Lorde @ O2 Academy, Glasgow, 2 Oct

Dancers? Check. Costume changes? Check. Confetti? Check. Neon? Check. Small seat from which to tell rehearsed anecdotes with the occasional regional reference? Check. Okay, so the final one might not be as ingrained in the 'pop tour' canon, but there is little doubt that the #MelodramaWorldTour is a carefully calculated machine, designed to run through the standard tropes of what a pop star is supposed to do.

That's not to say that the show isn't well executed or entertaining – it's definitely both – but it seems to detract from the unique position that Lorde has managed to carve out for herself in the world of mainstream pop. Her cross-generation and cross-genre appeal is predicated on not being a larger-than-life pop star, but being a little different (read: normal), and crafting beautifully relatable pop songs that appeal to our sense of introspection (as opposed to the broad sloganeering of a Katy Perry or Taylor Swift).

Her band is almost always obscured by neon props or in the dark: all eyes on Ella. And she sounds great, with the new album getting the biggest responses (except for Team and Royals). Supercut, Perfect Places and Green Light sound amazing and the legions of squashed and adoring fans can already sing every word back to her (and very loudly). She certainly has the energy, stage presence and talent to convince any would-be nay-sayers, while her youthful exuberance shines through in every “thank you”, every slightly awkward dance move and the fact that she isn't 100% polished yet makes even her rehearsed stage chat endearing.

The slightly run-down O2 Academy keeps things grounded here as the stage isn't really big enough for too much extravagance, but the army of touts patrolling the never-ending queue and the outrageously packed house suggest that this is likely to be the last time we'll see Lorde away from the arenas she'll soon be calling home.