If you live vicariously through music, 2020 was challenging, but we are slowly getting back to some sense of normalcy. For countless 80’s music fans, life can make you weep and make you run for cover. Luckily, we will always have those bands that got us through our teenage years. For me, it was a band from Australia called Crowded House.
When I was in high school, I had a few loves. Of course, I loved my parents and I adored my dog. I also had a very deep affection for leg warmers and goth-like clothing. Then there were my TV shows and bands. This leads to my other three loves, well, technically two.
At 16, I was your average band geek who hated their time in high school. Sound familiar? I grew to be a byproduct of John Hughes films like “Pretty in Pink” and “Sixteen Candles.” Thankfully, it was the music of that era that captured my soul and guided my future.
OK, so I didn’t have a “Duckie” who adored me. I just had my puppy, and I was OK with that. Admittedly, I was a self-made outcast. I wanted it that way because I couldn’t stand those cliques. They were the worst, right?
I just loved being the girl who was too cool to try to be cool. You know, the chick who knew all the best bands before they were popular. You know, the chick who knew all the cool bands before they were cool. I was like Mary Stuart Masterson in “Some Kind of Wonderful,” but without the Disney ending. That leads me to other three loves.
By my senior year I was hooked to a new show, “21 Jump Street.” I was fixated on Johnny Depp, but he had some major competition. Just the sound of their voices made me smile. The two other boys were brothers, but sadly, I didn’t personally know them. Like most teenage girls though, I felt as if I did. Just the sound of their voices made me smile. They were Tim and Neil Finn and they were part of a band that captivated the hearts of many of the high school female population in the ’80s and ’90s. That band was Crowded House.
By no stretch of the imagination did I limit myself to their music. I loved other greats of the time: The Who, Van Halen, AC/DC, Depeche Mode, Prince, Rick James, and didn’t we all go to “Rock n’ Roll High School” with the Ramones? In my head, I was that girl Paul Collins Beat was singing about; the one the boys just didn’t know yet, but I digress.
For whatever reason, Crowded House’s self-tiled debut album really did it for me. I lost my shit the first time I heard “Something So Strong” and “Don’t Dream It’s Over.”
It’s OK I won’t tell, you can probably relate. I’m sure at one point you had a song in your younger days that you sang in your head over and over as if it was your own marching-band cadence.
As life went on, my fascination with those early crushes faded as I got into college and life dug in. But my love for Crowded House has always been the one guilty pleasure I could never really kick to the curb.
Fast forward to 2021 and I still love Crowded House. Turns out my favorite band that was the origin of all my teenage angst has a new album coming out. The album is called “Dreamers Are Waiting“. Hard to believe, it’s their seventh studio album, and it will be released on June 4th.
I can’t say for certain the new tunes will have the same impact on me in my adult years, but, if anyone can make me feel 16 gain, it’s Crowded House.
To support the album, Crowded House has been doing a few livestream shows. The next is scheduled for Wednesday, March 24th.
They also have a scheduled tour in New Zealand, but beyond that, the Magic 8-Ball isn’t quite clear just yet. Trust me, if they come to your town, you should check them out because they are an amazing band.
As for me, you know where you can catch me and my pooch named “Duckie” on March 24th.
