Ten years after they last played in WA the Swedish duo are back with a new frontwoman.
Ten years after they last played in WA the Swedish duo are back with a new frontwoman.
By Rebecca Peppiatt
March 6, 2025 — 2.17pm
MUSIC
Roxette ★★★★
Kings Park, Perth, March 5
It’s been 10 years since supergroup from the 80s and 90s Roxette played in Perth, but they decided to kick off their Australian tour this week at King Park, road-testing their new lead singer in front of a sell-out crowd.
Lena Philipsson has been given the impossible task of stepping into the shoes of mega performer Marie Fredriksson who died of complications related to a brain tumour in 2019.
Last May, band founder Per Gessle announced that Roxette was reforming with the addition of Philipsson on lead vocals, leaving many to wonder if it could work.
This reviewer’s verdict is yes and no. While Fredriksson’s famous vocals were sorely missed from the band’s biggest hits such as Joyride, Dangerous and Crash! Boom! Bang! , the songs still massively resonated with the crowd.
While Roxette wasn’t all about Fredriksson, her powerful vocals and wild woman stage act helped lift the band to unimaginable success, selling around 80 million records worldwide, selling out countless world tours and having multiple number one hits.
So the thought of seeing them perform live without her kind of seemed pointless. Curious nonetheless, I went along with an open mind and left pleasantly surprised. While I’m not going to lie, at times it did feel like I was watching a Roxette cover band, the superior performances of the musicians, Per Gessle’s nostalgic vocals and the unmistakable brilliance of so many of their songs seemed to leave everyone at times forgetting that Fredriksson wasn’t even there.
Mid-way through the show, however, Philipsson reminded us by dedicating one of the band’s most successful songs, It Must Have Been Love, to the woman that she replaced, visibly upsetting Per Gessle and the other band members.
But the group soon after picked up the mood, whipping the 6500-strong crowd into a singing frenzy with hits such as How Do You Do! Listen to your Heart and The Look, and even a fantastic guitar rendition of Waltzing Matilda, much to everyone’s delight.
While Philipsson’s voice lacks the projection and strength of Fredriksson’s, she makes up for it with her stage presence and energy and at least didn’t try and personalise the music and ruin the nostalgia.
It’s not Roxette as we all know it, but it’s probably as good as it gets.
The band will be playing in Melbourne on Friday night, Sydney on Saturday, Woolongong Sunday, Adelaide next Tuesday and Tasmania Thursday, followed by two performances at A Day on the Green in NSW and Queensland.
Rebecca Peppiatt – is a journalist with WAtoday, specialising in crime and courts.Connect via email.
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