Chemistry: The Tour was the second concert tour by British all-female pop group

Girls Aloud Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop music, pop girl group that was created through the ITV (TV network), ITV talent show ''Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl (singer), Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, N ...

. It supported their third studio album, ''

Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

''. Following the success of 2005's What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour, Girls Aloud performed in

arena An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...

s across the United Kingdom for the first time. Girls Aloud announced tour dates in October 2005. They performed just ten dates, making it their shortest tour. The tour began in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

on 22 May 2006 and concluded in London on 3 June 2006. The show was divided into five sections with distinct costumes, including the encore. The set list featured songs mostly from ''Chemistry'', but also included singles from Girls Aloud's first two albums and cover versions. Girls Aloud began the show by rising from underneath the stage to perform the opening number "

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

". The stage included video screens and a catwalk which extended into the audience. Chemistry: The Tour received generally positive reviews from contemporary music critics who praised Girls Aloud's energy and fun. The tour was a commercial success, leading to the announcement of another arena tour the following year. A recording of the show was released on DVD in November 2006, oddly titled ''Girls Aloud: Greatest Hits Live From Wembley Arena'' to coincide with the release of the group's first greatest hits collection '' The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits''.

Background and development

The tour dates were announced towards the end of October 2005. 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 V Festival, often referred to as V Fest or simply V, was an annual music festival held in the United Kingdom during the third weekend in August. The event was held at two parks simultaneously which shared the same bill; artists performed at one ...

Kimberley Walsh Kimberley Jane Scott ( Walsh; born 20 November 1981) is an English singer, dancer, television presenter and actress. She rose to fame in late 2002 when she auditioned for the reality series ''Popstars: The Rivals'' on ITV (TV network), ITV. Th ...

said the tour would be "bigger and better" than the What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour, 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." Girls Aloud also decided to take a more sexualised approach to the tour to make it "different" from their last. The stage included a

catwalk A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase their upcoming line of clothing and/or accessories during a fashion week. Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the spring/summer and fall/winter seasons. This is where ...

which extended into the audience. There were two smaller video screens on the sides of the stage and a large one in the centre.

Concert synopsis

The tour begins with an introduction "evokes memories of ''

Weird Science Weird Science may refer to: * ''Weird Science'' (film), a 1985 film directed by John Hughes ** ''Weird Science'' (TV series), a television series based on the film ** "Weird Science" (song), the theme song to the film and the TV series by Oingo ...

''", as a mad scientist creates five women. The video screen shows data for each member appearing one by one, followed by a ten-second countdown. The countdown begins to malfunction as pyrotechnics occur on stage. Girls Aloud then rise from underneath the stage. The introduction was seen as a reference to Girls Aloud's reality show beginnings. The group wear red, white, and black outfits as they perform "

". For the following performance, Girls Aloud don white lab coats over their outfits as they perform "

No Good Advice "No Good Advice" is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album, '' Sound of the Underground'' (2003). The song was written by Aqua's Lene Nystrøm Rasted, Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team X ...

". Taking the theme of a laboratory, white sheet trolleys and shelves of potions and bottles are brought on stage. After a brief dance break,

Cheryl Cole Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. She rose to fame as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: The R ...

is put into a box. A red curtain is lifted around her and then dropped, revealing a missing Cole. She reappearsand the song finishes. "Waiting", an album track from ''Chemistry'', then follows. A ''

Pink Panther ''The Pink Panther'' is an American media franchise primarily focusing on a series of comedy-mystery films featuring an inept French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The franchise began with the release of the film ''The Pink Panthe ...

'' themed dance is performed, leading into " Love Machine". The performance incorporates a sample of

Amerie Amerie Mi Marie Rogers Nicholson (born January 12, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and writer. She has released four studio albums to date: '' All I Have'' (2002), ''Touch'' (2005), '' Because I Love It'' (2007), '' In Love & W ...

