1D proves 2B impressive

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This article was published 24/07/2015 (3908 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Things felt oddly calm entering Investors Group Field Friday night to partake in the extravaganza that is One Direction’s On the Road Again tour. That didn’t last long, though.

Within seconds of being on stage, fireworks began shooting out from all over the place, fans screaming their throats raw before even catching a glimpse of the foursome. As they walked onstage, things went to a whole other level.

Without wasting a minute, they blew through group of songs mostly from their newest album, Four, at the top of their set, opening with the anthemic Clouds and continuing with Steal My Girl and Where Do Broken Hearts Go.

As expected, the show One Direction puts on is pretty much flawless. By now, these guys are pros at stadium tours and it is obvious in the way they worked the massive stage with ease, making sure to rotate themselves often so fans on all sides could see their favourite guy up close.

Before too long, they had made their way out to the stage extension to the middle of the floor, tens of thousands of hands feverishly waving to them as they sang. It’s impressive how dedicated they seem to their fans — each band member took the time to say thank you (multiple times) for the support and taking time and money to show up. Not every artist does this, and they should.

A slightly more acoustic set featuring Don’t Forget Where You Belong and Little Things showcased their vocals wonderfully — as mentioned in the pre-concert story, these guys are talented singers. They had no trouble powering through the more than two hour performance with very few shaky moments to note. It’s clear, though, that one vocalist is weaker than the rest (*cough*Louis Tomlinson*cough*) who had trouble keeping up nearing the end of the show. But lucky for him, the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts, and when they all harmonize together, it’s pretty impressive.

The pacing of the show was also perfect — the band members took breaks to talk with the audience but it never felt like filler or lag time. They were funny and charming and cute and all those other good things that boy bands should be, and the audience was lapping up every moment of it. The swoon-factor was through the roof.

Of course, they were applauded back on stage for a four-song encore, and ended the night with the explosive Best Song Ever, shooting one final blast of fireworks into the night sky. These guys give the fans what they want, and it’s doubtful there was one person who left IGF unsatisfied.

Swedish electro-pop duo Icona Pop opened the night with an unexpectedly fantastic set of amped-up tunes perfect for a crowd as antsy to get the night going as this one was.

This genre of music is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea but their vocals were consistently strong, easily holding up in the stadium setting, and their often difficult harmonies were on point.

There was a general “girls are awesome” vibe as the female duo sang a song about being best friends and did call-outs for “strong girls” and “sexy mamas” while backed by an entirely female band and dancers (who were all wearing flat shoes, I might add — girl power, indeed). The shtick could have been eye-roll-worthy, but it wasn’t — it was oddly endearing.

They closed their set with their biggest hit, I Love It, which brought the entire crowd to their feet for the first time of the evening. It’s doubtful anyone really remembered who opened as soon as One Direction got onstage, but for the time they were onstage, they made a wonderful impression.

erin.lebar@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @Nirerabel