It’s taken 25 years for Sugababes to finally launch their first-ever arena tour, but the trio’s latest headline show at The O2 proved them more than capable of commanding the stage with their enviable catalogue of chart hits.
A year and a half after they first headlined the venue, the Babes’ return to the 20,000-capacity arena marked the second stop in an extended run of shows across the UK and Europe, coinciding with the release of two new tracks – pop banger Jungle and slow-burn R&B gem Weeds – from their upcoming ninth album.
Together, they’re emblematic of group’s set as a whole; a fusion of all-out anthems and lush ballads that place the focus solely on the flawless blend of harmonies between Keisha Buchanan, Mutya Buena and Siobhán Donaghy, who formed the group as teenagers and launched into the Top 10 of the UK charts with Overload, which kicked off a 20-song run spanning three decades.
Entering on the B-stage, seated for the track’s iconic choreography, the group soon made their way back along the catwalk while firing through a trio of Xenomania-produced hits – Hole In The Head, In The Middle and Red Dress – reminding fans of the pop credentials that helped them become one of the most successful British girl groups of the 21st century.
Revisiting their debut LP, ‘One Touch’, at the halfway point, against a backdrop of footage from the era, showcased not only how far Sugababes have come in the years since, but also the timeless appeal of the earliest works, which remain as fresh today as they did two-and-a-half decades ago.
A ballad-heavy mid-section offered a vocal masterclass, with classics such as Shape, Too Lost In You and Stronger, plus deep cuts like ‘The Lost Tapes’ album track No Regrets, delivered to perfection.
Such an extended run of downtempo tunes may be a put-off for fans of the group’s glitzier late-2000s/early-2010s material, but Sugababes today are a different group altogether (no, really, none of the line-up that produced the band’s most-recent hits are in the current – and original – iteration), and that didn’t stop them bringing the energy for a final party, launching with a cover of Sweet Female Attitude’s Flowers and roaring through chart-topping hits Freak Like Me, Round Round, Push The Button, and the final song of the night, About You Now.
Wrapping up after around 1hr15mins, it’s a tight, slick production, led by the Babes and their undeniably stellar band, that could easily have been extended – especially considering their expansive repertoire and notable omissions from the set.
Leaving a crowd wanting more is never a bad thing, however, and there’s no feeling of being short-changed here; almost 30 years since they formed, Sugababes are at the top of their game and with their latest LP due later this year, fans have plenty left to look forward to yet.
Setlist: Sugababes, The O2, London
1. Overload
2. Hole In The Head
3. In The Middle
4. Red Dress
5. Ugly
6. No Regrets
7. Flatline
8. Shape
9. Run For Cover
10. Lush Life
11. One Touch
12. Weeds
13. Too Lost In You
14. Stronger
15. Flowers (Sweet Female Attitude cover)
16. Round Round
17. Jungle
18. Freak Like Me
19. Push The Button
20. About You Now
