Say Or Do + RPBLIK Reimagine Crowded House Classics on ‘Crowded Room’
Two artists from opposite sides of the world. Two Crowded House classics. One very different take on the songs.
Hawke’s Bay alt-rockers Say Or Do and Norwegian artist RPBLiK are joining forces for Crowded Room – A Tribute To Crowded House’, a two-track split release arriving 29 September 2026.
For their contribution, Say Or Do have taken the iconic Don’t Dream It’s Over and completely reworked it for a modern alt-rock audience. The familiar melody and unmistakable songwriting remain, but the arrangement has been rebuilt around driving guitars, heavier dynamics, some playful riffing and a new guitar solo in place of the original’s organ solo.
The result isn’t simply a heavier version of the classic. It is a fresh interpretation that brings the song into Say Or Do’s world, while retaining the emotional core that made the original so enduring.
“We wanted to be respectful to the original, but we didn’t want to just put distortion over it, play a punk beat, and call it done,” says Say Or Do frontman Sam French. “There are some really fun riffs in there, and replacing the organ solo with a guitar solo was part of making the song feel like ours. There are definitely some nods to that early-2000s pop-punk and soundtrack era that we grew up with, but the end result is very much a modern Say Or Do track.”
For French, the song’s lyrics were just as important as its musical transformation.
“What’s always struck me about Don’t Dream It’s Over is how incredible the imagery is in the lyrics. ‘Try to catch a deluge in a paper cup’ feels surprisingly relevant now. We’re constantly being hit with information, opinions and noise from every direction, and it can feel impossible to contain it all.
“And then there’s ‘They come to build a wall between us’. When there’s so much divisive rhetoric around at the moment, that line feels pretty relevant. I couldn’t assume the songwriting intent of the great Neil Finn, but to me the song is ultimately about not letting those walls keep us apart. There’s something pretty powerful in that, and I think we could all use a bit more of it.”
The release has an international connection at its heart.
Say Or Do guitarist Kazuki Hiratani connected online with Norwegian musician RPBLiK (Benji Perdue) through a mutual friend. Benji, born in the UK and now based in Norway, had been exploring a similar musical direction, and the pair began collaborating in 2025. That relationship has since developed into work on a full album together.
For Crowded Room, RPBLiK takes on another Crowded House favourite, Fall At Your Feet, applying his own ‘pop goes punk’ treatment to the song and creating a natural companion to Say Or Do’s Don’t Dream It’s Over.
Together, the two tracks create a musical conversation across two countries, with both artists taking songs that are deeply embedded in the New Zealand musical consciousness and finding new ways to express them.
For listeners who grew up hearing Crowded House, Crowded Room offers familiar songs through a very different lens. And for those who came of age during the pop-punk and alternative-rock explosion of the late 1990s and early 2000s, it taps into that same sense of nostalgia while bringing the songs firmly into the present.
A music video for Say Or Do’s Don’t Dream It’s Over accompanies the release.
The band will then turn their attention back to original material, with new Say Or Do music set to follow the release, continuing the band’s evolution from melodic alt-rock towards a heavier and more expansive sound.
Crowded Room – A Tribute To Crowded House by Say Or Do and RPBLiK is out now on all streaming platforms.
