Live Review: Ed Sheeran, Missy Higgins, Bliss N Eso

GA front standing ticket holders arrive early to secure their spot as close to the stage as possible. Bliss N Eso fire it up and with a call-and-response chant for the crowd to repeat, "Tear the damn roof off!" they shout. We literally wish it would come off so that we can get some fresh air in.

They get the crowd ready for the main act by pumping us up with their signature moves including beat-boxing full of mouth-made snares, big kicks and bass lines, alongside their live band. Bliss N Eso spread peace, love and unity with plenty of positive vibes during the high-energy hip hop set. "Who's really living their lives right now?" asks MC Bliss. We throw up both our hands in the air and rock out together for My Life. 

"It's a nice chilly evening, isn't it Melbourne?" Missy Higgins asks sarcastically. By this point it feels like a sauna. She started off solo on her keyboard with All For Believing, one of the first songs she ever wrote. She then invites her band to stage for Everyone's Waiting. Higgins points out that she's releasing a new album in May and this tour is a pretty amazing way to lead up to it. "I had actually bought a ticket to one of Ed Sheeran's shows but I guess I won't be needing that now," she jokes. The new single, Futon Couch, is a standout hit and probably one of her happiest songs in which Higgins recounts the moment she met her husband. "Now, years later, I've got a child and cooking another human at the moment!" she adds as she rubs her tummy. She performs an exceptional cover of Throw Your Arms Around Me by Hunters & Collectors to inspire a singalong during the soaring chorus. "This song could be word for word about parenting. There's so many emotions including fear and terror but also beautiful ones that you never knew were possible," she tells us.

The lights dim and we watch a video of Ed Sheeran walking in from backstage. He picks up his guitar and launches straight into Castle On The Hill. "Tonight's show was technically the first one that went on sale so you're the most hardcore fans!" he confirms. Before continuing, he points out that everything we hear is live, despite past accusations of him miming at Glastonbury Festival. It's truly amazing to watch him perform with only his incredible voice, a guitar and a loop pedal. There aren't many musicians who can project themselves in a stadium of this size without a band, but Sheeran was born for it. He recounts when he was in Melbourne in 2011 where he played a small show in Collingwood to a few dozen people. And now he's playing to crowds of over 50,000 people per concert in our city. The audience lights up the stadium with their phone torches to commemorate the song that started it all, The A Team.

The stage is wrapped in a blue skin that resembles his latest album cover and colourful visuals splash across the video screens with live footage of Sheeran singing before us. He encourages us to dance, jump, get weird and sweaty without caring about other people watching as he unleashes a mash-up of Don't and New Man. He charms the audience (even the boyfriends and dads) to ensure that there's 100 percent crowd participation from everyone throwing their hands into the air during Bloodstream, meanwhile Tenerife Sea sparks a marriage proposal in the upper seats. "The Divide world tour started almost exactly a year ago to the day in Italy," he tells us. "Along the way to some of my biggest shows in Australia, the crowd has been getting louder and louder," he adds. We prove that we're the loudest of all by turning up the volume and shout out the lyrics to Dive at the top of our lungs. It's a good thing there's a long weekend in case we lose our voices, as at least we've still got a couple of days to recover.

Sheeran plays a song that he thinks will be his next single (Happier), and a cover of Feeling Good with his own acoustic spin on it to smoothly transition into I See Fire. "I never thought I'd get up to this size venue. I always wrote songs to be played in smaller venues," he reveals. Ironically, even though Photograph is a quieter song, it fits in this scenario as he builds each layer up with such powerful intensity. He continues with one of his favourite songs ever written (Perfect) and judging by the audience's response, they feel the same way about it too. Predictably, Shape Of You serves as the encore alongside You Need Me, I Don't Need You and the front standing crowd shuffles even further forward with excitement. As he strides towards a big finish, he strums his guitar so ferociously that the strings are just about break. Tonight we witnessed Sheeran at the top of his game and he shows no sign of losing momentum any time soon.