Keith Urban review: NASCAR show in Chicago keeps up a speedy pace

It wouldn’t be NASCAR in Chicago without some kind of weather disruption. For Keith Urban’s headlining set on Sunday, it happened to be a freak dust storm. As gusts picked up in the late afternoon, cyclones of dirt spun off the softball fields in Grant Park, prompting people to run for cover. “This is the freaking Windy City for sure,” the star declared.

It was just one of the many twists in a frenzied and entertaining set that was quite literally all over the place. Urban was a human ping-pong during the 90-minute show, jumping from the stage to the pit to the middle of the crowd without much thought, all while his handlers followed behind with his mic stand and rotating guitars.

After kicking things off with his new country pop single "Straight Line” (still hot from a performance on CNN's “Fourth in America” special last week), Urban noticed a small group with the Special Olympics at the barrier and jumped down to greet them. “Talk amongst yourselves, we’ll be right back,” he joked, as he signed autographs and took selfies.

Later, Urban found himself smack dab in the middle of the field at the DraftKings Stage, which, for the fourth time this weekend, should have been much more crowded than it was. “Check you guys out, you have front-row seats,” said Urban to the small mob that gathered around him. The remark was as ridiculous as when he took out a pair of binoculars to get a gander at the half-full field.

Urban stayed in the thick of it for an acoustic cover of Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” mashed up with his own heartbreak revenge song “You’ll Think of Me.” After, he signed the guitar and threw it into the crowd for one lucky attendee.

The giving mood might have been related to the fact that it was the birthday of his and Nicole Kidman’s daughter, Sunday. “This morning, I woke up, we did presents and all the things and then got on a plane and came here,” Urban shared, leading the masses in a “Happy Birthday” singalong.

In September, the multiple Grammy and ARIA winner will release “HIGH,” his first new album in four years. Promo materials have likened it to a “living in the moment” message — and that sentiment quickly took over Urban’s performance. “All I’m asking of you the next 90 minutes or so, is to let everything go. … We’re going to live in an alternate reality right now where everything is good,” he shared.

And so it was. The feel-good foot-stomper “Wild Hearts,” accompanied by Urban’s masterful guitar shredding, was an early energy booster. As was new track “Wildside,” which had been played live only once before. The trajectory continued with some unexpected notes of Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits” and Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero.” Even Pink appeared in a hologram for her parts in the collaboration track “One Too Many.”

So, by the time Urban shoved out a succession of loud blares from an air horn towards the end of the set, it wasn’t surprising; it just helped confirm his status as unofficial master of ceremonies. “I just imagined doing that and all the cars starting,” he joked.