Kylie Minogue Golden Tour | Sir James Mitchell Park | Sat 9th March 2019 | ★ ★ ★ ★
Kylie Minogue’s highly acclaimed Golden Tour arrived in Perth on Saturday night. It was the first time to show had been performed outdoors and while the prospect of Kylie joining the wine sipping picnic vibe of the A Day on the Green brand may have held some appeal, a day of wet weather saw the crowds gathering on a sodden lawn to huddle under their plastic ponchos and rain jackets.
Seeing Kylie outside seemed odd, having seen her deliver some amazing shows over the years in the Entertainment Centre, Burswood Dome and Perth Arena – it’s like she might not actually exist in the outdoors. As we caught an Uber to the South Perth foreshore the driver said, “Well she’s over 50 now, and she made that country album, so she’s probably more a Day on the Green type of artist now.”
The line up included sets from Australian artists Hatchie and Client Liaison before Scissor Sisters frontman Jake Shears took to the stage with his vaudevillian act. Entering to the sounds of All That Jazz from Chicago Shears appeared in a tailcoat and sequined outfit.
Shears offered a number of songs from his debut solo album that he released last year, interspersed with well known songs from Scissor Sisters including Laura and Take Your Mama. The audience also got to hear some of his solo work including Sad Song Backwards, Big Bushy Moustache and the fabulous Creep City. He wrapped up his set with I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’.
Kylie’s presentation featured a huge video backdrop that was used to take us on a journey through the wild west of America, tumbleweeds, biker gangs, last chance saloons and cactus filled landscapes.
Backed by a throng of cowboy dancers Kylie arrived in a red dress and boots to sing the title track of her Golden album before launching into Get Outta My Way. She didn’t waste any time getting into her classics with Better the Devil You Know delivered early in the set. We returned the the country sounds with A Life Times to Repair.
A quick costume change occurred while a video played of Kylie singing the classic Blue Velvet. The singer appeared in a white outfit and offered a rocking version of Confide in Me.
Kylie chatted to the audience at the front of the stage and offered one thematically dressed audience member a rose while singing a line or two from Where The Wild Roses Grow – her collaboration with Nick Cave. It seemed a pity that she didn’t perform the whole song, it was the perfect opportunity to link her newer material to her previous work.
The show continued on with performances of Shelby 68, Wow, and mega-hit Can’t Get You Outta My Head. The song was beautifully merged into Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain, as Kylie headed off stage to change into a leather biker outfit.
Next up was Slow and the crowd got excited with a rawkus delivery of Kids, and a beautifully reworked version of The One was followed up by a sing-a-long of Stop Me From Falling.
After the biker-rally we headed to a picnic as Kylie acknowledged some of her fans had been listening to her for over 30 years. Her days in the stable of producers Stock, Aitken, Waterman was remembered with Wouldn’t Change a Thing which merged into a short rendition of I’ll Still Be Loving You and the twee Especially for You.
The ballad Lost Without You followed before Kylie launched into her opus for her fans All The Lovers. The track may not have been as big a hit as some of her other career high points but its an excellent tune that creates a memorable atmosphere.
Thankfully the final section of the show showed us that Kylie still knows how to party and is not heading off for a retirement on the ranch. The Studio 54 themed final section launched into the world of disco with New York City, the amazing Raining Glitter and party anthem On a Night Like This.
Next it was the song that started it all for Kylie, The Locomotion, reworked to be a disco thumper, and finally we were presented with the crescendo of Spinning Around.
The encore saw Kylie returning to the stage and sharing that every night of the tour is a dream come true, as she reflects on being a teenager singing into her hairbrush.
The final numbers were Love at First Sight and Dancing the the lead single from her latest record. Through the intermittent rain Kylie presented a show filled with energy and it rarely lost our attention.
Often the singers shows have been filled with massive technical theatrics, flying across auditoriums with angels, over the top costumes, and a hoard of backing dancers. Sometimes Kylie has been lost within the Kylie show. This time she was front and centre – and rightfully the sole star of her show.
Watching from the general standing area Kylie was a tiny figure on stage, the large video screens captured her for the spread out crowd but little was seen of the dancers and stage sets. I imagine if you were in the front row is probably a mind-blowing experience, but probably not for the majority of the audience. If the show had been presented in RAC Arena, it would have been sensational.
Rest assured Kylie is not yet hanging up her disco shoes, and fears of permanent move into country music and days on the green can be out aside.
Graeme Watson, Images: Andrew Whitton- taken earlier in the tour