's hit single "

1 Thing "1 Thing" is a song by American singer Amerie from her second studio album, ''Touch'' (2005). Written by Amerie and Rich Harrison and produced by the latter, the song is influenced by go-go rhythms and prominently samples the Meters' 1970 funk ...

". The dancers perform a dance break as Girls Aloud change into scantily-clad summer outfits.

returns first and joins the dancers, beginning to perform " Long Hot Summer" as the rest of the girls join her. There are benches on each side of the stage, which Girls Aloud use in their dance routine. They take to the benches to perform the ballad "

Whole Lotta History "Whole Lotta History" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their third studio album ''Chemistry'' (2005). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgi ...

". Girls Aloud are rejoined by their dancers to perform the ''Chemistry'' album track "Watch Me Go". They end the section with a cover of the

Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who originally formed in 1996 as Runston Parva, before reforming as Parva in 2000, and releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their cur ...

' breakthrough single "

I Predict a Riot "I Predict a Riot" is a song by English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs, appearing on their debut album, ''Employment'' (2005). It was originally released as their second single on 1 November 2004 and was the band's first release on the B-Unique ...

". Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson was "upset" because Girls Aloud changed a lyric from "condom" to "bus stop." After a video interlude, Girls Aloud return to the stage in

showgirl A showgirl is a female performer in a theatrical revue who wears an exotic and revealing costume and in some shows may appear topless. Showgirls are usually dancers, sometimes performing as chorus girls, burlesque dancers or fan dancers, and ...

costumes and perform "

See the Day "See the Day" is a song by English singer Dee C. Lee, released as a single on 21 October 1985. On 2 December it peaked at number 3 on the UK Singles Chart where it stayed for two weeks. The single sold in excess of 250,000 copies, receiving a ...

". This is followed by a performance of their debut single " Sound of the Underground", which sees them replace the original microphone stand choreography with chairs. Girls Aloud then perform a medley of songs from 1980s

movie musical Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as break ...

s. The songs within the medley are: " Fame", sung by

Nadine Coyle Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle (born 15 June 1985) is an Irish singer. In 2002, she was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: The Rivals''. T ...

and Cole; " Flashdance... What a Feeling", sung by

Nicola Roberts Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2002, Roberts was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: Th ...

and Walsh; and

Footloose ''Footloose'' is a 1984 American musical drama film directed by Herbert Ross and written by Dean Pitchford. It tells the story of Ren McCormack (Kevin Bacon), a teenager from Chicago who moves to a small town, where he attempts to overturn a b ...

", sung by

Sarah Harding Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV (TV channel), ITV reality series ''Po ...

. Following another video interlude, the girl group return in different-coloured dresses. They open the new act with "

The Show Show or The Show may refer to: Competition, event, or artistic production * Agricultural show, associated with agriculture and animal husbandry * Animal show, a judged event in the hobby of animal fancy ** Cat show ** Dog show ** Horse show ** S ...

", which sees them perform on stools behind lighted frames. Whilst singing "Intro" from ''Chemistry'', the members each walk down the catwalk during their respective lines. This is followed by "Models", which also follows "Intro" on the album. "Racy Lacey" is performed next, as the silhouette of a pole dancer is seen on the video screens. Girls Aloud stand at the end of the catwalk to sing the ballad "

I'll Stand by You "I'll Stand by You" is a song recorded by the British rock band the Pretenders from their sixth studio album, '' Last of the Independents'' (1994). The song was written by Chrissie Hynde and the songwriting team of Tom Kelly and Billy Steinbe ...

", before performing a reprise of opening number "Biology." The encore begins with "Wild Horses", as Girls Aloud and their dancers return to the stage in hooded black cloaks. As the song transitions into " Wake Me Up", they remove their cloaks revealing five unique costumes: a cowgirl (Cole), a police officer (Coyle), a cadet (Harding), a sailor (Roberts), and race car driver (Walsh). The show ends with "

Jump JuMP is an algebraic modeling language and a collection of supporting packages for mathematical optimization embedded in the Julia programming language. JuMP is used by companies, government agencies, academic institutions, software projects ...

