Neil Finn’s gamble to make Crowded House a family affair pays off

As far as Crowded House bandleader Neil Finn is concerned, his gamble to merge his chart-topping musical past with his talented offspring has paid off handsomely.

Connections to the past and present: from left, Nick Seymour, Liam Finn, Neil Finn. Elroy Finn and Mitchell Froom. Picture: Stephen Dykes

Midway through the first Australian tour that involves wrangling two of his sons as his bandmates, Neil Finn is satisfied he made the right call for Crowded House to truly become a family affair.

With Elroy drumming behind his dad and eldest son Liam shredding his guitar in a colourful suit at stage right, the newest iteration of the group – which began in ­Melbourne in 1985 – is completed by co-founding bassist Nick Seymour and keyboardist Mitchell Froom, who produced its first three albums.

“I do have a great respect, attachment and emotion for the whole thing,” Finn told The Australian. “It’s so strange that Elroy wasn’t born when Crowded House started. Liam, on the other hand, was born at the very beginning of the process, but his earliest memories are attached: he was on the tour bus, and in the tour party. He still is – but he’s a player now.

“There’s a depth and a soulfulness to that. As much as it’s a new step and a new direction, it’s sort of a return – and with Mitchell there as well, it’s got a beautiful connection to the past, and the depth of history.”

With Finns now holding the balance of power in the group, the family’s superb blending of vocal harmonies has been on glorious display in a run of shows that began in April in support of its ­seventh album, Dreamers Are Waiting.

The tour was rescheduled after Finn Sr contracted Covid following the band’s headline set at Byron Bay Bluesfest; it resumed in Darwin in late October, and industry sources say that about 200,000 tickets have been sold overall, making it one of the year’s most popular tours.

The current line-up has been in place since 2019 and is working superbly, as the quintet powers through a nightly set list of 20 or so crowd-pleasers alongside a sprink­ling of newer songs and an occasional David Bowie cover.

Crowded House’s tour continues this week with concerts in Tamworth (Tuesday), Hobart (Thursday) and Geelong (Saturday). On Sunday, the band will close the final night at Harvest Rock, a new two-day festival in central Adelaide. “I think the fantastic line-up and holistic concept shows the promoters are really tuned in,” said Finn Sr of the new festival.

“We’re delighted to be headlining on Sunday and promise all cylinders will be firing.”

As far as the songwriter and band leader is concerned, his gamble to merge his chart-topping musical past with his talented offspring has paid off handsomely.

“When the idea came up, I thought, shit, this is actually a unique opportunity to play with not only the people that I would choose to be playing music with, no matter what, people who I ­really respect; it’s also people who’ve got incredibly close ties to this whole thing,” said Finn.

“I feel like we’re serving that. We’re giving the old girl her due.”