Pet Shop Boys 

Live reviews

• I did not even dream that such spectacular lighting design and theatrical environments for concerts existed until I saw the Pet Shop Boys show for their 2013 album Electric. Es Devlin was the director of the stage and costume design for this tour and given her credentials and diversification "she has worked on plays (Batman, American Psycho) operas (Faust), dance productions (Northern Ballet Theatre) and pop concerts (Miley Cyrus, Kanye West: Yeezus tour )" it is no wonder this show was so visually captivating.

  This performance pushed the audiences senses in to overdrive. The paralyzing visuals were brilliantly coupled with the sophisticated elecro-pop for which the Pet Shop Boys are renowned. Their music was so impeccably delivered it seemed as if they could perform it in their sleep. In fact they did perform one of their songs "Love etc." lying in a bed which acted as a sort of scrim on which images of their contorting bodies were projected giving the illusion that Neil and Chris were experiencing a restless night. On other songs such as the classic " I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing" performers with cow skulls on their heads engaged in a bizarre tribal dance bursting into wild fits of tantrums which soon stabilized into a meticulously choreographed routine. Their closing track was a cover of the Village People's anthem "Go West" in which the two visual performers disguised as spiders pranced around on stilts. In case you didn't get the gist the performances of the Pet Shop Boys are exploding with excitement and innovative technical theatrics and are absolutely worth seeing.

  Considering the Pet Shop Boys have over 40 top 30 singles you better believe their setlist is going to be a crowd pleaser. They had every one in the theatre exuberantly dancing to "West End Girls" and passionately singing along to the serpentine ballad "It's a Sin". The Pet Shop Boys' cover songs are treat to hear as well. They are handled with such finesse and ingenuity that they rival the original recordings. They can take a slow country song like Brenda Lee's "You are Always on My Mind" and turn it into a club hit or take two songs of completely different styles like "Where the Streets Have No Name" and Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" and seamlessly meld them into a coherent idea. Taking influence from Broadway and following in the path of the great performing artists (Frank Sinatra and Dusty Springfield) it is without certainty you will be entertained.

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  by wjmcc

• I have liked Pet Shop Boys since I was a child but I've never been much of a fan, altough I really wanted to go to one of their concerts. This year I got the chance to see them at Budapest Park, Budapest, Hungary aka my homeland. I didn't expected them to blow my mind with their show or to make me want to see them again, since they are not my favourite artists.

  However they managed to do just that! They played a lot of songs that I liked from them such as Opportunities, Fugitive, Integral, Suburbia, I am not scared, I get excited, Rent, Miracles, Domino Dancing, Vocal. And they played songs I never heard before but can't stop listening to since the concert like Axis, A face like that, Leaving, Thursday. I think the songs for the setlist were picked out very well. The song selection was one of the many things that made the show brilliant. Neil sounded better live than on the albums. The lasers and strobes were so beautiful and the costumes blew my mind. The dancers were very professional.

  I believe the message of the Budapest Park concert or maybe the whole tour's message was one word "Hope". Because the songs not just made you party, but because of the well written lyrics made they also made you hope and believe that even if you think something is over, it might come to life again, because it's all right if the music plays forever. I recommend Pet Shop Boys to all Petheads and all non Petheads because their Electric World Tour shows are must see performances. And if you are planning to see one of the Pet Shop Boys Electric World Tour gigs, then get ready because they will blow your mind.

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  By Anonymous

• Pet Shop Boys at the Proms was a triple triumph. It was fantastic to hear the 1991 overture live played by the BBC orchestra and this was further trumped by hearing Chrissie Hynde sing 4 songs in A minor including Love is a Catastrophe, Later Tonight, Vocal and a duet of Rent with Neil Tennant. The final section of the concert was the premiere of A Man from the Future which was narrated by Juliet Stevenson and sung by the chamber singers and Neil with orchestra and electronica from Chris Lowe. I think it is a brave move for an electronic group to have experimented with so many musical genres and maintained the same quality output. This was a great evening and a fantastic launch for this year's late night proms.

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  by nathan-cresswell

• We went to see the Pet Shop Boys this Sunday gone at the Bournemouth international centre. My criticism was the seating, we were sat near the front but everyone was standing in front of us. So we had to stand through most of the show to see the PSB. They were one of my favourite bands in the 80s but here's my second and last criticism...they didn't hardly play any old stuff...I was expecting..Surburbia, So hard and a few others that we didn't hear. We were sat next to two ladies who had seen them before and these ladies did not think they were at their best. Id definitely recommend you going to see them but perhaps not on a Sunday night!

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  by lyn-sinclair

• This has probably been the fourth time I went to see the Pet Shop Boys live in concert and I was slightly disappointed this time... The show started off in a good way but in the middle it all went a bit dull. The choice of songs was not up to my taste (Winner, really??? And some other quite boring songs to perform live). But that's my personal taste. Towards the end of the concert it got better and better though with my personal favourite "It's a sin" as one of the closing songs. But... I'm still hoping to hear "Being Boring" one day...

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  by rve1707

• A happy intimate show in the wonderful setting of Carre. The Pet Shop Boys are still at the top of their game, delivering cutting edge electronic music to an adoring crowd. It was very special to see that they are appealing to a whole new generation as well as to their fans from the early Nineties.

  Catch this show at all costs.

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  by frederic-minvielle

• A true party! Amazing laser beaming extravaganza at a beautiful location! The young percussionists accompanying the boys were a fresh addition to the whole experience. Breathtaking light effects. Good set list. And the boys are just timeless!

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  by katerina-kramerova-h

• Blessed....

  #Super tour...WOW, Neil and Chris, U pull it off again....!!! A Not to miss show...Great mix of songs... and the stage and lights....JOY JOY JOY

  Boys.

  Thank You from the bottom of my Heat.

  <3 <3 <3

  -David

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  by david-mack

• A Sunday night at the MEN Arena with the Pet Shop Boys was so fantastic!!! The light show, the audience interaction was awesome.... a great range of old and new songs!!!

  30years and his voice is still incredible!!

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  by Chestercheeks

• Fun! Still wondering about some of the song choices though ... a little too slow and crooning (Home & Dry and Winner). I would rather have heard I Want a Dog and another more upbeat choice (so many to choose from)!

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  by tamtate