Last year’s Girls Aloud reunion tour may have seen them fly over the crowd on motorbikes and Little Mix’s farewell tour in 2022 impressed as the stage transformed when inflatable elements started popping up during the show. But as Sugababes took to the stage at The O2 in London on Thursday night, there was less of a bright girl group spectacle and more of a masterclass in how to produce slick and cool pop tracks that transcend generations (and line-up changes).
This 90 minute show was a tour-de-force of the band’s greatest hits, with the crowd roaring along to hits like electrifying opener Overload and classics Round Round, Freak Like Me, Push The Button and Too Lost In You, which garnered one of the loudest reactions of the night. The lyrics of the show’s closing number, About You Now, take on a surprisingly emotional new meaning at the end of the whistle-stop tour down memory lane of this group’s turbulent 25-year history.
More goosebumps ensued as we watched footage of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhan Donaghy — who were 12 and 13 when they formed — as children. Narrating the clips, they told the crowd, ‘This isn’t about retreading old steps, it’s about finding ourselves back where we belong — together.’
Amongst the hits, newer tracks were peppered through the setlist. 2013’s comeback single Flatline — released 12 years after Siobhan originally left the group — and recent album cut No Regrets are meaningful for the group’s three founding members and their devoted fans, who have seen them fend off bullying claims, poor treatment from record labels and name changes.
And, give the response from the 20,000 strong crowd, new singles Jungle and Weeds are clearly well on their way to becoming Sugababes classics.
One slight criticism is the pacing of the show, which the group has been berated for on social media. Starting and ending the show strong with back to back fast paced hits left a long stretch of slower tempo tracks in the mid-section. While performed beautifully and allowing the Babes to show off their impressive vocals — which are unrivalled by their peers — the lull may fail to keep even the most hardcore of fans fully engaged.
If their performances on this UK & European tour are anything to go by, the girls’ forthcoming ninth album — this line-up’s third together — will have plenty more suga for us to overload on.
Sugababes tour the UK & Europe through April and May, for tickets visit sugababesofficial.com