Benson Boone, Glasgow review: 'Mercury-meets-Mika chutzpah'
Benson Boone is a born performer - if only his music possessed as much personality, writes Fiona Shepherd
Benson Boone, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★
Rising pop superstar Benson Boone has, remarkably, only been singing professionally for five years but as a performer he is born to it. Combining his now signature mullet, moustache and glittery jumpsuit, the guy's got Mercury-meets-Mika chutzpah, commanding the stage with a balletic energy without compromising his equally athletic vocals.
Confident as he is, Boone has been a little taken aback by the speed of his rise and the jump to arena tour status but, like the regular somersaults with which he punctuated his set, he has thrown himself into the experience with a big cornball intro to his American Heart tour (and the first of many backflips).
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If only the music possessed as much personality. The bombastic key change pop of I Wanna Be The One You Call and pumped glam pop of Wanted Man were catchy and commercial openers but without defining character. Boone possesses a strong, fluent voice, capable of some vocal gymnastics, but his songwriting comprises risk averse radio pop and overwrought piano balladry, from the cathartic pop R&B of Drunk In My Mind to the self-comforting lament on In the Stars. Perhaps it was just as well that he spent as much time standing on his pianos than playing them.
His enthusiastic band took up the exultant melody of Be Someone as Boone prepared for his next trick, swinging from a chandelier for retro confection Mystical Magical, ultimately landing on another piano, this one rhinestone-encrusted.
He was smart enough to engage properly with his audience, showcasing a very decent Scottish accent which he used for a lengthy intro to Reminds Me Of You. When his voice faltered, he called on audience reinforcements, urging them to sing Beautiful Things “from the bottom of your heart and the top of your lungs”, but pushed through admirably to his gladiator-costumed encore of Cry.
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