Jonathan Geddes's verdict: Three stars
Whether actor or musician, Jared Leto's showmanship is undeniable. Leto may claim in Search and Destroy that he's "no Jesus" but there were Messianic tendencies in his stage manner, right from an opening that saw him perched in a Christ-like pose overlooking the crowd.
Luckily, such an overblown nature played nicely into a show that was often more pop spectacle than rock gig. There were balloons over the crowd three songs in, confetti showers and various chances for audience members to get onstage, including an amusing segment where he serenaded a purple-haired female called Megan.
It was done in an accomplished, entertaining manner, and Leto worked the crowd well, wearing a kilt and energetically moving about. At times he seemed underwhelmed though, mentioning how quiet the crowd was and querying whether fans preferred the SECC.
Still as a show it was visually striking, and if it weren't for the pesky matter of the music it would have been a triumph.
Sadly, the group's tunes tended to lose any experimental edges from record, instead delivering overly bombastic synth-coated rock, seemingly programmed to drop in "whoa oh" whenever possible.
While there were moments that impressed, such as a pummelling Conquistador, there was a tendency for the music to be far less interesting that what was going on around it, and renditions of Do or Die and City of Angels were thuddingly tedious.
An acoustic segment halfway through only offered mild respite, and it took a thrilling Kings and Queens to provide suitably raucous, twisting rock.
The encore's Up In The Air matched that, complete with fans flocking onstage, and provided a showy end to a gig that delivered as a spectacle, at least.
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