MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Would INXS have reached U2 status had Mi...

Would INXS have reached U2 status had Michael Hutchence lived?


INXS were pretty big in the 80s, but their sound didn't really work as well in the 90s with rock becoming grunge.

Still, U2 seemed to weather the storm and come out of the 90s with their career in tact, and sort of became 'rock royalty' and filled stadiums around the world.

Do you think INXS would have had a renaissance? Would they be filling stadiums in the 2000s/10s?

reply

I think not

Nothing against INXS but they had a way shorter list of hits...the stage presence, musicianship and strident self-whoring of U2 gives them 'The Edge'

I prefer The Police over either even if Sting is a total weirdo

reply

U2 does have more hits.

reply

I think Michael would have left anyway. In the 80's he had a side project called Max Q which was kind of an electronic sound with a slightly harder edge. I think he would have wanted do more edgy projects. Either that or he would have pushed INXS in a more edgy direction.

Their sound would have fit in ok during the 2000's when you had a lot of guitar bands that weren't metal or grunge but closer to a classic rock sound.

reply

i guess its possible. i was never a fan of either band. both bands seemed to be carried by their singers and i prefer Michael Hutchence over Bono. the music of either band always seemed pretty generic and simple to me in my layman opinion.

i mean the saxophone "solo" in "one thing", my god, thats bad.....even though its a cute little catchy song.
https://youtu.be/XJyKTNdPL5s?t=92

reply

Yeah that's pretty bad, but intentionally so it seems.

reply

but intentional to cover up for lack of ability perhaps.

i never heard of Max Q as Artisan mentioned but immediately upon listening to them they sound more skilled musicianship wise compared to inxs band members. though the songs arent catchy enough to be hits.

but i think inxs couldve evolved. i think "never tear us apart" works in any era. i think Hutchence had enough to carry them.

reply

I can't stand U2 just something about them and especially Bono. INXS are ok but for me they were always just background type music, I couldn't see myself wanting to sit through one of their concerts or listen to an album all at once.

Michael definitely was carrying them after he died the band tried to go on but the other members lacked the personality to grab people's interest although I did like this song with their new singer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnTelUJrDhc

I think trying to find a new singer via reality show contest was a mistake too.

reply

I don't - I was a teenager when INXS made it big and I remember when Hutchence died. I don't know about internationally but by the mid-1990s INXS was irrelevant in the United States.

U2 adapted to change their sound with the times and had hits all the way into the next century, but I don't think INXS was built for it, regardless of their lead singer being alive.

reply

I don't think so either and also from the U.S.

"X" kicked off the new decade as a disappointment for the band in the U.S. "Welcome to Wherever You Are" was an outright flop in the states. Which is unfortunate, because it's a killer album and my favorite of theirs.

By the time "Elegantly Wasted" came around in 1997 no one really seemed to care about them...again the U.S.

But what's been cool lately is the new fun reflection on the band...because they were awesome and Hutchence had an amazing voice, far better than Bono in my opinion.

reply

Yeah I just discovered a song I'd never heard as the credits of Face/Off rolled. It's called 'Don't Lose Your Head' and they were so forgotten in 1997 that the song was only released as a single in Germany, The Netherlands and Japan.

I actually like the song and thought 'this song would have done better in the 2000s.'

Here's the video clip. Only 359k views. A crime!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kx55uEmIl8

reply

Not quite, no.

Based on records sold, international hits and tour size, U2 (whether you like them or not) are right up there with the greats.

INXS on the other hand were a great band, just not one of the greats.

reply

Some bands don't sell many albums but sell out stadiums. KISS is a band with no real big hits at all and yet they're globally known and sell out arenas.

reply

I was suggesting that if you take all factors into account, INXS were never on the same level as U2.

Don't get me wrong, I love both bands, have all their albums and seen them both many times in concert, but the facts are quite clear as to who the winner is here.

INXS would no doubt have continued with Hutchence without ever reaching U2 status.

reply

I liked INXS a lot more than I did U2, but I don't think so. IIRC INXS had already faded quite a bit by the time he died.

U2 on the other hand are kind of iconic. Right up there with bands like the Rolling Stones.

reply

No. You've said it yourself, they were not very succesful in the 90s. I'm sure they would have some succes with a reunion tour, but they would not be filling stadiums like U2.

reply

I like INXS way more than U2. I never got the U2 enthusiasm. However, I don't think that they would have had similar success.

What band could Hutchinson have switched to that could have reached that level? What singer could have taken Hutchinson's place in INXS?

reply