One Direction’s ‘On the Road Again’ tour opened to a sold-out show at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday (11 Feb) night, to predictable volume of screams from all patrons, whether it be mum, dad or fan.
Although half-an-hour late, the crowd was kept entertained with various music videos playing via the almost, ultra-definition screens adorning the stadiums-stage walls.
They opened with ‘Clouds’ from their new album, which was upbeat and energetic, but they could make throat noises and their particular charm would make any seasoned Directioner over the moon and weak at the knees.
Although that song made it seem like they were ready to give a passionate and spirited performance, things took a sharp turn around the third song, when it seemed like a few of the band members energy were still in England. You could put it down to jet lag; and after five years operating as a marketing dream, you might think tiredness would start to leak through – and sadly it had.
Image © Dog And Fox CreativesVocally, they were impressive. As experienced performers, they had it down pat. No beats were missed, they reproduced their hits songs flawlessly and essentially gave us what we wanted to hear. But there was no energy. Niall Horan and his trademark guitar spiced it up a bit, as he could use that as a focal point between him and the crowd, and Harry appeared like he wanted to give a good show, but the others looked un-animated.
The on-stage banter between them has always been a part of the shows allure, but it was stale as Liam and Louis seemed to focus on how the burgers from a barbecue they had earlier were “really good”, and Zayn just bounded around looking mildly unimpressed.
It was clear though that this time round, One Direction's graphic and set designer knew what they were doing, as the stage and graphics that decorated it were professional but playful. The aesthetics of the stage itself, reminiscent of either a distorted road to somewhere or skatepark was also well designed and allowed for the band members to interact playfully with the stage, even though that component wasn’t utilised to its full potential.
Image © Dog And Fox CreativesAgain, the intensely clear screens came into play as well, allowing fans to get crystal views of the members and the charming and playful animations that accompanied their songs, even if they were up in the oxygen-thin alcoves of the stadium itself.
Whoever's choice it was, whether it be the members themselves or the people running the show, it was an interesting move to focus on their third studio album, rather than ‘Four’, their most recent release. Although Australia missed out on their ‘Where We Are’ tour, which focused on their album ‘Midnight Memories’, it seemed almost out of touch with their maturity levels, which completely differ from 2013, which was when they released that album.
But it was definitely a show, as fans and parents alike made it positively obvious that they were just happy to see them on stage once again, and to lap up their affectionate words for us – even if Harry did accidentally call us Sydney.
