Chemistry Tour

Chemistry Tour
Arena tour by Girls Aloud
Location	United Kingdom
Associated album	Chemistry
Start date	22 May 2006
End date	3 June 2006
Legs	1
Shows	10
Girls Aloud tour chronology
What Will the Neighbours Say? Live (2005) Chemistry Tour (2006) The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Tour (2007)

The Chemistry Tour is Girls Aloud's second concert tour, in support of the group's third studio album Chemistry. Girls Aloud performed ten dates in various arenas across the United Kingdom, making it their shortest tour. The tour began in Nottingham on 22 May 2006 and concluded in London on 3 June 2006. They did not perform in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland during the tour.

History

The tour dates were announced towards the end of October 2005.^[1][2] Tickets went on sale on 4 November 2005, although pre-sale started two days earlier. The group did not tour in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland, due to low record sales in Ireland. Girls Aloud also made their festival debut at 2006's V Festival.^[3]

Kimberley Walsh said the tour would be "bigger and better" than What Will the Neighbours Say? Live, due to the size of the venues. "Everything will be in an arena so it gives us a bit more room to do some of the things we would have liked to have done last time."^[4] The stage included a catwalk which extended into the audience. There were two smaller video screens on the sides of the stage and a large one in the centre. The tour begins with an introduction "evokes memories of Weird Science", as a mad scientist creates five women. Girls Aloud then rise from underneath the stage.^[5] The introduction was seen as a reference to Girls Aloud's reality show beginnings.^[5][6]

During the show, Girls Aloud performed various covers. A sample of Amerie's "1 Thing" was incorporated into a dance break during "Love Machine". They performed a cover of Kaiser Chiefs' "I Predict a Riot". Audio of the performance was included on the rarities disc of Girls Aloud's greatest hits The Sound of Girls Aloud. A medley of songs from 1980s musicals was also included, featuring "Fame", "What a Feeling", and "Footloose". Their covers of "I'll Stand by You", "See the Day", and "Jump", which have been officially released, were also performed.

Critical response

The tour received widespread acclaim from contemporary music critics who complimented the show's relentless fun. Laura Lee Davies of The Times praised the show, calling it "a thrilling hour and a half of skinny pants, fireworks and dry ice."^[5] Sophie Heawood of The Guardian gave the concert four stars out of five. Heawood lauded the group's energy, vocals, and the show's "Broadway feel".^[7] Scotland's Sunday Mail also gave the show four stars.^[8] In a review for The Daily Telegraph, Michael Deacon said that although Girls Aloud aren't the best singers or dancers, "Girls Aloud aren't about polish and perfection. They're about fun, and they deliver it in heaps."^[6] He wrote, "There's one vital thing that's absolutely un-manufactured about Girls Aloud, and that's their obvious love of what they're doing."^[6]

Broadcast and recordings

Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Live from Wembley Arena
Video by Girls Aloud
Released	13 November 2006
Recorded	3 June 2006 Wembley Arena
Genre	Live, pop
Length	130 minutes
Label	Polydor
Girls Aloud video chronology
What Will the Neighbours Say? Live (2005) Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Live from Wembley Arena (2005) Girls Aloud: Greatest Hits Live From Wembley Arena (2006)

The show was recorded at London's famous Wembley Arena on 3 June 2006. A DVD of the concert, titled Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Live from Wembley Arena, was released on 13 November 2006 to coincide with the release of Girls Aloud's greatest hits The Sound of Girls Aloud.^[9] Despite its title, the DVD should not be confused with Girls Aloud's 2007 tour The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Tour. In addition to the show in its entirety, the DVD features the music videos for "Biology", "See the Day", and "Whole Lotta History". The recording has been broadcast on television in the United Kingdom numerous times, including on Channel 4 under the name Girls Aloud: Live and Lovely! and on VH1 under the name Girls Aloud: Live at Wembley.

Opening acts

• Frank^[10]
• Nylon

Setlist

ACT 1

• 01. "Biology"
• 02. "No Good Advice"
• 03. "Waiting"
• 04. "Love Machine" / "1 Thing"

ACT 2

• 05. "Long Hot Summer"
• 06. "Whole Lotta History"
• 07. "Watch Me Go"
• 08. "I Predict a Riot"

ACT 3

• 09. "See the Day"
• 10. "Sound of the Underground"
• 11. "Musicals Medley: "Fame" / "What a Feeling" / "Footloose"

ACT 4

• 12. "The Show"
• 13. "Intro" / "Models"
• 14. "Racy Lacey"
• 15. "I'll Stand by You"
• 16. "Biology" (Reprise)

ACT 5

• 17. "Wild Horses" / "Wake Me Up"
• 18. "Jump"

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
22 May 2006	Nottingham	England	Nottingham Arena
23 May 2006	Sheffield		Hallam FM Arena
24 May 2006	Newcastle		Metro Radio Arena
26 May 2006	Birmingham		National Indoor Arena
27 May 2006	Manchester		Manchester Evening News Arena
28 May 2006	Glasgow	Scotland	Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre
30 May 2006	Cardiff	Wales	Cardiff International Arena
31 May 2006	Bournemouth	England	Bournemouth International Centre
1 June 2006	Brighton		Brighton Centre
3 June 2006	London		Wembley Arena

References

1. ^ "May 2006 tour confirmed". GirlsAloud.co.uk. Fascination Records. http://www.girlsaloud.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
2. ^ "Girls Aloud line up Arena date". Manchester Evening News. Trinity Mirror. 2006-10-31. http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/180/180019_girls_aloud_line_up_arena_date.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
3. ^ "Girls Aloud heading to V Festival". TourDates.co.uk. 2006-04-04. http://www.tourdates.co.uk/news/7657-girls-aloud-heading-to-v-festival. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
4. ^ "Your questions aloud". Top of the Pops. BBC. 2006-03-21. http://www.bbc.co.uk/totp/news/interviews/2006/03/21/30628.shtml. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
5. ^ ^{a b c} Laura Lee Davies (2006-05-24). "Girls Aloud". The Times. News Corporation. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article1083210.ece. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
6. ^ ^{a b c} Michael Deacon (2006-05-24). "Loveable Girls just want to have fun". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandjazzmusic/3652617/Loveable-Girls-just-want-to-have-fun.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
7. ^ Sophie Heawood (2006-05-24). "Girls Aloud, Nottingham Arena". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2006/may/24/popandrock. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
8. ^ "GIRLS ALOUD (4 out of 5 Stars)". Sunday Mail (Trinity Mirror). 2006-04-06. 
9. ^ "Live at Wembley". HMV. HMV Group. http://hmv.com/hmvweb/displayProductDetails.do?ctx=12;5;34;61&sku=581508. Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
10. ^ Neil Wilkes (2006-04-21). "Frank join Girls Aloud on UK tour". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi Médias. http://www.digitalspy.com/music/news/a31869/frank-join-girls-aloud-on-uk-tour.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24.