Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's main concert series is three weeks away, but a special spirit of celebration was present at its Thursday gig with the Adults.
The programme, created by Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, showcased the Kiwi supergroup in a set that ended with dancing in the aisles.
Shayne Carter, Julia Deans and Jon Toogood, all wielding guitars, were a lithe trio, with powerhouse drummer Steve Bremner dispensing beats under the watchful eye of conductor, Hamish McKeich.
The band has a modest songbook; three singles all came up, and Nothing to Lose, riding on a zesty Stephen Small arrangement, was reprised as a funky encore.
Toogood was very much the front man. He jested amiably about "symphonic dissonance" and compared the APO's decibellic clout very favourably with that of his band, Shihad. Earplugs were hardly necessary. The song, Most Important, might not have brooded as it did in the studio, but there was compensation in Claire Cowan's arrangement with its pastoral oboe.
