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Hammersmith Apollo, LondonThe Irish singer-songwriter has scored millions of streams with his debut, but will need broader material to win more fans
Irish singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy’s timely puree of folky songwriting and moody beats has racked up millions of streams, a devoted audience and a No 1 debut album. Pinballing from viral buzz to full-fledged chart sensation can lead to a slapdash live show, as artists struggle to scale up their music. But, in an ambitious evening in which London’s Hammersmith Apollo is packed to its scalloped rafters, Kennedy neatly sidesteps any teething troubles.
Tonight his music gains an impressive sense of scale, with a three-piece band framed by intertwining tree trunks and a giant video screen showing abstract images (swooping birds, the white of an eye). Yet Kennedy’s versatile voice is the real draw. At times, it could soundtrack a Netflix weepie; at others, he sounds like a grizzled sailor. The hip-hop/indie hybrid Outnumbered is speeded up, its rapped verses sharpened, while acoustic mea culpa For Island Fires and Family is played to pin-drop silence. Continue reading...