One Direction dazzles Hong Kong with On the Road Again tour [Review]
Some girls' dreams came true at One Direction's first Hong Kong concert on Wednesday.The screaming was so loud on Wednesday night, I was pretty convinced some eardrums would rupture. And this was before One Direction even took the stage at the AsiaWorld Expo for their fourth headlining tour, On the Road Again.
As the speakers boomed out the Macarena, some Beyoncé and even the theme from Friends, the audience - comprised of a surprising number of pre-tweens and grown women - were already enjoying the party.
Then the lights dimmed, the screaming got even louder, and there they were: 1D, in the flesh, singing in Hong Kong for the first time ever. They looked dashing in casual clothes, although Harry still needed a haircut.
With the opening song Clouds, they headed right to the front of the stage so fans at the back could get a better view. The energy was electric, heightened by the infatuated crowd who sang along to every song and shrieked "I love you!" every three seconds.
Hits Steal My Girl, Midnight Memories, and Kiss You followed, making it quite impossible not to dance and sing along. Harry, Liam, and Niall were charismatic, but Louis didn't seem to be enjoying himself much, and Zayn looked tired. (We'll cut Zayn some slack: sadly, the day after their Hong Kong show, they announced he'd quit the tour due to "stress" and was flying back to the UK to recuperate. Hope he works things out with fiancée Perrie Edwards.)
Back to the concert. Liam did most of the talking, thanking the fans for their support, reading out several posters, while Harry led the band in singing Happy Birthday to a lucky girl. It was nice, but some backstage anecdotes or a funny personal story would have made the show more intimate.
After a touching Don't Forget Where You Belong, they slowed things down a bit, singing the syrupy Little Things along to Niall's guitar. The tender moment was ruined though, thanks to the loud girls behind me screaming out the lyrics, completely off tune.
Then it was back to party mode, with uber-catchy tunes including One Thing, What Makes You Beautiful, Girl Almighty, Story of My Life, and Best Song Ever.
It was 1D at their best, playing songs effortlessly, with a youthful and sprightly vibe, and the fans in Hong Kong responded.
As Liam himself noted: "You're not the biggest crowd, but you're definitely the loudest!"