Since his comeback, it’s hard to criticize the quantity of Robbie’s output given he’s tried his hand at pretty much everything from film work, to art shows, to Christmas albums. That being said, it may not be as hard to criticize the quality of his post Knebworth work; especially when compared against the level his turn-of- the-century-work reached. And whilst it might be easy(ish) to paper over the cracks in a greatest hits album, the quantity distribution is harder to disguise tonight in a live setting where visual cues (audience members with their phones out) and audio cues (the volume of the sing alongs) really do prove two things; one, the feast inside of Robbie’s first five albums was incredibly generous. Two, you really have to search hard for any treats (bar Candy) in his later work. And so what we get tonight is really a tale of two halves, one half (Old before I die, Strong, etc) is really as good as you can get from a pop superstar who was at the top of their game when they wrote the material; the other half, well, doesn’t compare and no volume of Red tracksuits, dancing girls, or cabaret quips can really pull it back. Robbie certainly tries – he talks us through his meta-analysis of his role this evening, he says nice things about the North East, he makes region specific (whey-aye) jokes – but there’s an unequal share of magic across his show. That being said, he sells the venue out and everyone else seems to have a great time, so it’s probably me. Absolutely worth mentioning both the crowd and the principal support (Kaiser Chiefs and Perrie) who turned up early, put on great performances, made a main show cameo, and really provided the energy and excitement.
