Concertgoers treated to entertaining time travelling By: Eva Wasney Posted: 11:00 PM CDT Tuesday, Sep. 21, 2021 Last Modified: 6:20 AM CDT Wednesday, Sep. 22, 2021 Updates

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/09/2021 (1758 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Turns out, the Vengaboys still like to party.

The first concertgoers back at Canada Life Centre since the start of the pandemic were treated to some serious time travelling Tuesday night. Back to a world where crowds are free to gather in large indoor music venues (with restrictions). And back to an era when Europop, platform shoes and mood rings reigned supreme — all the way back to the ‘90s.

Tuesday’s Electric Circus show — featuring Simone Denny, 2 Unlimited, Jenny from Ace of Base, the Vengaboys and Aqua — was a nostalgic return to live music at the venue, which hosted its last concert in January 2020.

For Loreen and Doug Buss, the blast from the past was a long time coming. Electric Circus’ cross-Canada tour was originally set to roll through Winnipeg last June, but was rescheduled three times owing to the pandemic. The couple was excited to use their long-held tickets.

“It’s finally here,” Loreen said.

“We love music, we love dancing and it’s been a long time,” Doug added. “Walking up to the arena… there’s a buzz, everyone seems excited to be out.”

Many in the crowd were stepping out in their ‘90s best. Tammy Blair was wearing butterfly clips in her hair and a sheer sparkly shirt over a tank top, “I just channelled my high school self and it’s lucky that the ‘90s are kind of coming back in style,” she said.

Blair, who works as a nurse, travelled to Winnipeg from Regina for the show with a large group of friends — all of whom were done-up in retro attire. Attending a concert for the first time in two years was a welcome reprieve from the stress of working in health care.

“It’s a good way to blow off some steam,” she says. “It’s a little bit of normal, even though it’s still tainted with the COVID stuff.”

Longtime MuchMusic hosts Rick Campanelli and Monika Deol, Beausejour-born host of the Electric Circus TV show, shared emcee duties.

Simone Denny, formerly of Canadian group Love Inc., kicked things off with a solo rendition of the band’s song, Broken Bones. Denny was a late addition to the lineup, filling in for Haddaway and Eiffel 65, who dropped off the tour on Monday due to travel issues and illness.

The Electric Circus stage and lighting set-up was noticeably sparse for the first two acts, leaving it up to the performers to bring the energy — not that the crowd needed much encouragement.

The audience of approximately 5,000 people was clapping and singing along as soon as the lights went down. The floor was set up for standing only and it was jarring to see a large crowd of people jumping and dancing in close proximity 18 months into a global pandemic.

Public health protocol at Canada Life Centre requires guests be fully vaccinated and wear a mask at all times. Physical distancing isn’t mentioned in the venue guidelines.

Flanked by two dancers, Dutch dance group 2 Unlimited gave a high-energy techno-infused performance. In between crowd pleasers, like Get Ready For This, frontman Ray Slijngaard mentioned that he was last in Winnipeg nearly 30 years ago. Most of the featured artists are now in their 40s and 50s and haven’t been performing regularly since their heyday.

Jenny Berggren from Swedish pop group Ace of Base ramped up the glitz with a full video production and multiple outfit changes while cycling through the band’s many hits, like The Sign, Cruel Summer and All That She Wants.

The Vengaboys came ready to party. And so did Winnipeg. The Dutch four piece bounded onto the stage in colourful outfits and launched into a karaoke version of Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom before capping things off with We Like To Party. They were the only group to perform new music — ironically, a single called 1999 released earlier this year.

Aqua had yet to take the stage at press time. It’s safe to assume Barbie Girl was on the setlist.

It was a mid-week concert full of songs heard thousands of times over. And it was a fittingly familiar homecoming for large-scale concerts.

eva.wasney@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @evawasney