Review of Busted at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle

Busted turn back the clocks at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle.

On Saturday evening, the pop-rock outfit returned to Tyneside for their second show in the region this week. By the band's admittance, their Newcastle date was the first to sell out on this run, and subsequently, the crowd were more than ready for round two with Busted.

Busted are presently celebrating their landmark 20th anniversary. To mark this milestone in the group's history, they released their star-studded Greatest Hits 2.0 early in the week. Full of fire and enthusiasm, the group are hoping to bust their way to the top of the charts and the much-coveted Number 1 spot. And judging by the response from the Newcastle crowd on Saturday evening, their desired chart position is perhaps in their sites.

Fuelled by a perfectly fitting Back To The Future-esque video of Christopher Lloyd, aka Doc Brown, the group took to the stage and walked their die-hard fans down memory lane.

With nostalgic videos of the youthful outfit featured on gigantic screens at the rear of the stage, Busted delivered a set packed full of noughties classics. Opening the show with Air Hostess, Busted had the arena in the palms of their hands from the off.

James Bourne and Charlie Simpson were sporting AC/DC and Metallica t-shirts, respectively. And just like the band names emblazoned across their chests, Busted intended to rock out with the best of them.

Busted spared no expense on their production, with a diamond-shaped stage that featured walkways into the centre of the arena and a pit carved out in the middle to bring the fans closer to the action. And with Matt, James and Charlie frequently hurtling around the perimeter of the stage, the energetic outfit did exactly that.

Speaking of noughties nostalgia, US-based outfit Hanson have been accompanying the group as special guests on the tour. And during the set, Busted brought the band back to the stage for their second appearance of the evening for a thoroughly enjoyable airing of MMMBop 2.0 and Sleeping With the Light On. James Bourne was beaming throughout.

The inclusion of new song Good One showcased the evolution of the band's sound since the early days. With its big atmospheric chorus, it was certainly an

earworm. Anthem What I Go To School was one of the many highlights of the set. In the latter stages of the evening, the band went a bit Hollywood during a cinematic airing of Thunderbirds Are Go.

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An explosive rendition of 3 am and the unmistakable Crashed The Wedding brought the main set to an explosive conclusion, and we aren't just talking about the on-stage pyrotechnics.

A two-song encore catalysed by a retrospective look back at the 2004 Brit Awards, where the band won Best British Breakthrough Act ushered the crowd into punk rock classic Teenage Kicks. A song from the legendary outfit The Undertones. Whilst Year 3000 was the perfect closer to a glorious retrospective look back on Busted’s incredible career.

With talk of a new studio album next year, 20 years on Busted are still going strong and showing no signs of slowing down.