A bit of good Fortune revives a revamped INXS

How do you make an old band young again?

Jump on the reality-TV bandwagon.

That's what INXS did when it launched an "American Idol"-like TV contest to find a new lead singer.

The Australian band, adrift since the 1997 suicide of lead singer Michael Hutchence, found its new frontman in young, sexy J.D. Fortune who, like the winners on "American Idol," triumphed because of his exaggerated vocal mannerisms and over-the-top showmanship.

Fortune has none of the vocal talents of Hutchence, but he's a hottie in the 21st-century mold, slightly "street" and dangerous, as opposed to Hutchence's swaggering but sweet sexiness.

The heavily tattooed Fortune, a dropout and a drifter, says he was living in his car before he won the contest.

Concert preview


INXS, Marty Casey & the Lovehammers, 8 p.m. Thursday, Paramount Theatre, Seattle; $35-$65

(206-628-0888, www.ticketmaster.com; information, 206-467-5510, www.theparamount.com, www.inxs.com).

With Fortune at the helm, the new INXS has succeeded far more than even the band members had envisioned. It scored a hit single, "Pretty Vegas," the band's first since its heyday in the '80s, when its string of hits included "Need You Tonight," "Devil Inside," "New Sensation" and "Never Tear Us Apart."

A new album featuring Fortune, "Switch," hit No. 17 on the Billboard 200 album chart, the highest-charted INXS album in 20 years. On the current tour, most shows have sold out.

A new DVD, "Rock Star: INXS," shows the Fortune performances that made him an instant rock star. Bonus features include a behind-the-scenes segment, not shown on TV, in which he sits naked on his own birthday cake. (After he gets up and goes to take a shower, another contestant unknowingly dips her finger into the squashed cake, scoops up some frosting and puts it in her mouth.)

The DVD also features performances by the other contestants, including Marty Casey, one of the finalists. The members of INXS were so impressed by him, they asked him and his band, the Lovehammers, to be the opening act for the tour. Marty Casey & the Lovehammers also have a new album out.

With "Rock Star: INXS" a big hit, there's sure to be a followup. How about "Rock Star: Nirvana"?

(Just kidding.)

Patrick MacDonald: 206-464-2312 or pmacdonald@seattletimes.com