Westlife flying high as Gravity tour comes to Belfast

Thirteen years after they first formed, and some 14 number one hits later, the Westlife boys, Shane Filan, Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily, thrilled fans at the Odyssey as they played their 54th and 55th gigs at the venue which has become a second home to the Irish band.

Looking dapper in suits and bowler hats, the boys descended from the ceiling opening the show with ‘No One’s Gonna Sleep tonight’ - and judging by the hysteria the boys caused, no one certainly would be sleeping after the show.

The boys kept the crowd up dancing as they rocked the house with ‘When You’re Looking Like That’ and ‘World of Our Own’, before slowing things down with ‘What Makes A Man’ - a sure fan favourite as the crowd sang every word.

Using stunning HD screens, the stage was filled with spectacular light and colour throughout the night as the backdrop changed constantly from cityscapes, to fish, hot air balloons and even a swimming elephant, which may sound bizarre, but certainly looked stunning.

Launching into recent hit ‘Safe’ and their incredible version of ‘Home’, the boys took time out to speak to the crowd and read out some of the many banners - some incredibly saucy - held aloft for them.

Introducing one of their latest tracks from the Gravity album, ‘Beautiful Tonight’, Nicky Byrne told fans that the band had wanted to in fact release the song as their second single from the album, an idea thwarted by Simon Cowell - “So we got rid of him,” Byrne declared, referring to the recent split from music’s ‘Mr Nasty’, a move approved of by the Belfast crowd.

The boys turned up the heat for their renowned tour medley as they had the crowd rocking when they took on Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’, Rihanna’s ‘Only Girl in the World’, Laga Gaga’s ‘Bad Romance’, Black Eyed Peas’ ‘The Time’ and a fiery Kaiser Chief’s ‘I Predict A Riot’, which had the fans going wild.

Slowing things down, the boys took to the air in a set based on the famous 1932 photography by Charles C. Ebbets of New York construction workers, as they sat astride a beam in mid-air to perform a beautiful rendition of ‘Season’s In The Sun’, the wonderful ‘You Raise Me Up’, before giving a shout out to their families present in the arena for ‘I’m Already There’.

As the show came to a close, the boys ended the night with fantastic new track ‘I Will Reach You’, which should surely be released, before singing one of their biggest and best-loved hits, ‘Flying Without Wings’.

Shouts of ‘Westlife’ and ‘We want more’ filled the arena as fans awaited an encore, and they weren’t disappointed as the boys returned to the stage to sing the huge hit ‘What About Now’, before ending the night on a high with ‘Uptown Girl’.

Westlife may have been already going for 13 years, and with the second installment of their greatest hits due for release next year some may think the boys are ready for winding down, but they are hungrier than ever, dancing harder, singing better and enjoying every minute. No doubt there are many more Odyssey dates in store for Westlife, and this Belfast crowd will certainly be happy to hear that.

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