Roxette

Roxette are the second-most successful pop act ever to emerge from Sweden; when the number one slot on that list is inhabited by ABBA, though, you quickly realise there’s no shame in being number two. After all, Roxette’s sales figures would likely sit them at the top of the pile in most other countries; over the course of a career that’s no stretched over almost thirty years, they’ve sold in excess of sixty million records across the globe, as well as seeing their records Joyride and Look Sharp! go platinum on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in Germany. The duo - comprised of Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson - have had plenty to contend with over the years, too, both professionally - having to adapt to the demands of a constantly shape-shifting pop industry - and personally, with Fredriksson’s diagnosis with a brain tumour in 2002 forcing the pair to stay away from the live stage for seven years. They’re well and truly back on it now, though, finally making it to the Night of the Proms in Belgium in 2009 seven years after having to shelve an appearance. They went on to play a huge European tour to rave reviews, with classic cuts accompanied by new material on the setlist and a stunning live show bringing the work of one of pop’s best-loved duos to life.

Roxette often get overlooked due to the phenomenal success of fellow Swedish pop juggernauts Abba, however the band have enjoyed an incredibly successful career globally and unlike the Eurovision quartet, they continue to tour to their loyal fanbase.

They are a joy to watch live and really bring a quality of fun and free spiritedness to the show which goes down wonderfully with the audience. Supported by a brilliant band, they begin with 'Dress For Success' and the hits just keep coming. What I imagined would have made a worthy finale, 'It Must Have Been Love' is played mid-set as the audience bellow back the familiar lyrics whilst Marie Fredriksson conducts them to sway in unison.

With the feel good vibes at their very height, they continue with 'Dangerous' and 'Joyride' before disappearing to huge cheers to encore. They happily bound back onstage and thank the crowds for singing along to such great effort before one final performance of 'The Look' proves that there is no shame in coming second, especially where Swedish pop is concerned.

The duo was wonderful. Great setlist, perfect stage presence, flawless musical performance. Marie had to perform the whole event sitting down in the same place, and yet her voice never faltered, the tune was never lost, her wild high notes and sudden improvs never failed. They drove us wild and we jumped an sang along at the top of our lungs. We clapped until our hands were raw and we felt lost when it was over.

On the flip side, the Berlin O2 Arena is one of my least favourite concert venues. It's huge and beautiful, but the concert started one hour and a half late, at which point the people in the pit were already exhausted and cranky. The sound quality was amateur hour, and there are no secondary screens of any sort, so the people in the nosebleed section (or in fact even in the good seats) might as well stay home and watch it on Youtube. If you ever buy seats in this venue, remember to bring a really good pair of binoculars.

Even though I knew that Marie has serious health problems, and I was happy to take part in their concert in Budapest, I couldn't help feel that no power, but a kind of 'sick' energy came from the stage, made me feel unconfortable.
Songs are awesome, but she had a very weak voice and was seemingly not in mood to perform on wednesday. :(

Excellent!
Marie's effort is admirable. She's got money enough to retire, but she fight against her illness and gives all their fans a priceless gift.
Per is as magnificent as always. He's the Boss of Pop Rock.
And last but not least, the band was awesome.

Roxette concert was amazing... They are such a nice duo... despite Marie is still a bit fragile they did a great show, perfect voices and even the piano song with the backvocal was AWESOME. I was so touched by their concert.

A great concert, Roxette are true superstars
lots of singing and dancing from the crowd.
Sad to see Marie suffering with her ongoing illness but she can sing as well as the day they started.
Really hope they tour again

It was so great and amazing!! From the very first song till the end!! I love Roxette so much!! Perfect sound! Drive! So many songs!! I wanna go to their concert over and over again!