29/11/14: Last Saturday saw the return of British Pop’s beleaguered Queen of Controversy to the live stage…and where better for Tulisa to find redemption and resolve than at Heaven’s door? In her midst were, of course, the latest, fallen angels of The X Factor – band ‘Only The Young’ and one-man-wonder Stevie Ritchie.
First out were the former, looking every bit like an ASOS campaign in pleasant contrast to their evergreen, old school sound; ‘Blame It On The Boogie’, ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘Jailhouse Rock’ and even The Jungle Book’s ‘I Wanna Be Just Like You’ – with a big band dance break no less – comprised their set of classic tunes that struck a chord with us in the crowd.
Next was the show’s kitsch crooner Stevie Richie – carried on in a throne no less, before launching into an admittedly infectious version of Ricky Martin’s ‘Livin La Vida Loca’. Queen’s bombastic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ followed in outrageous and remarkable form – before a climatic end with ‘Footloose’ from the cult film of the same name.
So, the time had come to welcome Tulisa back to the stage after 18 months at large; the boys kept in chic suspense with a slick vogueing intro served by her all male backing dancers. When Tulisa emerged amidst flashing lights and fervent cheers, it was in rhinestoned seperates and ankle boots – giving us the full effect of her trim new look.
What followed was a set of synchronised moves, strong notes and dubstep breakdowns. Her first solo hit ‘Young’ was followed with a nod to her N-Dubz origins with a medley of hits before reaching a crescendo with latest single ‘Living Without Your Love’ in the trend of 90s House. She’s officially back, and it’s most likely we’ll be back at Heaven next weekend…for the latest fix of Saturday night entertainment!
Heaven, under the Arches, Villiers Street, Charing Cross, WC2N 6NG
Words by Yaf Brown
Photos by Chris Jepson
