Why New Zealanders no longer buy INXS

By RUSSELL BAILLIE

Had things been different, this very space might have been where we put the interview with INXS drummer Jon Farriss and singer Jon Stevens.

But the interview was never written. Partly because I'd suspected, since its announcement, that the New Zealand tour by the five members of the Australian band with Stevens in the place of Michael Hutchence, wasn't going to come off.

Fancy that, it hasn't.

And also because our chat with them was, frankly, a bore. Former Kiwi popstar Stevens is a very nice man who laughs easily, especially at himself.

However, Farriss left me cold. He is an old-school rock star with a plummy-Aussie accent, who may well have suffered a terrible tragedy, but still saw the band that has been his life since 1979 as somehow relevant to 2000. His don't-you-know-how-big-we-are haughtiness came across in statements like: "We're one of the last remaining rock events who have happened in the last few decades that's quite brilliant live and it's important for us to exercise that."

Not here, you won't, pal.

Faced with abysmal sales of the $60 tickets, Christchurch promoters Donedeal Productions cancelled the tour this week. Tellingly, the dates were the first non-private shows the band had planned since recruiting Stevens, the jaunt seemingly acting as a warm-up to an Aussie tour.

The Auckland, Wellington, Palmerston North and Christchurch dates foundered a week out despite a pile of publicity (not in these pages) and plans for more.

That screaming you hear at the top of Hobson St is the sound of a 60 Minutes crew, who were about to follow the band on their New Zealand tour.

In their announcement, promoters Neil Cox and Ian Dunn say: "Unfortunately, despite everyone's best efforts and extensive promotion by the various band members and Jon Stevens on TV, radio and in the nation's press, the show seems to have fallen victim to current market conditions here which have seen similar cancellations in recent weeks [Bardot and International Wrestling notably] with a lot of other international concerts suffering from poor attendances. There seems to be a very serious problem facing the local industry at present and how this impacts on future tours to New Zealand remains to be seen."

Say what?

C'mon, let's not mistake a lack of affection or nostalgia for an Australian band, who are no longer quite the genuine article, for crisis in our rock and pop - and wrestling - tour business.

The Finn Runga and Dobbyn tour might not be "international" but it's selling out the same town halls INXS were going to play and much more. Anybody who saw English band Gomez at a packed Powerstation last Friday might conclude even "international" bands who don't get played on the radio can still tour here - so long as they're good, relevant and still selling albums.

As for the nostalgia market, people are apparently flocking to the latest Aussie Abba tribute band, Babba (coming soon to a town near you). And you can bet they will for forthcoming tours by a mock-Carpenters and Hot Chocolate.

Yes INXS sold records here in their day. As did Stevens for a brief couple of months 20 years ago. INXS sold 25 million albums worldwide peaking with the 10 million-selling Kick in 1987. But it was downhill from there - Hutchence spent the late 80s and early 90s becoming famous for being famous, and then dead famous.

The band was eclipsed by their singer while their music stayed in a stadium funk-rock time-warp. Even Hutchence tried to do something new, as shown by his posthumously released solo album. No one bought that one either.

No, if the promoters consider adverse "market conditions" were to blame for people staying away from INXStevens, then they're being disingenuous. There just isn't a market for 80s bands who have outlived their singer and overstayed their welcome.

On this side of the Tasman, at least.