bend listening to Gravity Stairs on repeat to try and fit in and understand their live vs. recorded differences. Yet, the band only played three of their new songs, all of which are tonally different when played next to their popular ‘80s and ‘90s songs.

I don’t think I was ill-equipped; I just think I needed to temper my expectations a bit. Not every band can sound like they did in 1985. Yet, many bands from the ‘80s have found new success with younger audiences. Despite this, Crowded House seems to be part of the status quo, and has fallen away from modern audiences.