EMELI SANDÉ / BEN MONTEITH | LIVE REVIEW
St David’s Hall, Cardiff, Fri 22 Nov
What was a pretty grim winter’s night in Cardiff was totally nullified by a warm, emotional bundle of energy inside St David’s Hall. Support duties on the night fell to the uber-talented Ben Monteith. The Scottish singer-songwriter was busking on the streets of Glasgow until he was unearthed as part of a BBC series, Emeli Sandé’s Street Symphony, and as a result of the discovery he gets to head out as the opening act for this European tour. His short set was full of acoustic brilliance, an impressive foot drumkit setup and some witty banter that went down well with the appreciative crowd.
A swift changeover had the stage set for this evening’s leading lady, Emeli Sandé, who kicked off with Survivor, first solo single Heaven and My Kind Of Love, before a mesmerising duet with one of her backing singers for Beneath You’re Beautiful. Well known hits Hurts and Honest ring out loud; the latter’s lyrics echoing out a poignant message to “stop acting as if tomorrow’s promised”. Words that Sandé herself made clear to the engaged audience.
Accompanied on stage by an accomplished band of musicians who added a more than worthy portion of rhythm and funk to proceedings, I could have gladly listened to Sandé sat at her piano playing totally unaccompanied. The always impressive acoustics of the auditorium of St David’s Hall coupling perfectly with the flawless powerful vocals.
Extraordinary Being and Wonder both hit a chord and have audience members dancing in the aisles, and Highs And Lows adds a disco-like atmosphere. Sat alone on the piano, a beautiful rendition of Clown totally captivates the near-capacity crowd, and the set is brought to a close with Read All About It and the iconic Next To Me before Sandé returns to the stage for a gospel-esque encore of You Are Not Alone.
A stunning, emotionally-charged performance which included an effective balance of upbeat dancing tunes while also conveying clear everyday messages through what sounds like personal experiences of hers. Emeli Sandé is an act who needs to be seen live to appreciate how amazing a voice she has.
words OWEN SCOURFIELD photos EMMA LEWIS