Boys are back for more

Quoted from: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/

'By Andzrej Lukowski, Metro
8 May 2006


Older but wiser? From left,
Howard, Gary, Mark and Jason.
CLICK IMAGE to enlarge

Before reality TV bastardised mainstream pop into music-for-mums, there was, of course, Take That.
So brilliant were they that by the time they split in 1996, they had achieved the unthinkable and become a credible boy band. But can the same be said for this reunion romp?
Leaving aside the absent Robbie Williams - who wasn't even there for the band's last tour in 1995 - the fact is that Gary, Jason, Howard and Mark aren't the youngest swingers in the joint.
But if Take That are older, so is their audience. It's not the prospect of Barlow whipping out his 35-year-old gut that sold out this tour in half an hour but the jaw-dropping run of singles he penned in the mid-1990s.
For a group whose tours were always witty, inventive and expensive, it would have been a shock if their live show hadn't been hauled into the 21st century, with tongue-in-cheek replications of previous live excesses.
Expect the gauntlet for pop tour of the year to be thrown forcefully in Madonna's direction.

Tonight until Wed, Wembley Arena, Empire Way HA9, 6.30pm (Wed 7.30pm), £30 to £35 (tonight and tomorrow returns only, Wed limited availability). Tel: 0870 060 0870. www.whatsonwembley.com Tube: Wembley Park'