Take That
22nd November 2017
Trusts Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Megs Moss.
We are getting close to Christmas; people can smell it in the air, that tantalizing aroma of bbqs by the beach and long lazy evenings. The silly season is upon us and it is time to let down ones hair. So what better way to do so then by reliving one’s teenage years spent lying on the bed listening to songs sung by the good looking boys on the posters splashed across the bedroom walls.
For the many in attendance tonight that is exactly what this evening would be; a trip down memory lane. A chance to leave their troubles at the door and just immerse themselves in ninety minutes of light hearted fun. For the more die hard New Zealand based Take That fans this was the show of a lifetime. With the band having never made it down to the land of the long white cloud before their split in 1996 many thought that the dream was over. When it was announced that the band had reformed in 2006 thousands had their hopes reignited; even more so when Robbie Williams himself rejoined the band in 2010. Alas it wasn’t to be and it was another seven years (and the shedding of two core members later) before Take That would finally make it down to Aotearoa.
Still for the three thousand fans in attendance tonight – many of whom were of the ex-pat persuasion – better late than never. The mainly female audience, dressed to impress, lined up excitedly outside the doors of Trusts Arena, many chattering over who was their favourite member or what song first brought them into the Take That fold. With over thirty-seven No.1 albums worldwide and a further fifty-six No.1 singles there is no denying that this former boy band formed in Manchester in 1990 certainly left their mark on the pop world.
With no support act tonight the show was due to kick off at 8pm. Unfortunately due to the fact that all food and drinks were located outside of the arena it took a while to shepherd everyone inside, the show starting thirty minutes later than scheduled.
Against a rather spectacular backdrop made up of hundreds of LED lights, representing a starlit sky, the five piece Take That band made their way out onto the stage. Straight into the opening notes of ‘Shine’ from the 2006 album Beautiful World and the audience were out of the seats and on their feet, many in the front sections making a dash for the barrier – security knowing better than to get in the way of a woman and her teenage idol.
Running out onto the stage the three remaining members of Take That looked rather resplendent in their military styled jackets over simple black t-shirts. The cheering intermixed with more than just a few high pitched squeals was almost deafening but undoubtedly would have been a confidence booster for the three slightly tired looking gentleman on stage. “Kia Ora Auckland, thanks for coming” – Mark Owen taking the reins straight off the bat on vocals as Gary Barlow seated himself behind the piano with Howard Donald just off to the side.
After a rousing rendition of ‘Greatest Day’ with ample encouragement from the boys for the audience to throw their arms in the air and wave them back and forth – an instruction that didn’t need to be given twice as the fans fully threw themselves into the moment – the trio slipped into ‘Get Ready For It’ from their 2014 album III. A highly energetic tune it seemed to electrify the trio as Owen and Barlow bounced up and down on stage while Donald periodically beat a large stand-alone drum. While pleasant enough one couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the song was a bit of a Coldplay clone…
“Thank you so much and good evening everybody” Barlow addressing the audience for the first time “welcome to the show; ok tonight we are going to go back as far as 1991 ok?” his statement eliciting whoops of joy from those old enough to remember the early 90’s. In a clever piece of scheduling however before the trio threw themselves back in time they introduced a brand new track. Yes that’s right – a brand new track. Take That are still creating new music having released their eighth studio album just this year entitled Wonderland. While the song unfortunately featured the insipid lyrics one has come to expect from the generic pop of today, the tune itself was catchy enough and it could easily fit nicely onto the soundtrack for the latest animated kids movie.
Plunging head first into their back catalogue Owens got the ball rolling on fan engagement by getting down into the pit and taking his time moving along the front row, shaking hands and high fiving some of the younger members as rather creepy cardboard cut outs of the bands faces were waved enthusiastically in the air by a large group of fans. Take That hovered around 2008 for a while, playing a handful of tracks off their album The Circus before going in deep for ‘A Million Love Songs’ from 92’ and ‘Everything Changes’ from 93. While Barlow is the obvious heavyweight in the vocal department, Owen and Donald perform well despite Owens obvious issues with his inner ear piece.
Having ditched the jackets the trio launched into some slightly cringe worthy choreographed dance moves; the crowd however lapping it up and cheering them on. One thing was for certain though, Take That – well what remains of them – aren’t quite ready to bow out just yet. Able to sing, dance and play a multitude of instruments (Owen often on guitar while Barlow prefers the piano) they are well respected by their fans and despite being firmly planted in the genre of pop music their live performances certainly elevate them above the standard.
Of course the absolutely stunning light show – one of the best that has been seen at the arena in quite some time – and an outstanding performance from the backing band undoubtedly went a long way in adding to the authenticity of the overall performance. Take That could have easily leaned on their cult status and delivered less, but in true English style they instead delivered on their promise of giving the fans a night to remember.
A Bee Gees cover and a rather impressive new track by the name of ‘Cry’ that showed that Take That are still current enough to produce a fairly decent club banger and it was into the encore; the audience physically making the floor quiver as they stomped their feet in demand for the boys to return to stage. ‘Back For Good’ may have possibly been heard several streets away as the audience sang along to each and every line while ‘Rule The World’ saw – upon Barlows instructions – the arena light up to thousands of cell phones. Finishing on the rather poignant ‘Never Forget’, the trio thanked the audience with genuine gratitude before leaving the stage as the band played them out.
Judging by the huge smiles leaving the arena last night, a trip down memory lane may have been just what the doctor ordered.
Were you there at Trusts Arena for this magnificent boy band flashback? Or have you seen Take That live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Shine
- Greatest day
- Get Ready For It
- Giants
- Hold Up A Light
- Patience
- Pray
- The Garden
- Up all Night
- Said It All
- Babe
- A Million Love Songs
- Everything Changes
- Could It Be Magic
- How Deep Is Your Love [Bee Gees Cover]
- Relight My Fire
- The Flood
- Cry
- These Days
- Back For Good [encore]
- Rule The World [encore]
- Never Forget [encore]
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