When I arrived at the Aladdin Theater to see Colin Hay, I was not prepared for the show I ended up getting. My experiences with Hay’s music have been contained mostly to his mellower, acoustic work and his time spent with Men at Work. This show proved to be a lot more rocking than I had anticipated.
Hay is currently touring in support of his forthcoming album, American Sunshine. Partially recorded in Nashville, the album boasts some strong country/bluegrass influences and Hay’s trademark vocals - smooth, rich and a tad bit nasally.
While Hay is still making good music and his performance enjoyable, there was something tedious about the whole thing. Toward the end, people could be seen checking their watches and inching off to the exit. This could have been because of the high pitched screeching coming from a gaggle of drunken women down in front, who were wearing dangerously thin on pretty much everyone’s nerves, but a wandering, jam band style rendition of “Down Under” certainly didn’t help either.
The biggest distraction of the evening though, was Hay’s wife, who sang backup vocals and danced on stage throughout most of the show. Her singing wasn’t too bad, but her dancing could be likened to that of a mentally challenged bird having a seizure. It was hard to focus on Hay’s performance when she was cavorting around stage, making silly faces at him while he played. The distractions and poor excuse for dancing made the show nearly unwatchable.
Hay and his band did a very nice job of playing a decent rock show, but suffered with an audience that was loud and obnoxious at all the wrong times. I’d like to give them the benefit of the doubt and just blame it on the venue and some of the people in attendance, but maybe that’s just how their shows always are. Hay certainly didn’t seem too fazed by it.
I really wanted to fall in love with this show, but there were just too many things that went wrong to make it a very good impression. While Hay is still an amazing musician, his overall performance is somewhat lackluster. After the first couple songs, the whole things get a little old. He would be better served by sticking with his more mellow work and playing an acoustic set. Getting a proper back up dancer who won’t steal the spotlight might not hurt either.
DOWNLOAD: Colin Hay - I Wish I Was Still Drinking (MP3) or Follow us for more Colin Hay MP3s (Twitter)
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lil wayne has a fukken song for everythingg(((: in lovee, high competition, everythingg.
**and i be with my dawg like im mutha fukken hunting
by a.d.kinchhh(: on Tue Nov 24, 2009 at 02.48 pm from the entry: Lil Wayne's No Ceilings Mixtape
it’s beyonce’s sister.
by colin on Tue Nov 24, 2009 at 12.36 pm from the entry: Solange takes on Bjork's "It's Oh So Quiet"
Am I supposed to know SOlange?
by max on Tue Nov 24, 2009 at 11.51 am from the entry: Solange takes on Bjork's "It's Oh So Quiet"
this may be your best review yet, colin. and that includes the pixies and modest mouse pieces. nice work! i’m also digging these photos.
by josh on Mon Nov 23, 2009 at 04.54 pm from the entry: Girls + Dominant Legs - Doug Fir (Portland, OR; Nov. 18, 2009)
GREAT review!!! Love that 2nd picture up there as well.
by Siri on Mon Nov 23, 2009 at 02.45 pm from the entry: Girls + Dominant Legs - Doug Fir (Portland, OR; Nov. 18, 2009)
Yeah, perfect lineup, except for the whole Spoon thing.
by Ari on Sun Nov 22, 2009 at 11.40 am from the entry: Spoon Tour Dates
I’ve read the book ‘Dream Boogie’ the life and time of Sam Cooke’ If the movie is as good as the book, Sam Cooke will get the respect that he has been deserving of for many years.
by jed on Sat Nov 21, 2009 at 10.39 pm from the entry: Sam Cooke to get a movie
