David Duchovny – Powerstation February 20, 2018
Actor, and now singer, David Duchovny’s appearance at Auckland’s Powerstation brought out the starry-eyed dreamers…although there don’t seem to be as many of those as the artist may have hoped for.
Fans of The X-Files/Californication star got the chance to experience an up-close and personal evening with their idol as there was plenty of room at the front of the stage. Duchovny himself described his attendant audience as “tiny but mighty”.
Up first though was opening act Dave Weir, who seemed to have been selected to perform with the edict to not upstage the main act. No problem there.
Duchovny and his five-piece band took the stage shortly after 9pm, with Dave looking exactly as you would expect, casual, yet charismatic.
The ensemble began things with Every Third Thought, the title track to his just-released second album. Being more familiar with Duchovny’s acting chops than his vocal abilities, my reaction to hearing him sing was both a sense of relief (he wasn’t awful) and some disappointment (he did not possess a unique or distinctive voice).
What was surprising was his seeming unease on stage. His moves seemed awkward and self-conscience…a bit of faux Jagger hip-thrusting…but nothing that suggests his proven abilities in front of the camera.
Musically, this was competent, if unremarkable rock music, obviously inspired by the likes of Petty, Dylan, Cohen, etc but without the songwriting talent behind those artists.
To be fair, Duchovny is just starting out as a writer, a point that became painfully clear when he wheeled out The Band’s The Weight, one of the greatest songs ever written. The tune gave his bandmates the opportunity to each sing a verse, which was a pleasant reprieve, but it also highlighted Duchovny’s own shortcomings as a songwriter.
While he seemed to grow more comfortable on stage as the set progressed, and his between-song banter was endearing, David’s singing seemed to get lees “precise” as the night went on.
Acknowledging his own vocal shortcomings, when it came time to cover Crowded House’s Don’t Dream It’s Over during the encore, Duchovny turned over the singing duties to his keyboard player/producer Colin Lee, who performed admirably.
There is no doubt that music is a passion for Mr Duchovny and that his heart is in the right place, but as they say…don’t quit your day job.
Marty Duda
Click on any image to view a photo gallery by Reuben Raj:
David Duchovny set list:
- Every Third Thought
- 3000
- Maybe I Can’t
- Stranger In The Sacred Heart
- The Things
- The Weight
- When The Whistle Blows
- Roman Coin
- Passenger
- Mo’
- Let It Rain
- Hell Or Highwater
- Half Life
- Spiral
- Don’t Dream It’s Over
- Postively Madison Avenue
