Considering their last scheduled concert at City Winery Chicago was canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions, it’s been a while since the Hoodoo Gurus performed around these parts. Any doubts that the Australian quartet still has avid followers in the midwest of the land were blown away as soon as lead vocalist-guitarist Dave Faulkner and his mates walked onstage. This despite opening with deep cuts such as “Place In The Sun,” “In The Middle Of The Land,” and “Death Ship” rather than their best-known material. Regardless of the recognition factor, the Hoodoo Gurus infused every song with tremendous energy. The psychedelic rocker “Miss Free Love ‘69,” from their 1991 Kinky album, was particularly frantic, while still keeping its sexy allure.
“Come On,” from the band’s 1987 album Blow Your Cool!, was about as sedate as things got during the 90-minute show. Faulkner dedicated the wistful “1000 Miles Away” to people who moved from down under to the U.S., after asking if there were Australians in the audience. (A fair amount responded ‘yes,’ including a gentleman at my table.) The concert featured new songs from the band’s 2022 release Chariot Of The Gods, including the title track, “Hang With The Girls,” and “Answered Prayers.” It would have been great to also hear the tragicomic gem “My Imaginary Friend” and clever “Settle Down.”
At various times, Faulkner asked audience members to show their enthusiasm by standing up while the band played. City Winery’s dinner/entertainment tables and chairs layout made that a bit of a challenge, but plenty of those present obliged. Especially when the Hoodoo Gurus unleashed “I Want You Back,” which had fans waving their arms and singing along. Other vintage favorites included “Bittersweet,” “Come Anytime,” “Poison Pen,” and “I Was A Kamikaze Pilot.” Three encores brought the performance close to two hours, with the Hoodoo Gurus wrapping up with a rousing version of “Like Wow - Wipeout” their 1995 album Mars Needs Guitars.
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