PerthNorg

Timberlake Rocks Perth

With the joys of daylight savings raging havoc throughout Western Australia, waiting in queue at the Burswood Dome seemed a strange and surreal experience under the bright Aussie sun. Surrounded by hundreds of fans, the air around us buzzed with anticipation and bug-eyed blowflies. No longer is Perth the city which misses out on the big musical acts - this year we've had Christina Aguilera, Pink and now Justin Timberlake performing for sandgropers young and old.

After entering the ear popping pressurised zone of the Dome, I immediately noticed the size of the place - Burswood Dome is ridiculously small given the type of acts it has recently been home to. Perth really does need to get in line with the rest of the country by building a venue with at least three the capacity.

Ignoring the miniscule concert space, it became quite apparent to us that our paltry Gold tickets weren't going to be good enough. It was time to weave some magic. After less than 30 mins of batting our eyelids and showing a bit of leg, we managed to score lounge tickets in front of the stage from a kind member of JT's security staff – front row is a much more suitable location befitting any respectable CitJ.

Like a robotic Rorschach Inkblot Test, the moving multi-level stage sat in the middle of the Dome and was littered with lights, a plethora of instruments and a towering rig armed with suspended spotlight operators. A young singer/songwriter by the name of Paris Wells (http://www.myspace.com/pariswells) opened the night with a blend of smooth beats and diva-esque vocals. It's a shame that I and most people at the concert were unaware to who she was, let alone the fact that there was even a support act to begin with. After bumping into her at the VIP party later that night, I found her equally lovely as she is talented and I expect great things for her in the near future.

Once the lights finally dimmed signalling the main event, Timberlake emerged from the middle of stage and the dome exploded with excitement. Crowds rushed to the barriers with people grinding against each other like tavern strippers looking for an easy tenner. Timberlake definitely brought "it" to Perth, whipping out fantastic dance moves, metroghetto beatboxing and a voice that makes the little baby Jesus cry with joy.

During the usual "talk to the crowd and get a cheap reaction by mentioning Perth a billion times" session, Timberlake mused about a recent game of golf he allegedly had in Perth where he was swooped by a couple of Magpies which he called "gangstas of the air". Naturally this turned into an anti-Collingwood chant from the crowd, perplexing the 26 year old singer who shrugged it off and reminded us all that Australians are number one in the world at getting drunk at pubs.

Pulling out chart topping hits and occasionally playing homage to his old boy-band days, Justin Timberlake knew how to work a crowd, flashing his cheeky grin all over the place and melting this concert reviewer's heart with glee. Certainly an enjoyable night and worth every cent of the free ticket I scabbed.