Live Review: Justin Bieber, Martin Garrix

Well, with a start time like 5.50pm for opener Sheppard, there's not a chance in hell that anyone who actually works full time can make the show to see them. By the time we walk halfway around the stadium to pick up our tickets, and halfway back again to go through our gates, Sheppard are well and truly done. The outside of ANZ Stadium has a distinct festive atmosphere though, with dozens of food trucks, merch stands and booths from radio stations spruiking their goods. 

Martin Garrix takes the stage in front of huge decks, backed by constant fireballs, three huge screens and tracks like I Can't Feel My Face as well as his own songs Scared To Be Lonely. He brings huge vibes and massive drops and he's clearly the perfect DJ to rock clubs in Vegas, music festivals and pool parties but for a crowd of largely under-18s in a seated arena? It's a bit of a strange fit. Regardless, we catch six-year-old girls having a dance to Garrix, alongside sixty-year-old women (yes, the age range is that vast). 

The range of Bieber merch available tonight is a little mad — from backpacks to hats to what looks like a ceremonial sash, we see it all on the crowds tonight. Our question: why would you wear the Purpose tracklist on your back? 

It's hard to not let varied reports of Justin Bieber's onstage grumpiness tarnish what to expect from the young pop behemoth, but we're in for a spectacle, that's for sure. A screen depicts Bieber falling through the matrix, speaking about his "purpose", until suddenly the real Bieber appears in a giant suspended glass box. Clad in his now-trademark trackies, Bieber draws on the clear walls in a yellow texta while singing Mark My Words. The arena is screaming. Nothing else. Just screaming. Soon he's out of the box — yes, pretty stonyfaced — and it's straight into Where Are U Now. He prowls the elevated stage amid his dancers, maybe 15 in all, and five-piece band — his band is super impressive and seem like they come from a jazz background. His drummer's fills are strong in the mix and bringing more of a rock show vibe than we expected, and he's even got a legit scratchin' disc jockey. Despite his choreography commitments, Bieber's smoky vocals are still stellar and we fight the thought that he could be awesome fronting a pop punk band.

The visuals between songs are sultry and tantric, with a peroxide blonde, man-bunned Bieber mostly gazing stoicly into the camera, off into the distance or the women around him. It's this perceived need for Bieber to act emotionless that makes Bieber seem stiff and haughty sometimes — today's silly Summer Heights High-quoting Instagram video at least showed a lighter side to him, a bit of life, allowing us to believe for one second that the guy is more than a celebrity cardboard cutout. He manages to crack a bit of a smile during old cut Boyfriend, but other times it seems he's close to a smile… then stops himself. It seems like he really wants to maintain a brooding stage persona. The Feeling turns the whole stage into a purple galaxy, visuals of featured artist Halsey peering through the stars to sing the lead line, leaving Bieber to sing the harmonies. 

In a show highlight — simply because we finally see some rawness rather than stadium-ready perfection — Bieber peels off his bomber jacket, collapses with a huge sigh into a red velvet chintz couch and plays an acoustic version of two Ed Sheeran-penned songs, Cold Water and Love Yourself. Hearing an entire arena sing along to the latter is haunting; there's a slight echo and it sounds bewitching. We overhear, "If he did a whole album of acoustic tunes, I'd so buy it." We agree.

Futuristic green, red and purple lasers slide us into As Long As You Love Me, with Bieber returning finally having taken off that thick tour hoodie — we dunno how he lasted that long without a bead of sweat! He's now in a wife beater and green mechanic's jacket with Justin emblazoned into the front. A white drum kit rises from the stage and here we're reminded what instrument the Biebs started out on. He's still really good, going from a dancehall beat to metal-level double kicks and flashes of snare. He brings out a group of hip children dancers for Children, taking the time to get a microphone brought out so he could individually introduce and thank them. "Hey beautiful, what's your name? You were so good out there!" he says. It seems genuine and the kids seem thrilled, each sneaking a hug while Bieber ruffles their hair. He actually seems more relaxed at this stage and has definitely gotten into the groove of things as the show's gone on. The bangers (and fireworks) are left for last, What Do You Mean?, Baby and the encore, Sorry.

Bieber's best when he's stripped back, and he seems happier too. We just wanna see a human side to you, dude, because some of us wanna belieb you have one.