Elvis Costello - ArtPark 2022

Elvis Costello & The Imposters brought their summer 2022 tour to Artpark Amphitheater in Lewiston, New York, on August 9, 2022. The show came during a North American tour supporting The Boy Named If, with Nicole Atkins opening the evening. Artpark had Costello scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. start, making it one of the summer's notable shows in the Buffalo-area concert calendar.

Costello was touring with a lineup that included The Imposters, giving the performance the punchy combination of rock, new wave, punk, pop, and R&B that has defined so much of his career. The new album provided fresh material, but there was no shortage of older favorites for the Artpark crowd.

The timing of the show was particularly good for fans who wanted a career-spanning performance. Costello had been touring steadily behind The Boy Named If, but his concerts remained anything but predictable. Songs could shift from tightly arranged rockers into extended performances, with Costello frequently changing the flow of the set and giving The Imposters plenty of room to show off.

The tour had already demonstrated how broad the repertoire could be. Earlier shows featured classics such as “Accidents Will Happen,” “Alison,” “Watching the Detectives,” “Green Shirt,” “(I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea,” and “Pump It Up,” alongside newer material including “No Flag” and “Hetty O'Hara Confidential.”

Artpark was an especially appropriate setting for the performance. The outdoor venue in Lewiston sits close to the Niagara Gorge, giving summer concerts there a distinctive atmosphere that is very different from an arena show. Costello's combination of sharp songwriting and adventurous arrangements fit naturally into the relaxed outdoor environment.

The concert also came at an interesting point in Costello's career. More than four decades after his emergence as one of the most inventive figures of the British new wave scene, he was still touring with the same restless curiosity that had characterized his earliest records. A new album wasn't an excuse to abandon the classics, but neither was the show simply a nostalgia exercise.

For the Artpark audience, that was ultimately the appeal. Costello could deliver a beloved song almost exactly as fans remembered it, then take the next song somewhere completely unexpected. The Imposters provided the muscle to make both approaches work.

The August 9 performance was another strong entry in Costello's remarkably long touring history. With a great outdoor venue, a deep catalog, a new album to promote, and one of rock's most versatile performers leading the way, Elvis Costello & The Imposters gave Artpark a night that was as unpredictable and energetic as the artist himself.