A Day On The Green
Featuring A-ha & Rick Astley
7th March 2020
Villa Maria Estate, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.
The cool kiss of autumn had been bestowed upon Auckland’s head yesterday, ensuring that the return of A Day on the Green was one of perfect conditions for a late afternoon lounge on the lush green plains of Villa Maria Estate.
While previous line-ups have always included impressive musical offerings from which to partake, yesterday was particularly special as it welcomed the iconic Norwegian trio of A-ha to kiwi shores for the very first time. Doubling down on the eighties nostalgia the line-up also featured the one and only Rick Astley, the combination ensuring an unsurprising sell-out.
Those who arrived early were treated to yet another superb set by The Beths who just the night before had thrilled audience members with their support slot for Massachusetts alt-gods the Pixies at Spark Arena, their set yesterday also impressing Rick Astley who decided to Instagram himself side of stage rocking out to the title track of their debut album ‘Future Me Hates Me’ released back in 2018.
With Villa Maria Estate well and truly bustling, it was soon the turn of Rick Astley to strut his stuff across the stage, and there was no denying the Lancashire native came out all guns a blazing, supported by an impressive six-piece band. Dressed in a simple but stylish black ensemble, gone was the trade-mark auburn hair, in its place a demurer dark coif that made his cheeky smile dazzle all that much brighter.
Kicking his set off with ‘Together Forever’, Astley laid on the charm by telling the audience that they were definitely louder than Christchurch whilst joking about the men in the audience sitting with their arms folded across their chests; encouraging them to get up and have a bit of a dance by calling them ‘buggers’ with a twinkle in his eye, Astley proved from the outset that he is a rather highly entertaining performer who isn’t afraid to let loose and have a bit of fun on stage.
Nostalgia acts can often be relegated to the one-hit wonder box, new material acknowledged but often not welcomed as much as the demanded big track that everyone came to hear; Astley however illustrating quite clearly that not only has he returned to the music industry with a sense of purpose following his retirement during the mid-nineties but with his finger on the pulse, his mash-up of ‘She Wants to Dance with Me’ with the larger than life Lizzo’s track ‘Juice’ seeing many younger audience members throw themselves behind the lyrics, as his duo of back-up singers which included the lovely Lauren Johnson laid down the sass.
It would seem that Astley and co had a few hidden gems tucked away, Astley always keen to surprise his fans (his cover of AC/DC’s ‘Highway to Hell’ on the drums at last year’s Isle of Wight festival still a huge talking point amongst many) while showcasing his more recent compositions such as ‘Angels on my Side’ and ‘Try’. While not everything worked – his mash-up of Rhianna’s ‘We Found Love’ with his own ‘Take me to Your Heart’ missing the mark – his sheer enthusiasm and apparent love for what he does was difficult not to be completely enamoured with, especially when he rick-rolled the audience by hitting them with a cover of the Crowded House song ‘Weather with You’ instead of the obvious single they were all expecting.
Genuinely thanking the audience for allowing him to cover a song from one of their own, he informed all Crowded House were a band close to both his and his wife’s hearts, some of the lyrics from ‘Don’t Dream it’s Over’ engraved around the ring on his finger – he then gave everyone what they had waited for, ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ lighting up the greens.
The shortest of intermissions between acts saw many dashing back to their seats as the stage was lit with the deepest of blues for the arrival of A-ha. Promising to play their 1985 debut album Hunting High and Low in full, fans knew how important that first track would be; arguably their biggest single in the world ‘Take on Me’ celebrated by one and all. But things weren’t off to a smooth start, the sound glitching and intermittently cutting out, leaving many both on stage and in the crowd looking at each other in bewilderment.
Technology it would seem was not on their side, keyboardist Magne Furuholmen apologising profusely and advising that they would have to leave the stage while the experts got them back online. Half an hour later and the show was finally restarted, the Norwegian trio supported by a three-piece band, graciously playing ‘Take on Me’ a second time to an even bigger fanfare than the first.
While for the diehard fans their appearance in New Zealand was a dream come true, A-ha seemed to be missing the same stage presence that Astley had, lead singer Morten Harket seemingly troubled by his in-ear monitors for most of the night as he wandered the stage in his decidedly brooding way. Admittedly this may just be the persona he has adopted, but against the previous performance it did come across as a little lacklustre, Furuholmen instead taking the lead in introducing songs and encouraging the audience every so often to sing along.
Still looking absolutely fantastic, guitarist Pål Waaktaar-Savoy also rocking the leather jacket and jeans combo along with the rest of his band mates, A-ha made their way through the first half of the album which contains many of their hit singles; ‘Hunting High and Low’ showcasing Harket’s falsettos that for the most part still hold strong thirty-five years later down the line; ‘The Sun Always Shines on T.V.’ whipping the audience into a frenzy as the classic synth-pop anthem danced across the winery on the back of multi-coloured lights. Sadly, due to the unexpected and significant delay to the beginning of the show, it felt like there was a countdown clock ticking side of stage, Furuholmen abandoning the chance for another bit of mid-song banter in order to keep the set moving.
Rather than replicating the album version, A-ha chose to play the demo of ‘I Dream Myself Alive’, declaring that they preferred it, and more power to them, the song ushering in the final track of the record entitled ‘Here I Stand and Face the Rain’. 1985 done as Furuholmen joked there was just enough time it seemed for a handful of bonus hits, the first being a wonderful cover of Carole King’s ‘Crying in the Rain’ sung beautifully by Harket that was then followed by the rockier ‘Sycamore Leaves’ complete with another explosion of stage lighting.
Providing a small taste from both their sophomore and third album, ‘I’ve Been Losing You’ and ‘Stay on these Roads’ closed their set in style, many in the audience singing each line with love in the hearts and a tear in their eye as the inevitable end drew near. Thanking all, the band left the stage only to return moments later for an encore of ‘The Living Daylights’, the official James Bond theme for the 1987 film of the same name leaving one and all on a high before they made their way back home.
While rather a mixed bag of performances, A Day on the Green still delivered, allowing thousands of fans to live out their teenage fantasies using the one conduit that unites all. Music.
Were you there at Villa Maria Estate for this flashback synth-pop gig? Or have you seen A-ha perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
A-ha Setlist:
- Take On Me
- Train Of Thought
- Hunting High And Low
- The Blue Sky
- Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale
- The Sun Always Sines On T.V.
- And You Tell Me
- Love Is Reason
- I Dream Myself Alive
- Here I Stand And Face The Rain
- Crying In The Rain [Carole King cover]
- Sycamore Leaves
- I’ve Been Losing You
- Stay On These Roads
- The Living Daylights [encore]
Rick Astley Setlist:
- Together Forever
- Beautiful Life
- She Wants To Dance With Me/Juice
- Keep Singing
- Whenever You Need Somebody
- Every One Of Us
- Cry For Help
- Angels On My Side
- Take Me To Your Heart/We Found Love
- Dance
- Try
- Weather With You [Crowded House cover]
- Never Gonna Give You Up
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