In celebration of their eighth studio album entitled Butter Miracle: The Complete Sweets! Counting Crows returned to Tāmaki Makarau this week for not one but two shows at the prestigious Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre.
While Monday’s set list held a few more expected hits, Tuesday proved to be more eclectic and as frontman Adam Duritz would later declare, Sorry if you didn’t hear what you wanted, but I really enjoyed tonight!
To begin the evening’s proceedings, the audience were treated to a wonderful set by Aotearoa’s own Macey (formally known as Harry Parsons). Accompanied by his band and obviously good friends, Mikey on guitar, James, Jesse on bass and Tom, Macey delivered a set that was endearing as it was impressive.
Having released his debut album The Lovers in 2023, Macey has only continued to grow, delivering tracks that are carefully packaged authentic anecdotes of his life. They are refreshingly honest, reflective in nature while still adhering to the genre of Indie/Pop that makes them instantly likeable.
Highlights of his set last night were songs such as Clementine, the third single off his upcoming new album, and a stunning cover of The Killers When You Were Young – a band he rediscovered his love for whilst working on his first album – which really showcased his impressive abilities as a vocalist.
Before You Have to Go, was a beautifully evocative song which Macey sung solo, about his musician father who sadly passed away. It visibly touched the audience as they sat quietly and listened, Macey discreetly wiping away a couple of tears upon its conclusion.
Concluding his set with Night Out and the up tempo The River from his aforementioned first album and Macey proved just why he is an artist to watch closely.
Counting Crows have never been a band that have leaned on effects or props, preferring instead to let the music speak for itself.
Arriving on stage last night to a simple set up, with lighting that accentuated but never overpowered, Duritz and his accompanying six musicians took their places and dove straight into the classic Mr Jones, catching many of the attendees off guard as they jumped to their feet in jubilation.
One has to wonder after thirty years of playing arguably their most well-known single if they have become a little like the Pixies with Where is My Mind? and decided to drop it as their opener just to get it out of the way.
Regardless, many in the audience sang and danced in delight, returning to their seats as the band moved into Mrs Potters Lullaby followed by Spaceman in Tulsa from their latest album; an upbeat song that has a decidedly nostalgic Nineties feel to it.
Dressed in a simple black denim combo, Duritz was once again in top form vocally; often known as a rather animated artist, Duritz throughout the night gestured with his hands as if playing out the scenes described in his words.
Counting Crows have never been a band that plays sets where the songs are straight replications of what you would hear on the album, a style that they have often been praised for, but that can occasionally distract from the original charm of their various compositions.
However, after thirty years of performing live, they have more than earned their right to play their music as they see fit.
One of the most endearing factors of a Counting Crows show, is the fact that it is like watching a group of old friends have a jam session together. There is an ease in which the members interact with each other, moving from new material such as Virginia Through the Rain straight into old favourites like Omaha seamlessly, longstanding member Charlie Gllingham who Duritz introduced as his friend stepping forward with his accordion which elevated the song so well.
Taking a moment to speak to the audience, Duritz joked about the shape of our monitors, which were not square but rather triangular which gave him a whole new core workout as he sat on them, as he wasn’t sure if he risked falling backwards or tipping forwards.
Chuckling, he then moved into the story of their next track Cover Up the Sun, which was about his friend Clifton whose father was a man called Pédro Gonzalez Gonzalez, who after appearing on the Groucho Marx quiz show You Bet Your Life was discovered by none other than John Wayne and was cast as the comic relief in many of his movies, a rather fascinating little anecdote, which culminated in a song about how Cliftons Dad taught him how to dance.
Grabbing a tambourine, Duritz then spoke of how the next song was the story of his life and why he chooses to do what he does, accidently rhyming as he spoke, he laughed pointing out that he didn’t mean to rhyme but that just showed right there his natural talent; With Love, From A-Z again from their latest album, reflective for Duritz in many ways, delicious with its undertones of bluesey roots Rock that builds into a crescendo as it moves into the chorus.
A great rendition of Black and Blue, a track that we haven’t played in quite a while live was followed up by Duritz explaining how Counting Crows did a VH1 special where they performed many of their songs acoustically and how changing them up at first concerned him, but the final result was something that in his opinion worked extremely well, the band playing Angels of the Silences as evidence.
Throwing in a couple more of their more well-known hits (which had been noticeably absent) the Joni Mitchell cover of Big Yellow Taxi once again saw people up on their feet as they sang along, it was nice follow up to their rendition of Washington Square with an impressive harmonica solo by Gillingham.
The stage soon became bathed in red, one of the most pronounced light changes of the evening for Round Here, which Duritz certainly delivered in a rather unique off the cuff way, interweaving it with Raining in Baltimore, which in some ways lost the deeply moving component of the track itself.
Duritz then moved to the piano for a dramatic cover of the Taylor Swift folklore song the 1 which crossed into A Long December, Duritz at one point slamming his hand on the top of the piano which echoed like a gunshot throughout the room.
A drum solo by Jim Bogios ushered in Rain King, the theatre exploding into a sea of waving hands and dancing bodies, Duritz bidding everyone goodnight upon its conclusion as the band left.
The house lights stayed down, the crowd began to cheer, and the encore game was played out, which during a show that in many ways was rather unique with both its song choices and delivery seemed a little disappointing.
However, it is a time-honoured tradition and one that many a concert goer loves to participate in.
The three-song encore duplicated the encore from the night before with Under the Aurora, Hanginaround and of course a full-bodied version of Holiday in Spain closing out the night.
For those diehard fans that attended both nights, the collection of songs would have provided both expected hits and deep cuts, while those who only saw the Tuesday show may have been left a little wanting with tracks such as Hard Candy and Colorblind noticeably being left off the set list.
Regardless, Counting Crows proved last night that not only can they still deliver dynamic performances, but that they still have a lot left to give; Butter Miracle: The Complete Sweets! seeing them embrace who they are at their core, Americana mixed with Rock and that decidedly authentic Nineties sound that endeared them to so many in the first place.
Sarah Kidd
Photography by Ming Lyu