LIVE REVIEW: AQUA – Fremantle, 5 Nov 2014

LIVE REVIEW: AQUA – Fremantle, 5 Nov 2014
Aqua, Wednesday, 5 November, 2014 – Metropolis Fremantle, Western Australia
Reviewed by Katrina Johnston

The past couple of years has seen a slew of bands from the ‘90s or earlier reforming for a last performance – or, to the cynics, a last cash grab before their fanbase join the zimmer frame brigade. With this in mind I entered Metropolis Fremantle as the ‘90s nostalgia washed over me. My eight-year-old self was delighted – it brought to mind blue light discos and lip syncing to the likes of Britney Spears, Spice Girls and of course Aqua. Whilst I was waiting for Aqua to take the stage I took in the variety of fans that Aqua had managed to still retain, from the above forties right down to the teenagers who may have discovered their CDs whilst trawling through their elder sibling’s collection. Despite never repeating the heights of fame they achieved with their hit single Barbie Girl, the number of fans present proved that they have not been forgotten.

After waiting almost two hours Aqua finally took the stage and I realised several things. Firstly that my expectation of hearing a band in need of auto-tune was completely unfounded. Whilst not the most astounding musical or vocal talents the entire band have not lost their boppy talents, particularly the female lead Lene. They delighted the audience with their most well-known numbers including Barbie Girl, Doctor Jones and Turn Back Time, but the majority of the set list included the newer songs from the band created after their reforming. Whilst still enjoyable I was not drawn into the lesser known songs as with the older songs. The main difference between these two areas of the band discography was the loss of bubble-gum pop sound in favour of a definite euro dance style. This however didn’t result in anything particular new or astounding. The energy of the band’s performance was a bit lethargic to begin (although it should be noted the lead singer in particular was recovering from illness). The energy did pick up as the performance went on and thankfully was kept high until the end of the performance.

As a whole the performance was good but not exemplary. The band had a good rapport with the fans but the low starting level of energy made the banter with fans feel slightly forced. For hardcore fans they would have been satisfied but for someone like me who enjoyed the band as a young child I enjoyed the nostalgia but was not by any means blown away. The final note on this show is that whilst Aqua is definitely a band with talent exceeding their one hit wonders they are by no means a band that will blow you away. Unless, maybe, you’re an eight year old.

Category: Live Reviews