“I’m sweating,” said Justin Timberlake halfway through his hour-long show at Camden’s Roundhouse. “Must be getting too old for this shit.”
In fairness to the 32-year-old, he’s had a busy year. After a successful spell in Hollywood, he returned to the stage with a vengeance in 2013, touring with Jay-Z and releasing two albums: The 20/20 Experience and The 20/20 Experience: 2 of 2.
If reviews of said albums have been somewhat mixed, the thrill of seeing Timberlake live remains undimmed. The crowd of iTunes competition winners queued for hours outside the venue in the hope of getting as close as possible to their idol.
They were made to wait a little longer for the hits. Dressed in black suit and fedora, and backed by a glorious 14-piece band, Timberlake began with new track Only When I Walk Away — five minutes of abrasive dub-step that was a world away from the slick R’n’B of his mega-selling debut Justified.
The former N-Sync man has evolved as a performer, too, picking up an acoustic guitar for the Flamenco-influenced Like I Love You and playing piano on Señorita.
However, as the female-heavy crowd would doubtless confirm, he’s still capable of bringing sexy back. Whether strutting to the taut funk of Rock Your Body or showcasing his trademark falsetto on the quasi-classical My Love, his performance was as well polished as his white loafers.
The music has aged similarly well. In a year when the charts are filled with Auto-tuned vocals and generic beats, Cry My a River and Sexy Back were a reminder that, in the right hands, pop music can be exciting and inventive.
While the best moments of last night came from Timberlake’s first two albums, the newer material was of an equally high standard.
The slinky R’n’B of Suit and Tie was vintage Timberlake, while the horn-propelled funk of Take Back the Night nodded to the legendary George Benson.
Mirrors closed the show with an arms-aloft sing-along and the spectacle of a man trying to lug a tuba on top of his shoulder. Now that really will get you sweating. As for Timberlake, he remains as cool and classy as ever.
