PASSENGER | LIVE REVIEW
The Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union, Sun 16 Nov
Not long after the crowd had been warmed up by gentle, cheery folk group The Once, a small bearded man with a guitar shuffled on to the stage and introduced himself as Mike Rosenberg, aka Passenger. He then apologised for those who expected Passenger to be a band and not one man and a guitar. Beginning with a haunting rendition of Whispers, I’ve never seen a crowd so quick to settle in to a gig: an immediate calm, still atmosphere took hold.
Rosenberg then shared with us a story of his last gig in Cardiff where all of two people attended: a stark contrast to this long-sold-out, 1600-capacity gig. He continued to interlude his songs with stories from his life and tales from his travels around the world. There was constant banter flowing back and forth from the stage to the audience.
Having been to one too many dodgy gigs lately, I can’t explain to you what a breath of fresh air this man was: four parts live music gig to one part comedy. His humble attitude was laced into his music, and the beautiful lyrics in his songs suddenly felt very genuine as the stories he tells have the same authentic feel.
He plays plenty of toe-tapping, hand-clapping folksy numbers to get the crowd going: Hearts On Fire, Thunder and 27, to name a few. When he mixes these with his beautiful spine-tingling ballads (Riding To New York, Rolling Stone and worldwide hit Let It Go), there is a ghostly silence in The Great Hall. His grit-filled vocal is an instrument in itself, accompanied only by his skilful acoustic guitar playing.
Rosenberg knows exactly how to perform to an audience of this size, having a way of making you feel like you are sitting round a table with friends at an intimate pub gig. I looked around and noticed uniform relaxed smiles, coupled with many tear-stained eyes – either from laughing or crying.
Talent aside, Passenger is not only an outstanding artist but a down-to-earth guy who proves you don’t have to be a guitar smashing, crowd surfing rock star to put on a great show.
words DENIECE CUSACK