Review: 'Afterglow' offers more Crowded House

"Afterglow" is a compilation of old and new sounds

May 22, 2000
Web posted at: 3:13 p.m. EST (1913 GMT)

By David John Farinella
Special to CNN Interactive

Crowded House
"Afterglow"
(Capitol Records)
Release date: May 23

(CNN) -- Using the phrase "rarities and B-sides" when referring to Crowded House's "Afterglow" is a misnomer. Many of the 13 tracks on this album, released in January, deserve better descriptions than that.

Rather than calling its collection of songs "rarities and B-sides," this album -- a compilation of tunes recorded between 1985 and 1994 -- should have been marketed as "songs that were too good to leave unheard."

For example, "I Am In Love," "You Can Touch" and even the fresh-sounding "Lester" are quintessential Crowded House songs that recall the band's best days.

Then again, there's the derivative sounds of "Left Hand" and "Dr. Livingstone" that only hard-core "Crowdies" will appreciate.

Crowded House made its name as the Down Under pop quartet that didn't sing anything annoying. Rather than offering such simplistic fare as "Who Can It Be Now?", performed by fellow Aussies Men at Work, the lads offered the hits "Don't Dream It's Over" and "Something So Strong."

The essential members of Crowded House were singer/songwriter Neil Finn, drummer Paul Hester and bassist Nick Seymour, though others came and went. Tim Finn, Neil's brother, joined the band in 1991 and left the same year, and guitarist Mark Hart hopped aboard in 1993.

	AUDIO
"I Am in Love" 256K MP3 or 384K WAV sound "You Can Touch" 256K MP3 or 353K WAV sound "Left Hand" 256K MP3 or 384K WAV sound (Courtesy Capitol Records)

The band officially disbanded in 1996. By that time, both Finn brothers had recorded solo albums, plus a Finn Brothers release. In 1997, Hester formed the band Largest Living Things.

While Crowded House never duplicated the chart-climbing success its self-titled album enjoyed in 1987 in the United States, the band built a strong following across the United Kingdom and Europe. Over a span of four albums Crowded House evolved from a pop outfit to a group that injected ambience and mood in each of its songs.

"Woodface," an ambitious release, captures just that combination of pop sensibilities and moodiness. In fact, seven songs recorded during that 1991 album's sessions -- "I Love You Dawn," "Time Immemorial," "Telly's Gone Bung," "Sacred Cow," Dr. Livingstone," "Anyone Can Tell" and "Left Hand" -- are on "Afterglow."

Some are great finds, too. "I Love You Dawn" finds Finn at his most Beatle-esque, while "Left Hand" has echoes of Joe Cocker. "Dr. Livingstone" could have been written for Sting's "Nothing Like The Sun" album.

Other songs have different roots. "You Can Touch," "I Am In Love" and a remix of the band's previously released "Private Universe" were all prepared for the band's final 1993 studio album, "Together Alone."

"Help Is Coming," recorded for a fifth album that never materialized, blends the classic Crowded House sound with a touch of sultry energy. "Lester," with its jangly guitars and minor chords, stands in sharp contrast to the band's penchant for dense numbers that blend tribal drumming and pop chord progression.

As a whole, "Afterglow" is a great accompaniment to 1998's "Recurring Dream: The Very Best of Crowded House." Not only does this album show the band in a more casual light; it proves Crowded House could crank out more strong songs than any single offering should contain.

Neil Finn goes solo for a melodic 'Try Whistling This'
August 18, 1998
WorldBeat Fresh Cuts: Tim Finn, 'Say It Is So'
March 3, 2000

Official Neil Finn site

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