Lewis Watson at Shepards Bush

Freckle faced, long haired, and apparently raised in Bicester, Oxfordshire (according to Wikipedia), singer-song writer Lewis Watson has seemingly come a long way from his early days of recording Bombay Bicycle Club Covers on his YouTube channel to now performing at the epic venue that is the O2 Shepard's Bush Empire. Lewis Watson's humble begins began back in 2010 when he first uploaded his cover of Bombay Bicycle Club's Swansea, from then on he continued to upload various popular songs receiving thousands of hits. It was then in 2012 when Holyloowis (his YouTube channel name FYI) released his first EP with the lyrical contents that could pull on the hearts strings of anyone within ear shot. It seems as though the first EP was a catalyst for many more releases in the space of just one year; he even recorded 'Some Songs With Some Friends' with musicians Hudson and Taylor, Gabrielle Aplin and Kimberly Anne. When 2014 rolled around the corner Lewis announced that his debut album was to be released in June, it's an understatement to say that the Lewis Watson fan base were thrilled by the news that Lewis was releasing more than four songs (see what I did there... 'Four More Songs' was a name of one of his EPs...sorry for the cheesy joke). The album 'The Morning' included both new songs and old, the oldest being Windows which was originally released on his first EP. Following the release of his album Lewis Watson started his tour this Autumn.

Having first heard the gentle voice of Lewis Watson back in 2012 and only seeing him for three songs at Somersault fest this year, I highly anticipated his performance at Shepard's Bush. When we arrived at the venue a small group of friends and I scored a fairly good spot in the middle giving us a pretty good view of the stage. Before any performers even entered the stage the atmosphere was buzzing with excitement, I found it incredibly refreshing to be in a crowd that practically gave off an aura that screamed they were long term fans; so much so I almost felt ashamed I didn't know all the words.

Andreas Moe

source: www.believerecordings.com

It wasn't long until the first act took the stage; one lone man with just a guitar and a hairy face (which is the perfect combination if you ask me). This slightly hairy faced man was Andreas Moe, a very dreamy, acoustic singer-songwriter from Sweden. As soon as Andreas stepped on stage the room went dark and the only lighting were two spotlights behind him. Having never heard any of his music before, the lighting complimented his mellow performance perfectly. Even though some of his song lyrics are a little cheesy (which he politely warned us about) his endearing stage presence mixed with his delicate folk tunes evokes relaxed 'vibes' and creates a very enjoyable show. If, like me, you haven't heard any of Andreas' work then definitely have a listen.

The second act, who again shamefully I had never heard of,

Amber Run

source: www.birminghampromoters.com

were the five piece band Amber Run. Their set was excellent and a definite crowd pleaser both for people like me who hadn't seem them before and also for fans who sang along to their hits. After seeing them I have had a little time to look into the band
and I was shocked by how much buzz they've managed to create, from supporting Kodaline to being played on Xfm, they definitely have a good thing going. I was also pleasantly surprised to find they are signed to the Communion record label. They had a delightful stage presence and really got the crowd singing and dancing even though most of the audience didn't know the words. Their folk and pop hybrid made for a good show and I think we will being seeing big things from them in the near future. I actually had opportunity to talk to a member of Amber Run after the show, however not knowing exactly what their faces looked like instead of complimenting them I asked their keyboard player if he could take a picture of my friends and I... how embarrassing but at least I will know his face for next time. 

Now on to the main man himself. Mr Lewis Watson. When Lewis arrived on the stage his face seemed to light up with both the feeling of genuine joy and also a hint of fear. This was his biggest show to date so no wonder our staring faces were a little daunting. He opened the show with the first song from his debut album: Stones Around The Sun, the performance was both chilling and effortless foreshadowing the goodness that was to come. He then continued to play songs both old and new, creating a very crowd pleasing set, with hits like Outgrow, Sink or Swim and of course Windows. My favourite song of the night was Into the Wild, as this was one of the first Lewis Watson songs I heard giving me quite a strong feeling of nostalgia. However, although the setlist was sufficiently crowd pleasing he missed off one song in particular that was seemingly very important to his fans and that song was Bones. Although Lewis lacked in Bones that night he managed to win over the crowd once more by coming into the stalls with just his guitar, singing his cover of Made up Song #43. He came within smelling distance, shall we say, making the performance very intimate and surreal.


Lewis Watson

source: www.o2shepardsbushempire.co.uk

Overall the show was brilliant and is an experience that feels great to have been a part of. I would say the fact that he can perform to a fairly large crowd but can still sing to you and make you feel like the only one is impressive and that its a sign of a lot more to come.