Friday 14 February 2025.

Friday 14 February 2025. BEN BARNES live at Shepherds Bush Empire. Singer, songwriter and actor Ben Barnes ( now aged 43), heads out on his 2025 world tour in support of his debut album 'Where the Light Gets In' , a passionate and soulful release with an abundance of beautifully crafted storytelling and melody. He has had many big film roles since starring in 'Stardust' in 2007. He has completed his North American leg of the tour, and now plays UK shows then mainland Europe. -------------- A 75% crowd of females under the age of 30 here, who are swooning over Ben on Valentine's Day . BEN BARNES and his band arrived on stage at 8.45pm and played for 1 hour 55 mins. A very nice touch here was that in the front row corner are two deaf girls , and there is a female signing in the pit throughout the show in front of them. It was a long show considering he only has had one album and one EP out but that's because there was lots of chat between songs that the fans loved , but a bit too much for my liking. The songs were mid tempo , and some ballads in the middle. A moment that brought a particular amount of laughter from those in attendance, talking about how, yes, most of his songs were love songs, “But not this song, this song is about sex.” Cue more loud screams. "Are their any movie buffs in the audience tonight?" also got big screams. A couple of good covers were 'Jealous Guy' and ' Bennie and the Jets' . The show ticked along ok , even though it was a bit girly . ------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- Thursday 13 February 2025. KAWALA live at Shepherds Bush Empire. A sprightly band from the Camden borough of London, Kawala found success in 2018 when their percussive indie folk-inflected single “Do It Like You Do” became a streaming hit. Thanks to their bright, melodic style, they have earned comparisons to bands like Bombay Bicycle Club and Glass Animals. The are playing a full UK & European Tour. After a decade together , this is billed as a Farewell Tour. ---------------- Level 3 is half empty, but there must be at at least 1500 here. Didn't realise that the five piece band were so popular . A very polite crowd, with maybe more females than males . TEENAGE DADS on stage at 7.45pm for their 30 mins set. They are a four piece from Australia, who are promoting their second album ' Majordomo'..They played a really good set of indie rock tunes , with a nice cover of ' Video Killed The Radio Star'. KAWALA arrived on stage at 8.45pm for their 95 mins set. The crowd sang and swayed along to all of their songs . Their sound was a kind of melodic folk tinged indie rock. Their chemistry with their fanbase was evident when lead vocalists Jim Higson and Daniel McCarthy went into the stalls standing area to sing fan favourite ‘Mighty River’ with them. This was a beautiful moment that showcased everything KAWALA are about: community, love, and great music. The band closed the show with hit track ‘Runaway’ that had the entire room bouncing. Just before that , they read out an emotional message thanking the fans for their support over the past decade . Their most well known song ‘Do It Like You Do’ and ‘Ticket To Ride’ were the songs chosen for the encore. If the band and crowd weren’t feeling the farewell blues before, they were after these ones. Both songs were performed expertly, and the crowd lapped them up. It was a beautiful way to bid farewell to their London audience....an enjoyable show....

Posted 14th February 2025