Category: pop gigs
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Thundercat live at O2 City Hall review – virtuoso bassist goes full jazz fusion
Thundercat may be one of the world’s most respected bassists, but in this exhausting set of samey solos his technical wizardry was largely lost to City Hall’s booming acoustics. Alex Walden and Bertie Kirkwood jointly report.
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Girl Ray live at Belgrave Music Hall review – playful disco gets lost in the mix
Playing to a sparse crowd in Belgrave Music Hall, Girl Ray’s undercooked hour of straightforward disco-pop had highlights but suffered from a muddy mix and was ultimately upstaged by their support act.
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Jessie Ware live at Victoria Warehouse review – unparalleled joy
This seasoned popstar knows what she’s doing when it comes to delivering a night out for the ages. This deeply uplifting evening came replete with flawless disco sing-alongs, nut-tight choreography and even a stellar Cher cover to boot.
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Penelope Scott & Lincoln live at the Deaf Institute review – agonisingly unprepared
A dejected, overwhelmed Lincoln set the scene for a thoroughly unprofessional showing from Penelope Scott, whose pitchy vocals and underwhelming songs made the hour feel like two.
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Couch live at Band On The Wall review – eight-strong funk group go all in
Every song was a showstopper for a celebratory final night of Couch’s debut international tour in an ambitious show packed with unrelenting funk-pop grooves, countless glorious solos and the best Harry Styles cover money can buy.
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Self Esteem live at Sage Gateshead review – left-field pop firebrand is the full package
Arriving at one of the grandest venues of her career to date, Self Esteem threw the kitchen sink at this performance at the Sage with snappy choreography and slick costume changes. Rarely was the show anything but utterly spectacular.
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Rianne Downey live at Oporto review – bigger stages await
Her songwriting ability may be still developing, but Rianne Downey already owned the stage at Oporto, a low-key venue that felt far too small for a vocal talent of this calibre.
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easy life live at O2 City Hall – indie pop stars get carried away
Hundreds of university students descended on Newcastle’s City Hall for an evening of singalong soft pop and RnB so unnecessarily injected with superficial rock and roll antics it made you wonder if Murray Matravers and co have chosen the wrong genre.
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Carly Rae Jepsen live at O2 Academy review – pure, perfect pop
She may be synonymous with the hit that first shot her to fame, but the party-ready fans that packed into Leeds’ O2 Academy knew Carly Rae Jepsen had more to offer, namely a flawless set of pristine pop with sparkling, singalong hooks at every turn.
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Florence + the Machine live at first direct Arena – cult queen reassembles her army
Florence Welch’s outstanding 2022 album Dance Fever dominated proceedings for a thrilling, theatrical Saturday night performance in Leeds. Knowingly the subject of cultish devotion, Welch’s return was a theatrical celebration of collective pandemic persistence.
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Phoebe Green live at the Cluny review – strong material fails to come alive
Touring the UK on the back of daringly original debut album Lucky Me, Phoebe Green’s attention-grabbing pop creations deserved a keener reception in Newcastle. Seemingly put out by the poor attendance and lacking in conviction, Green’s performance struggled as a result.
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Sigrid live at O2 City Hall review – uninhibited pop joy
Bursting onto stage with trademark energy and buckets of charisma, when Sigrid found her stride in Newcastle she had the place well and truly bouncing. It was the more tender numbers that needed the most refinement.
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Cassia live at NUSU review – sunshine pop trio deserve more
Stuck in an under capacity students’ union and struggling to whip up excitement in the crowd, Cassia’s catalogue of uplifting indie pop tracks will have more successful outings than their trip to Newcastle. Patches of effervescent Mancunian calypso gave a taste of just how brilliant the trio could be.
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Parcels live at O2 Ritz review – reaching for nightclub nirvana
Leaning heavily into the world of nightclub-ready dance music, a constantly evolving Parcels gave plenty of reason to dance the night away for an eager Manchester crowd. As a live act, they’re only getting better and better.
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Dua Lipa live at first direct Arena review – a flamboyant new queen of British pop
No expense was spared on the Leeds leg of Dua Lipa’s victorious world tour, after 2020’s Future Nostalgia changed the face of modern pop. With slick transitions and memorable visuals, this was a performance dense with bona fide pop smashes and jaw-droppingly theatrical highlights.
Undertone 