Fresh from their success in 2014, pop's favourite supergroup McBusted returned to Birmingham for more nostalgia-infused frolics, and an attempt to display that their original material compares favourably with their previous guises of McFly and Busted.

McBusted

An opening montage of retro movies, ranging from the 'Karate Kid' to 'Back to the Future', this was a cleverly well-drilled musical cash machine making sure the show was high on style and peripheral amusements - a later arcade game contest ensued on 'Streetfighter', with even the most cynical of observers amused by Blanka's narrow triumph over Ken.

Bursting onto stage with exuberant vitality, they opened with 'Air Guitar'. Their song titles would benefit from a little imagination. Nobody expects them to match the song-naming heights of Morrissey, but a little ambitious wordplay wouldn't do any harm to their popularity, or would it? After all, songs such as 'What I Go to School For', 'Five Colours in her Hair' and 'Shine a Light' are loved for their simple melodies and life-affirming lyrics.

Transportation via a car allowed the sextet to play a four-track mini-set on the "B-stage", allowing those who were positioned at the back of the Arena to become a little more intimate with their guitar heroes.

Drummer Harry Judd's decision to remove his top and showcase his well-chiselled physique didn't exactly hinder the frenzied adulation, which reached fever-pitch for the obligatory encore, assisted by an impressively constructed parody of the 'Mighty Ducks' movie.

After the joyous encore, the game was over or at least until the following night when they would be rebooted for another evening of jollity. McBusted won't win any prizes for high artifice but in terms of giving a crowd a night of entertainment, McBusted fans left happily content and hoping they will have an opportunity to see them again before the 'Year 3000'.

Jamie Brannon


Twitter Page - https://twitter.com/mcbusted

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