As a staunch Sydney-sider, it pains me to admit that the Melbourne crowd absolutely delivered! This was a hot audience who were here to blow the roof off – and that they did! For the next show in Sydney, the locals are going to have to step it up – Melbourne has set a high benchmark! 

Firstly, let’s discuss the elephant in the room and the unenviable position that Lena Phiipsson finds herself in. No one wants to be in Lena’s shoes. No one!

Tragically, the main star of Roxette, Marie Fredriksson passed away in late 2019 – and now Lena Philipsson is stepping into some enormous shoes as does her best to honor the extraordinary catalog of Roxette hits. 

Per Gessle has re-iterated many times that Lena is not there to “replace” Marie – this tour is all about keeping those evergreen Roxette songs alive! Roxette is a peculiar band, in a huge chunk of the world, their songs are far more famous than its members – despite Marie’s iconic singing, the songs have always been the band’s legacy, a true testament to the duo’s song writer, Per Gessle. You can ping off the names; John, Paul, George and Ringo without even having to mention the band that they played in – and you know exactly which group is being referred to. However, ask anyone under the age of 40 what they think of “Hall and Oates” and they’ll guess it’s some type of breakfast cereal. However, fire up your Spotify and play their songs and most people will be shocked as to how many recognizable tunes that group had – from what they heard on the Golden Oldies playlists on FM radio – to movie soundtracks to modern day samples. Roxette sort of fit into that mold… sort of. Although, It’s not just a couple of ‘popular songs’, it’s more of a gallery of infectious tunes that have shaped the lives of so many fans – or as most people might be too shy to admit, a true “guilty pleasure”. 

So, it’s either invest in some kind of AI/Avatar/Hologram project – or get the live band back together and take the songs on the road and give Lena Philipsson a chance to sink her teeth into these epic songs. Per Gessle has chosen the latter. Not everyone will agree – but this can’t be an easy decision for any of the parties involved – fundamentally, the power of the songs being kept alive is the true winner here! 

The band kicked off their 2025 Tour in South Africa before venturing into the twilight of the Australian Summer. Performing for the first time at Margaret Court Arena, approximately approximately 7500 fans turned up to hear some of the finest crafted pop/rock songs ever created! And boy, did this crowd bring it! 

So. How did Lena do? She did well, very well, bloody well – she was truly excellent. Lena sings like a fan of Roxette and their songs. She is absolutely singing from her soul up there delivering the high standards that fans have become accustomed to. Lena is doing a fantastic job – she sings with so much passion and so much respect for the true stars of the show; the classic songs! Anyone still not convinced, would surely be by the end of the night! 

The band kicked off with “The Big Love”, the 3rd single from their 1991 Joyride album, the glistening guitars crept in over the darkened crowd and before long, the lights were up and Per was swinging his arm around, swaying his guitar – getting the crowd warmed up for a night of mega hits. Next up, the guitars turned a little grittier for the power pop ditty, “Sleeping in My Car” – the first true test of the evening, as Lena Philipsson took over lead vocals on a signature, “Marie-rocker”. How did she do? She did an incredible job! Lena absolutely held her own, not only on this track but on all the hits that followed! “Dressed For Success”, a huge hit here in Australia got everyone in comfortable territory – before a nod to the die-hards with a rare deep cut in “What’s She Like?” A truly epic song, sophisticated lyrics, a melancholy theme and this version felt even rockier than the album version – in fact, most songs had more grunt in the guitars. Christoffer brought a prog-rock vibe to the strings of “Crash Boom Bang” before Jonas “Should Never Have Been Removed from the Band” Isacsson let it rip in “Fading Like a Flower”. 

“Opportunity Nox” kept the energy going and to the crowds’ credit, even the songs they weren’t too familiar with, they let go of their trusty seats and kept the energy going! 

“Wish I Could Fly” was next, far more grittier – but curiously, this song took the place of “Things Will Never be the Same” which was omitted from the setlist?! Will it be back? Watch this space! 

Can’t say I was ever a fan of “Vulnerable” but this stripped down, acoustic version definitely won me over – even more so because it’s now in a medley with “Milk and Toast and Honey” – easily the best song from the Room Service album. “Stars” was never a favorite of mine – but it’s taken 26 years and they have finally delivered the ultimate version of this song. They have untethered themselves of the 1999 techno elements and it’s a pure, unapologetic balls-to-the-wall rocker – intensified by the rib crunching guitars, Jonas adding some extra licks in there, and my gosh, when Lena and Dea launch that key change, the song just hits the stratosphere! A definite highlight of the show, forget everything you thought you knew about this song, the Euro-Dance and dreaded singing robotic ducks are gone, this is pure rock! The rock theme continued with “She’s Got Nothing On” – Christoffer even added a little tribute to AC/DC in the intro which was a nice local touch. 

Finally, the big one! Before Lena sang her favorite Roxette song, she dedicated it to Marie Fredriksson – of course, it was “It Must Have Been Love”. If I’m being honest, a few more nods to Marie throughout the night wouldn’t go astray, it would further ingratiate Lena to the already welcoming crowd – but perhaps some projection of Marie up on the screen through this song or others? Just a thought. 

The guitar driven freight train carried the band to the end of the first part of the show, “How Do You!”, “Dangerous” and “Joyride” re-affirmed that this is a live band that knows how to elevate songs from the studio to the stage!

Per and Lena performed “Spending My Time” – this tour sees it return to its intimate acoustic version that was played during the Room Service Tour. Lena really delivered some deliriously high notes in “Listen to Your Heart” before Jonas kicked off that classic riff to “The Look”. The song proved to be the musical highlight of the night – the band let loose, Christoffer ensured his chiropractor and physiotherapist would still be in a job as he released his inner wild child, while Jonas and Dea went fishing for some reason – don’t ask, but everyone was having fun! 

“Queen of Rain” closed out the show – and all in all, this is a fun band who clearly had a blast on stage as did the crowd!

The setlist remained mainly unchanged since South Africa, with the exception of them dropping “Things Will Never be the Same”,  

Roxette’s legacy is their songs – and this tour is all about re-living those glorious melodies and catchy hooks – this is a band that is standing the test of time. This band are the songs – no funny business, no scandals, no controversial headlines – just good, infectious hits! And if the biggest controversy that this band triggers in various online debates is arguing over which album deep cuts they should play amongst their plethora of hit singles, well, it’s not a bad problem to have.