I'd been looking forward to seeing Pink for months but, before I could enjoy what I expected to be a spectacular show I had to jump the hurdle of London Transport closing the Jubilee Line. It's only closed for this bank holiday weekend, naturally. So, Northern Line to Moorgate, walk to Liverpool Street, Central Line to Stratford and then a bus to North Greenwich. The bus journey was really odd - I've never been on a bus in that part of London so hadn't seen the landscape before, acres of relatively 'new' houses with the odd taller building, empty streets, lack of shops and pubs and any kind of amenities. It may simply have been the route the bus took but it all seemed a bit flat and desolate. I much prefer the leafy late Victorian streets of south west London to east London. But back to Pink...
After visiting the overflowing merch stands and a feast of beer and chips, we took our seats in the arena to find we were almost as far away from the stage as it's possible to be and still be in the lower tiers. At least there was a clear view of the stage above the heads of people standing on the floor of the arena. The lights dimmed, and a video started rolling to a soundtrack of 'Highway To Hell' (eh??) and then a dancer emerged at the end of the runway and Pink exploded out of the runway and was pulled into the air on a rope, sporting a long fluffy pink tail as she drifted into the heavens above the crowd. She slowly moved towards the stage as the curtains fell to reveal a carnival themed set most appropriate for the Funhouse Tour - gaudy lights, hall of mirrors, two playground slides and even a waltzer. Tick for spectacle!
The show opened with 'Bad Influence' from 'Funhouse' and, as you'd expect, the latest album was heavily featured> The place erupted half-way through the show when she sang 'So What'. The song 'Funhouse' saw two giant, malevolent inflatable clowns suddenly appear behind the band, leering out at the audience - they deflated just as quickly. A high octane version of 'Ave Mary A' saw her prowling the stage and spitting out the lyrics with powerful backing. A high point was 'Sober' with Pink 30 feet above the stage being flung about by an acrobat and showing us her aerial moves while singing upside down and flying through the air on her trapeze - she was, obviously, attached to a safety wire but that was pretty impressive stuff. She did more aerial work later in the show attached to a bungee rope and bounced and spun above the heads of the crowd at the end of the runway and in the encore to 'Glitter In The Air' when she floated up, up and away wrapped in a billowing cradle with four dancers doing their stuff in mid air. When your pop star turns into a circus performer for real - rather than for a one-off trick - then you've got to love 'em!
The sound was great, the lights were spectacular, Pink's trapeze adventures were stunning and she was on top form, dancing around the stage and runway, teasing, taunting and flaunting, looking well fit and with a grin plastered on her face. She played old favourites interspersed between the new songs from 'Funhouse' and the only low point for me was the accoustic set half way through the show that not only slowed the pace down so the show could build again, but it seemed to lose it's way a bit - too many slow, accoustic songs and disappointing (to me at least) to have an accoustic version of 'Trouble' - I wanted to see her prowling the stage with electric howls for that song. The accoustic set finished with a Led Zeppelin song I didn't recognise with a long guitar solo at the end, obviously designed to allow Pink time to get off the stage into a new costume.
Pink does Led Zep? O yes. She also did 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in captain's hat and bright yellow ringmaster's jacket a la Freddie - I thought the opening bars were just the prelude to a segue into one of her songs but she did the whole song, and pretty damn fab it was too. Surprisingly! A final cover was Gnarls' 'Crazy' which she used to close the main show. I found that strange, to close the show with a cover of a song when she has five albums worth of her own songs. At least the encore included a stonking version of 'Get The Party Started'. It was followed by a tender 'Glitter In The Air' with Pink floating away wrapped in a golden cradle...I thoroughly enjoyed the pink-lass. Slinking around in sexy outfits, singing her heart out on the stage and in the air, great songs, acrobatics, giant clowns, bungee bouncing, a fun stage set and lights... what else could you possibly want? Good on ya, Pink!
Oh, and we got a taxi home ...
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