Review: Lewis Capaldi, O2 Academy

Booked in before Someone You Loved sent him stratospheric, this is the last tour you’ll see Lewis Capaldi play anywhere as small as Bristol’s O2 Academy ever again. Part throwback crooner, part Instagram sensation, Capaldi’s success has been both heartwarming and utterly baffling. Tonight the queue is snaking around the block and by the time the first support act arrive the venue is already rammed.

The Snuts flit between Favourite Worst Nightmare-era Arctic Monkeys, ramshackle indie and arena rock. They’re not bad at any but will benefit from pinning down a more solid sound. Hailing from Scotland, they parrot Capaldi’s wry humour which seems to go down well.

Next on Grace Carter provides slick soul-pop, with stories of a childhood estranged from her father’s family proving powerful vehicles for impressive vocals. Silence is radio-ready in its uplifting hook and Why Her Not Me shows an artist unafraid to engage with very painful topics beyond romantic love. Having already shown a willingness to write music around challenging subjects, Carter could grow into an important voice in part of the pop spectrum that can all too often be stale.

As the lights go down the stage lights up in a menacing red and John Williams’ Duel of the Fates blasts out of the PA and Capaldi’s band sidles onto stage. That turns out to be the most interesting musical choice of the evening. The jam-packed sold-out crowd scream like it’s The Beatles at Shea Stadium, something which continues to amuse the unassuming Capaldi. Decked out in a black t-shirt and tattered Vans trainers, there’s minimal showmanship in his performance beyond letting the crowd carry some of the lyrics (which actually reveals some beautiful harmony and reminds you how strong Lewis’ sense of melody is). Kicking off with Grace the sell out Academy is immediately onside. Forever is big cheesy balladry, while Don’t Get Me Wrong nods to Capaldi’s compatriot Paolo Nutini.

Capaldi has arguably become as well known for his hilarious social media presence as his monster smash hit, but the marriage between the two is awkward onstage. His tunes are straight down the middle, love songs with an emphasis on heartbreak. His banter is, while self deprecating, feels totally detached from the music and it’s glaring in the spotlight of a live show.

Whenever he builds momentum with a solid one-two punch of big songs, Capaldi stumbles around stage engaging with uninteresting heckles and miming playing darts. With only one album out he could just be playing for time in a headline set. Compared to vital acts like The 1975 and IDLES there’s also a sense that Capaldi doesn’t have too much to say. Not that he should have to, rather that he’s been propelled to a platform from which acts often arrive through staking their music on the values it represents.

The instrumentals vary between Capaldi playing the guitar and singing and Capaldi singing over a piano and not much more. Hold Me While You Wait features a fantastic crescendo that verges on Coldplay stadium-rock, and could be a brilliant segue into the obvious closer, the radio behemoth Someone You Loved. Capaldi again manages to get caught up chatting rubbish with needy audience members and wastes a brilliant opportunity to send the night off with a bang.

When the big hit arrives it’s almost with a shrug of  “well this is what you paid for I guess?”, which is a shame as Lewis does have some great songs on his first album. Unfortunately tonight that’s let down by awkward chatter between songs and a lack of variety. Not that the crowd mind, there are lots of tears in eyes and hundreds of social media stories being posted. Capaldi could yet make good on his promise and find a more challenging surface from which to belt out his undeniably brilliant vocal when it comes time to record a follow-up. But with the show struggling to hold attention for an hour and massive arena stages waiting next year, there’s a feeling he may well have become too big too soon.

All images from Phil Watson