By George Solomon

FROM the moment Goo Goo Dolls made the bold decision to walk out to Pink Floyd at Rock City on Tuesday night, there was a feeling that it would be all downhill from there.

And, sadly, it was.

How a band who have been together for 28 years can still all but fill Rock City despite the fact that they appear to have just one song to really get the crowd going is astounding.

Iris, comfortably their best known tune, is saved for late on in the set and the whole night feels like a build up to it.

When they played Slide, arguably their second best song, early on, the female fan next to me showed her surprise at the move by turning to her partner and asking “already?!”.

At one stage front man John Rzeznik actually apologises for playing two brand new songs back-to-back. He is the star of the show but only offers the odd glimpse of charm.

The classic line of “loving being back here” is delivered with minimal gusto; the supposed heart throb looks like a man who knows his best days are behind him.

The other prominent member of the band, bassist Robby Takac, is the antithesis of Rzeznik – wide, greasy and far from smooth, he even takes over the mic for two songs in the latter stages and sounds like a 15-year-old competing in a battle of the bands.

A half hearted call by the crowd for an encore was regrettable; Iris would have been the best way to end an underwhelming night.