The Underground of Happiness

Chapter 13 The following Monday I was back in the oversized tent on the Marina for a very different show. The Crowded House ticket was a gift in 2020, finally happening in 2022. I was a fan of the band in the 90s but I’d forgotten how much I loved them then. They came straight out with Distant sun, one of a string of perfect pop songs. Perfect in a Paul McCartney way. Verse Chorus Verse Chorus Bridge Incandescent Keychange Bliss really. I was overcome at times as 30 year old stored emotions rose up and demanded to be recognised. Weather with you. Four seasons in one day. It’s only natural. Christ. Songs so perfectly structured it would be easy to stand back and admire. Except that the genius melodies keep dragging you into the water. For good measure there was also a spot-on version of David Bowie's Heroes. This show meant an awful lot to me.

Chapter 12 I had baulked at paying 70 quid to see Pet Shop Boys in The Marquee . But karma dictated that I would attend nevertheless. A friend of a friend had a ticket they weren’t…you know the rest. It was a joyous sauna of uplifting electro pop. A wonderful occasion of sound and light and Neil Tennant’s costume changes. I loved it even if I didn’t pay for it.