Opening acts

* Frank *

Nylon Nylon is a family of synthetic polymers characterised by amide linkages, typically connecting aliphatic or Polyamide#Classification, semi-aromatic groups. Nylons are generally brownish in color and can possess a soft texture, with some varieti ...

Setlist

# "

" # "

# "Waiting" # " Love Machine" (contains elements of "

") # " Long Hot Summer" # "

" # "Watch Me Go" # "

" # "

" # " Sound of the Underground" # Medley: " Fame"/" What a Feeling"/"

" # "

" # "Intro"/"Models" # "Racy Lacey" # "

" # "Biology" (reprise) ;Encore #

"Wild Horses"/" Wake Me Up" #

Tour dates

Broadcasts and recordings

The tour was recorded on 3 June 2006 at

Wembley Arena Wembley Arena () (originally the Empire Pool, currently known as OVO Energy, OVO Arena Wembley for sponsorship reasons) is an indoor arena next to Wembley Stadium in Wembley, Greater London, England. The 12,500-seat facility is Greater Lond ...

. Footage was later released on DVD that year. ''Girls Aloud: Greatest Hits Live from Wembley Arena'' is the second live video album fourth DVD release from

, released on 13 November 2006. Despite the title, the DVD features the Chemistry Tour as opposed to 2007's The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Tour. In a review of the DVD, Glenn Meads of the '' Rochdale Observer'' praised Girls Aloud's performance. He wrote, "Now you can recapture the ladies live on this brand new DVD. Smooth vocal harmonies, athletic choreography, arresting visuals and packed with hits – I am not talking about

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

or Kylie. The girls deliver on all these fronts and more in this memento of the gig to remember." The DVD was certified gold by the

British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...

. An edited version of the performance was shown on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

on Christmas Eve in 2006, titled "Girls Aloud: Live and Lovely!" It has been shown a number of times on VH1 under the title "Girls Aloud: Live at Wembley." An audio recording of the

cover "

" was included on the rarities disc of Girls Aloud's greatest hits album '' The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits''. A live recording of "

" was an iTunes bonus track.

Critical response

The tour received widespread acclaim from contemporary music critics who complimented the show's relentless fun. Laura Lee Davies of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' praised the show, calling it "a thrilling hour and a half of skinny pants, fireworks and dry ice." Sophie Heawood of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' gave the concert four stars out of five. Heawood lauded the group's energy, vocals, and the show's "Broadway feel".

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

's '' Sunday Mail'' also gave the show four stars. Glenn Meads of the '' Rochdale Observer'' wrote that "the girls confounded the critics – producing a slick live performance which left the fans eager for more." It was noted by critics that while Girls Aloud are not the best singers or dancers, they sing live. In a review for ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', Michael Deacon stated that Girls Aloud aren't the best singers or dancers – "next to the dominant Nadine, the other four sound like squirrels on helium ��their routines are loveably literal: if a lyric mentions knocking at the door or drinking a cup of tea, all five helpfully mime it." He continued, however, that "Girls Aloud aren't about polish and perfection. They're about fun, and they deliver it in heaps." 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." Heawood wrote, "

carries most of the lead vocals, but each Girl can belt it out when required ��there's no Posh Spice-style miming in the background from

Cheryl Tweedy Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. She rose to fame as a member of Girls Aloud, a pop girl group created through ITV's reality competition show '' Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. Named the ...

." The show also received attention for its sexuality despite children being present. "It's a saucy affair, all bras and hot-pants, and with songs such as Racy Lacy and Watch Me Go, sexual suggestions are everywhere. Yet with an audience made up of mums and their sparkly pink daughters, the level of suggestion is where the sauce remains", Heawood wrote. Michael Deacon noted that Girls Aloud changed the "condom" lyric in "I Predict a Riot" but then performed "Racy Lacey", which contains the lyric "She's got a PhD with her legs apart."

References

{{Girls Aloud 2006 concert tours 2006 in British music Concert tours of the United Kingdom Girls Aloud concert tours Girls Aloud video albums