Marina and the Diamonds dazzled her Newcastle’s O2 Academy audiences with her bombastic show. Apart of her Neon Nature tour, Marina’s set is split into three stages, chronicling each of her albums, The Family Jewels, Electra Heart and her latest output, the joyous Froot, simultaneously a strength and a weakness of her live set.
Marina is undeniably a delight to behold and is completely at home on stage, it is hard not to be spellbound by the whole experience whether you are one of her loyal ‘Diamonds’ or not. Dressed head to toe in glitter, in an orange flared sleeved crop trop and lilac flared trousers, she creates drama in every step she makes across the stage and topped with be bejewelled purple mouse ears.
‘I Am Not A Robot’ was a particular standout moment as a harmoniously sing-along, a fantastic start to an all-together exhilarating show. Her voice was pitch perfect and downright impressive. I Am Not A Robot’ showed the vulnerability and powerfulness of her range impeccably. Marina dived straight into the vibrant ‘Oh No!’ with the backdrop of a collage of changing emojis, concreting that every aspect of her show is a feast for the eyes. The stripped back ‘Obsessions’ further shows she is in command of pop hits and ballads.
reminding us of how much of a eccentric performer and pop star she has been from the very beginning, and how far she will continue to go with her loyal troops
She concluded ‘The Family Jewels’ with her perfect pop hit and cynical ode to America, ‘Hollywood’, a riotously fun song and a complete crowd pleaser. With flashing images of Roy Lichtenstein-esque women, she presents herself as an utterly likable and cartoonish performer.
Her whole persona is just as charming as her songs, sharing anecdotes of tasting the delicacies of our Christmas markets, in particular the vodka and Jagermesiter flavoured fudge, and her connection with the city as her parents married in Newcastle.
For her second act, Marina bounced onstage with pom-poms in hand for the ferocious ‘Bubblegum Bitch’, dressed in a baby pink and white cat suit. As the title suggests, ‘Electra Heart’ shows her shift towards more commercial electro pop, but is perhaps her weakest output. She presented her toy Marylyn for her biggest ‘Electra Heart’ hit, ‘Primadonna’, and a sister to ‘Hollywood’ as a tongue in cheek pop anthem packed with personality.
The final act, ‘Froot’, she looks incredible in a midnight blue glittery cat suit with a satin flouncy cape and a blue cherry headpiece, she opens with the undeniably funky titular track ‘Froot’ a highlight of the whole show and particular favourite of mine.
dressed head to toe in glitter, in an orange flared sleeved crop trop and lilac flared trousers, she creates drama in every step she makes across the stage
Despite keeping up her alternative pop principles, ‘Froot’ shows a more mellow and introspective change in her work, especially in the beautiful, ‘I’m A Ruin’, and the haunting ‘Immortal’, a downbeat misstep end to her set. However, Marina finished her encore with the upbeat and catchy ‘Blue’, encapsulating her ability to craft a bouncy and infectious pop song.
Although a fantastic show, I couldn’t help but feel like her strongest act was ‘The Family Jewels’ reminding us of how much of a eccentric performer and pop star she has been from the very beginning, and how far she will continue to go with her loyal troops of ‘Diamonds’.
Leah McAteer
