INXS lead singer has answer for critics

Australian rockers INXS had their critics when they decided to use a reality TV show to recruit a new lead singer, but the risk seems to be paying off.

The band -- Garry Beers, Kirk Pengilly and Farriss brothers Tim, Jon and Andrew -- had been without a permanent lead singer since Michael Hutchence's death in 1997.

Last year after a global search they held televised auditions on the TV show Rock Star: INXS and Canadian JD Fortune was chosen from 15 finalists to lead the band.

With a new singer chosen the band recorded and released a new album -- Switch -- and have been touring America.

Both Switch and single Pretty Vegas, co-written by Fortune, made it to the New Zealand top 10.

In New Zealand to promote the album and their concerts here in September, Fortune told NZPA the feedback from INXS fans had been positive.

"I've had really emotional stuff, like I had a fan in Australia that came up to me and she said 'I don't think the band picked you I think Michael picked you', and I almost started to cry because I'm a huge Michael Hutchence fan."

Fortune felt privileged to be able to carry on Hutchence's legacy and his memory was never far from the minds of INXS.

"It's an honour in every way. What's unique about this experience for me is just the knowledge that at certain points of the night I know that every one of the band members is thinking about him, including me. I think that makes us very strong on stage."

Before hitting the big time with INXS, Fortune was a struggling musician who did odd jobs to get by. Things had become so tough he was living in his car.

He discovered INXS as a teenager growing up in Canada. After seeing one of their songs on TV he begged his grandfather to buy him a guitar and taught himself to play Devil Inside.

He's still playing it, but amazingly is now doing so as part of the band he had always admired.

"We did 31 shows in 34 days for the first leg of the tour which is really quite demanding, but the first couple of shows Jon or Garry or Andrew would say 'turn around mate, the crowd's out there', because I would just turn around and look at them and be in awe," he said.

The band members went out of their way to help people follow their dreams, he said.

"I feel the best thing that anybody can ever make you feel is valuable, and they've given value to, or validated, all the years I've struggled as an artist."

But Fortune was not the only one to benefit from the arrangement -- INXS are a complete unit again and able to keep making music, which they've done for almost 30 years.

This had energised the existing members, Fortune said.

"I think they've actually gotten younger. I think this tour has added ten years to me so I think it was sort of a vampire trade-off," he laughed.

The rebirth of INXS has also led to a whole new generation of fans.

Fortune was amazed at autograph signing sessions to have people aged from 12 to 18 or 19 coming up with not only Switch -- the album that had alerted them to the band -- but also with albums from the 1980s like Kick and Shabooh Shoobah.

"They've bought them all and they're saying to the band 'I can't believe that this music is this music and I've only heard of it now,' and that's a real honour."

On tour they play a "healthy mix" of new material and older hits.

"I thought it would be very wise to not cram Switch down everybody's throat when we first go out and so we had probably four songs off Switch and the rest were all hits from several different records," Fortune said.

Singing the older songs was a thrill.

"There's nothing like standing up on stage in front of 15,000 people and looking out and having them sing every word to every song. It's incredible."

Equally, it was heartening to see both existing and new fans enjoying their shows.

"It's great to look out into the audience and see your hardcore partying fans two rows down from five or six families."

Fortune said going through the television process gave fans the chance to feel they knew him and the band better, but it also left him feeling exposed in some ways as the contestants' personal lives had been laid bare.

"It makes us very approachable. That is a blessing and a curse."

Fortune, whose drive and focus sometimes came across as cockiness on the show, is anything but arrogant on the phone from his Auckland hotel room. He is gracious, well-spoken and charming as he reflects on his time on the show.

"I think it wasn't deceiving as much as it was embellished," he said.

"I watched some of the episodes and it's portrayed as this great big house and they're living the rock star life, you know? And really it was a lot of hard work, and thank God, because the work I'm doing now is literally ten times harder than what I did on that show -- that show was a vacation compared to our schedule right now."

The singer's new found fame does not appear to have gone to his head, which may be due to the unpretentious nature of the rest of the band.

"What really impresses me about INXS is for as much fame and fortune as they have, no pun intended, they are the first guys who will pull over the tour bus and say let's help this guy fix his tyre on his car.

"Literally they're the first guys to roll up their sleeves."

The band could be your neighbours, friends or people at your local bar, he said.

"The thing is we are those guys and that's the connection. The music speaks for itself so we're not selling it...we're just making it."

The band are about to embark on the second leg of their tour with bigger shows at bigger venues after the first leg's success.

As well as continuing to write, record and tour the band was experimenting with other avenues of music, Fortune said. They were toying with the idea of celebrating the band's 30th anniversary this year by putting together a concert featuring bands who were inspired by INXS.

"What a huge compliment that would be to have The Killers and Franz Ferdinand come up and do INXS covers, then have us come out and close the night."

So 30 years on but with a new lease of life does the singer predict a long future of good fortune for INXS?

"Knock on wood baby."

* INXS play in Christchurch on September 21 and Auckland on September 23.

- NZPA