Music
Review
What we learned at the Summer of Steps show
Steps are touring the country this summer with their Grandslam tour.
When it comes to pop comebacks there are very few acts that have managed to replicate their past success, and Steps have shown the pop world how it’s done, bringing some unashamed colourful fun back into the charts.
Their idea of a one-off show to celebrate their 20th anniversary manifested to a huge arena tour, a Gold-selling album Tears on the Dancefloor, and now they are on the road again this summer playing castles, cricket grounds, and festivals. This weekend the party came to Canterbury’s Spitfire Ground.
It’s the pop carnival of your wildest dreams
This is the place to forget your troubles. The sun is shining, the dancers are waving pink flags. Psychedelic flowers flash across the screen and the party has begun. Opening the show with the fitting Summer of Love, Steps swish across the stage wearing eye-catching glitter and bright magenta pink. Feeding off the crowd’s infectious energy it is like a parade on and off stage.
The setlist has had a revamp
For anyone who caught the Party on the Dancefloor arena tour, they have picked out the highlights from that setlist and given them a summer shake-up. Gone is the spooky caped Scared of the Dark intro, and the If You Could Read My Mind interlude has been replaced by ABBA hit Voulez-Vous. There is a new edition in the form of disco banger Glitter & Gold, naturally coming with new choreography to follow. Fan favourite Say You’ll be Mine makes a return as a country style re-work, and has the audience waving along.
The costumes have the wow factor
Stripped back staging calls for more elaborate costumes, and the band once quoted as looking like “tropical fruit” don’t disappoint. Not only is there sequins, glitter, AND tassels, but for Chain Reaction they emerge from behind hospital screens as doctors and nurses, paying homage to their 2001 music video. The encore sees them don the look of the night; blue futuristic outfits with neon visors.
They’re having as much fun as the fans
After all these year’s they evidently still love to perform and the camaraderie within the band is a pleasure to watch. Throughout the show, they joke around pulling faces at each other and cheeky H, always finding opportunities to misbehave, slaps Faye’s bum. At the start of Stomp Claire misses the first line due to laughing, prompting the audience to sing it for her.
They’ve still got it
It is hard to believe that 21 years have passed since they first launched onto the pop scene as PWL’s line dancing pop band. They barely look a day older and with full-on dance routines they still give that famous live performance that won them a BRIT Award in their heyday. In fact, they have just reached No.1 in the music video chart for their Party on the Dancefloor Live from the SSE Wembley Arena film. As the show closes with biggest hit Tragedy, this is unquestionably a group who have longevity past the nostalgia.
Tickets for the remainder of the Summer of Steps tour are available now through Ticketmaster.co.uk.
