Photo: Splash
"This feels like a fresh start in many ways," says Howard himself. This show marked the start of a completely new era for the guitar maestro from Devon. It’s been three years since the Mercury-nominated Every Kingdom was released, and frankly he must be sick to death of playing it.
This show however, gave us a glimpse of what is to come in the next LP, I Forget Where We Were. Based on this show, it’s going to be magnificent.
Nick Mulvey was the support act for the evening, and a fine job he did. Howard even took the time to pay tribute to Mulvey's remarkable guitar skill, which coming from Ben Howard, means a fair bit.
What has always been apparent about Howard is that his guitar playing ability is truly excellent. His finger picking action, his flawless ability to pick out a harmonic anywhere on the fret board, combined with the fact he singing exquisite harmonies the whole time is exceptionally impressive. It's the mark of is a man who has put the hours in, to sculpt and perfect his trade -something many current artists certainly haven’t.
The first song of the night was typical of the evening that followed: dark, melancholy, gloomy even, but all the time preserving a passionate, vibrant feel that grips you intensely. Featuring the line "I live a lonely life without you", one if left with the sense that Where We Were could be a break-up record.
Howard has that rare knack of being able to switch in and out of an arresting emotional state, seemingly completely at will. One moment he’ll be delivering these powerful, captivating moments, which seem to move Howard as much as anyone, (at one point during the show he was hunched over his guitar, screaming into his guitar pickup like some kind of possessed madman). The next, however, he’ll look as relaxed as a man can, thanking the audience for their attention, introducing his band members and even poking fun at some of those in the crowd.
Speaking of introducing his band members, one of the biggest cheers of the night was for India Bourne, whom is responsible for the cello parts in Ben Howard’s tracks, as well as dabbling in playing the bass guitar, keys and percussion onstage. Her harmonies were so key to Ben Howard’s debut album, a trend that looks set to continue.
The set consisted entirely of new songs, until the encore. Both the singles were played as well as tracks like ‘Small Things’, which is set to be the opening track on the new album, and ‘Conrad’. The audience didn’t lose attention or focus for a solitary second, which is remarkable for a show where the vast majority of the songs performed will have been completely new to the listener’s ears.
There was however, a definite step up in the already tingling atmosphere when Howard and his band returned to the stage for the encore and played the brilliant ‘Everything’, ‘Black Flies’ and closed with ‘The Fear’, by which point the audience could barely contain themselves.
The onstage relief and pleasure at playing something OTHER than tracks from Every Kingdom was tangible, and the good news for Ben Howard is, it was a pleasure shared by those watching on.
