Playing from Sunday 12th - Wednesday 15th October 2014
Support from: Saint Raymond
*****
Around 3 or 4 years ago, shortly after the release of his debut album +, Ed Sheeran was performing small venues like the nearby Cambridge Junction. After I was unable to attend that concert, I made it my personal mission to make sure I saw him live on his own tour. After seeing him a few times at radio run festivals such as the Capital FM Summertime Ball earlier this year and on TV in the comfort of my own home, I finally got a chance to see him on one of his 4 sold out shows at the iconic 02 arena this week.
The night got underway with support from up and coming artist Saint Raymond. If you're a Radio 1 listener, you may have heard his track I Want You on the radio in the last few months. With his indie/alternative sound with an ever so light sprinkling of a pop and guitar vibe, he was the perfect opening act for an artist such as Ed Sheeran. His quirky, upbeat numbers got the 20,000 strong crowd fully energised for the emotional tsunami that was about to hit them with Ed's 2 hour long set. I was very impressed by his sound live and the way it echoed around the large arena. He is definitely an artist to look out for in the very near future so stay on his pulse.
Usually, the main act will not appear on stage until 9pm. I was pleasantly surprised that Ed made the most of his night and came on promptly at 8:30pm. That was a completely new experience for me.
To say that every song Ed Sheeran sung on his set was as captivating and mesmerising as the one previous is a huge understatement. You sometimes forget amongst all the glamour and glitz the music industry has to offer Ed Sheeran that he is quite simply just an extremely talented man who plays guitar at sometimes a very alarming speed and to perfection. His set was a combination of songs from both of his chart topping albums which truly highlighted the success in his music career.
At Monday night's show in particular, there were 5 wedding proposals made during Give Me Love and Tenerife Sea (all of which were successful by the way!) It is incredibly heartwarming even for a fan of Ed Sheeran to have people feel a strong enough emotional connection to his songs that they use them as a mood setter and background music to pop the big question. I think Ed Sheeran was thrilled with the proposals also. The same thing happened at a One Direction concert in the States recently. I don't see how One Direction's music matches up to Ed Sheeran's on an emotional level but if his fiancé is a die-hard One Direction fan, I can understand the gesture.
The hardest decision of reviewing concerts is always choosing the one song that stood out the most for me. This concert is no exception. Tenerife Sea was exquisitely performed as flashlights from people's iPhones started to light up the arena. That is always a people pleasure. Latest single Thinking Out Loud was another stand out performance for me. Many people in the side seats started to pick up their partners or friends and start slow dancing (maybe without all the flips and turns from the actual music video, that could have been hazardous) As a whole, I particularly admired how Ed changed the tempo of some of his slower songs to keep the crowd energised and engaged throughout. He even added in a few 90's numbers which matched the tempo and beat of some of his own songs. One of these songs was Blackstreet's No Diggity which he covered with Passenger on an American live lounge show which to sum it up in one word is incredible.
Overall, it was an amazing concert delivered by an amazing UK talent. Sadly, due to his phenomenal success this year with his new album X, he is taking a year out of the business. You will be sorely missed Ed!
It took me 3 years to finally see Ed Sheeran performing a full live set but I can deeply say that it was well worth the wait.
(For requests on blog posts, tweet me @hayleywhispers)
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