Right then, how to review a band like Mis-teeq without mentioning their obvious high levels of fitness and physical attractiveness.  In today's politically correct world of equal opportunities, any inclination to mention their looks shall be passed over, in favour of a balanced, unbiased review of the show...

Despite their beginnings in the UK Garage scene (mostly thanks to working with the right remixers and producers, and a distinctive style of female MC'ing), Mis-teeq are now rooted firmly in the realms of R'n'B influenced pop chart fodder.  That isn't to detract from their talent: a well-honed pop act is equally as valid as any "serious" rough 'n' ready singer-songwriter or indie band.  Mis-teeq have a broader fanbase than purely mobile phone-tapping teenage girls, and tonight's sold out Southampton Guildhall is occupied by an impressive cross-section of ages and peer groups.

For their performance, Mis-teeq opts for the well-trodden path of getting professional musicians to replicate their sound with "real" instruments.  This can sometimes destroy the sound of the programming-heavy recorded versions, but thankfully in this case there are enough of the original synth parts mixed in with the tight drumming, guitar and bass playing, for the tunes to retain the vibe and feel of the released versions.  More often than not a 'band' set-up for this type of pop act can lead to a lack of energy, but Mis-teeq's backing musicians do an extremely good job of keeping the already enthusiastic crowd moving.

You can already guess the songs they perform: all the singles, a scattering of tracks from the first two albums 'Lickin' On Both Sides' and 'Eye Candy', and the obligatory encore of 'Scandalous' and 'One Night Stand'.  Combined with a comprehensive lighting rig, a further two backing vocalists and some well choreographed dancing, the hour and a half that Mis-teeq perform for exceeds the quality of many other chart-friendly acts, giving them a good sense of professionalism.  The sound itself is very heavy on the bass: the floor wobbles on a par with the loudest of Prodigy concerts - almost to the point of nausea, in my girlfriend's case.  Heavy bass is usually a good thing at gigs, but even then it can still be overdone by a decibel or two!  Although the drummer is more than capable of recreating the sequencer patterns of the originals, he is placed a little too loudly into the mix, leaving the impression that the sound engineer comes from a rock background.  When all three Mis-teeq girls sing in unison, their voices were clear, but more headroom should have been given for when they sang individually, as the lyrics were virtually inaudible at times.  Having said that, the Southampton Guildhall's "shoebox" architecture provides unforgiving acoustics at the best of times, so the blame cannot be laid totally at the soundman's door.

Talking of the venue, now is a good time to mention the way the Southampton Guildhall is run.  Not for the first time, tonight saw one of the two bars closed barely minutes after the band took to the stage.  While one can understand that many young people present were under the legal drinking age, many were not.  And many had to walk through a sold out crowd to get from one side of the venue to the other.  This gig began and finished very early (Mis-teeq were off the stage and back in their dressing rooms by twenty past ten), so was there really that urgent a need to close one bar on a sold out night?  Does the Guildhall not want our money?  The bar has closed long before bands have finished many times before at this venue, and while it is not simply a pub that puts bands on, this is a serious inconvenience to gig-goers, and surely rather a lot of additional profit for the venue is being missed out on every time bars close early?

Back to the band.  In the UK, Mis-teeq's style and reputation has rivalled and now surpassed that of their closest cousins across the Atlantic, Destiny's Child.  If they stick with their slicker, fast-paced material they are sure to continue that success, although they need to be wary of doing one too many sloppy ballads - which sounded unnervingly similar to Whitney Houston this evening when accompanied by electric piano sounds and bass guitars.  With classic dance/pop singles like 'Why?', 'Can't Get It Back' and 'All I Want' under their belt, as long as they don't change the shape or texture of their canvass too radically, chart success should stay with them for some time now.

When you consider how damn attractive they are, and how well they move too, success should be all that more easy to maintain.  Oops..!

Review: Andrew Morrison