(As published for Bournemouth Daily Echo)
CRAMMING
an arena-sized set onto the BIC stage could have proved an impossible
task for Girls Aloud's crew, but as soon as the girls flew onto the
stage like five angels emerging from the sky, it was clear they had
been successful, and that we were in for a delectable treat of stage
mastery.
They opened with Sexy No No No to a well coordinated
show of pyrotechnics in skimpy super-hero style outfits, and went on to
perform Sound Of The Underground - the song that catapulted them to
fame back in the days of Popstars: The Rivals.
Though you could
be forgiven for thinking you'd stumbled upon an Anne Summers catwalk,
their costumes were beautiful and perfectly suited to the set of songs
that followed the costume change.
The girls went on to perform
their showy rendition of Robyn's Every Heartbeat, before erupting into
their surprisingly good version of Salt-N-Pepa hit Push It.
While
supposedly tackling the reported problem of an imminent split and
Cheryl Cole's heartbreak over her husband's alleged affair, the girls
seemed to be enjoying themselves as much their audience. Despite all
the energy they put into each performance they did not appear to be at
all out of breath, and their was not a bead of sweat to be seen.
As
the product of a television talent show, nobody expected that Girls
Aloud would be able to claim such longevity in the increasingly fickle
world of pop, but the five-piece have proved they can keep producing
hits that appeal to the masses.
Allana Cutter