[Above: Tears For Fears' Curt Smith (left) and Roland Orzabal proved nothing beats the real thing by belting out original arrangements of songs like Mad World.]

By Yong Shu Hoong

ARTIST: Tears For Fears
VENUE: Compass Ballroom, Resorts World Sentosa
WHEN: Tuesday
ATTENDANCE: 4,500

THERE were girlish shrieks of "I love you!" and the more manly "I love you, bro!" aimed at Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith during their first concert in Singapore.

Indeed, the synthesiser-pop duo inspired such adoration that the full-capacity crowd was up and dancing right from the start.

You could attribute the enthusiastic response to decades of pent-up devotion for one of the key players in Britain's New Romantics movement of the 1980s.

And don't even let the description "over the hill" enter your mind, as the audience appeared only too eager to race down memory lane when, at 8.40pm, Smith emerged onstage to sing Mad World.

But the tune, with pre-recorded orchestral music and choir backing, was only a teaser.

Flanked by Orzabal and three other session musicians on drums, keyboards and guitar, Smith later belted out the original arrangement of the same song, proving that nothing beats the real thing, even in the face of memorable covers by Gary Jules and Adam Lambert.

This approach was taken with most of the repertoire, where the duo shared vocals on hits like Everybody Wants To Rule The World, Sowing The Seeds Of Love and Pale Shelter.

The two 48-year-old musicians, who have aged well despite some wrinkles and grey hair, joked and bantered with fans mostly in their 30s and 40s.

The duo was relaxed throughout the gig, with Smith even taking the time to thank an audience member for flying in from Jakarta. Smith also acknowledged the presence of my paper journalist Victoria Barker, who interviewed him recently.

There were a few irksome technical problems - a microphone, for example, failed to amplify Orzabal's rich soulful vocals as he embarked on a slow version of Michael Jackson's Billie Jean.

For around 90 minutes, the audience was also treated to catchy but less familiar songs like Call Me Mellow from their latest studio album, Everybody Loves A Happy Ending (2004), and rare tracks like Floating Down The River and Smith's solo single, Seven Of Sundays.

After an encore of Woman In Chains (where the opening act, Canadian singer-songwriter Michael Wainwright, took on parts originally sung by Oleta Adams) and the rousing anthem Shout, some fans may have wished that more of the older tracks - like Change and Mothers Talk - could have made it to the set list.

But at least they can hold on to the memory of how the 1985 hit, Head Over Heels, provoked a sing-along and the wildest audience reaction in a night filled with sweet nostalgia.

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