Elvis Costello throws rock 'n' roll party at stately Palladium

If it’s possible to initiate a 9-year-old concert hall, Elvis Costello accomplished the feat Saturday night at Carmel’s Palladium.

The $126 million venue — known for its dignified balconies and neoclassical dome — previously hosted acts that blurred the edges of New Wave, power pop and punk rock in the late ’70s. Blondie and Devo shared a bill at the Palladium in 2012, and Joe Jackson played there in 2017.

Costello roughed up the joint with care, likely because his discography includes a ballet score (2004’s “Il Sogno”) as well as collaborations with the Brodsky Quartet and Burt Bacharach.

Noting his stately surroundings, Costello said he was tempted to sing a completely different set of songs than he and his Imposters backing band prepared for the “Just Trust” tour.

But he delivered when it was time to rock ’n’ roll.

Saturday’s performance ended with a six-song sprint that brought attentive but polite audience members out of their seats.

This wasn’t a night when attendees bickered about standing or sitting during the show. Nearly everyone remained seated — bobbing heads and tapping toes — until Costello unleashed “I Can’t Stand Up for Falling Down.”

This double-time cover of a 1967 Sam & Dave soul ballad proved irresistible, and Costello’s fans stood at joyous attention through most of the program’s remaining tunes: “High Fidelity,” “Pump It Up,” “Alison,” “Everyday I Write the Book” and “(What's So Funny ’Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding.”

Check out three ways Costello threw a rock ’n’ roll party in an unlikely setting. 

1. When in Carmel

Commenting on the Palladium, Costello described the building as "beautiful" but also wondered aloud if it dated to the 1890s or 1990s. For the record, the venue presented its first preview performances in November 2010.

Visiting Indiana on the 55th birthday of his wife, jazz singer Diana Krall, Costello checked out the sights of Carmel Christkindlmarkt — the holiday bazaar that's up and running in the Palladium's front yard.

An Instagram photo posted by the Center for the Performing Arts showed Costello smartly dressed in an animal-print coat and white-and-turquoise shoes. For Saturday night's performance, he wore a shiny jacket accented by a metallic tie and white riverboat gambler's hat.

Music historian Costello mentioned the Four Freshmen and the vocal group's Indianapolis roots, even if the reference accurately depicted the Freshmen as square in relation to Dizzy Gillespie.

2. 'Face' of the future

Costello previewed two songs from a musical adaptation of "A Face in the Crowd," the Budd Schulberg story that became a 1957 film starring Andy Griffith.

Based on a charismatic singer who presents an everyman narrative while being a narcissist behind the scenes, the lessons of "A Face in the Crowd" never go out of style.

Costello played piano while singing the musical's title track as well as "Blood and Hot Sauce." Featuring the lines, "Put your hand on the Bible, keep your finger on the trigger," Costello introduced "Hot Sauce" as a political anthem as 2020 looms.

3. Supporting cast

Part of the fun of catching Costello in action is that he performs early-career classics with two-thirds of the Attractions: keyboard player Steve Nieve and drummer Pete Thomas.

Now known as Imposters with bass player Davey Faragher succeeding the estranged Bruce Thomas, Nieve and Pete Thomas sound as vital as ever. 

Nieve added electronic flourishes to renditions of 1979's "Green Shirt" and 1981's "New Lace Sleeves." Crackerjack drum highlights for Thomas included signature tunes "Accidents Will Happen" and "Watching the Detectives."

And backing vocalists Kitten Kuroi and Briana Lee dazzled with strength and tone that nudged Costello to show off his own pipes — without microphone amplification on more than one occasion.

Saturday's set list

1. “Strict Time”

2. “Clubland”

3. “Green Shirt”

4. “Photographs Can Lie” with tease of Dusty Springfield's "The Look of Love"

5. “45”

6. “Tears Before Bedtime”

7. “New Lace Sleeves”

8. “Mystery Dance”

9. “You Belong to Me”

10. “Accidents will Happen” with tease of Sir Douglas Quintet's "Be Real"

11. “Watching the Detectives”

12. “A Face in the Crowd”

13. “Blood and Hot Sauce”

14. “This Year’s Girl”

15. “I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down” (Sam & Dave cover)

16. “High Fidelity”

17. “Pump It Up”

18. “Alison”

19. “Everyday I Write the Book”

20. "(What's So Funny ’Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" (Nick Lowe cover)

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Call IndyStar reporter David Lindquist at 317-444-6404. Follow him on Twitter: @317Lindquist.