Having spent much of the past 12 months over the pond in the States as well as supporting the much acclaimed Kodaline and Tom Odell, James Bay took centre stage in his headline slot at Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen last week, for what was an enraptured performance that completely enthralled and captivated the 300 strong audience crammed inside the stylish East London music venue. 

Described by himself as being "the biggest headline performance of my career",  the sell-out crowd in Hoxton were chomping at the bit for a taste of the rasping vocals of this extremely talented singer-songwriter from Hertfordshire. James very much has a patriotic clan following his movements and prior to the doors opening I got chatting to a guy at the bar who was very good friends with James' brother and knew James from school. He had told me how much of an extremely well grounded and respectful individual James was.  I had noticed this myself whilst watching various interviews of James from his  time spent in the States. Bay's humble and polite manner shone through his stunning performance in Hoxton with his ability to engage with the audience who were evidently resonating with his every word sung. From his southern sounding politeness and softly spoken introduction came his enthralling opening song "When we were on fire" taken from his debut EP 'The Dark of the Morning'. The conviction of the opening chords seemed to instantly captivate the audience and once James delivered his rasping first line you got the feeling that not only would this be a mesmerising gig but a memorable one too. Indeed it was.

I was told by one of his tour team just how much James has developed as more of a confident performer since taking up the opening slot[s] for the likes of Kodaline on their UK tour and ZZ Ward in the States. It is little wonder that his talent has seen James open up sets for non other than The Rolling Stones,  Beth Orton, Rae Morris and Laura Mvula. This performance in East London was delivered with the assurance, confidence and class of a man who is well on his way to great things. 

The set was laced with moments of deafening silence from the mesmerised crowd, such as when James played the spine-tingling and heartfelt 'Move together' along with the seemingly nostalgic childhood memory-esq 'Stealing Cars' (the latter of which, it turns out, isn't about stealing cars, as confirmed by Bay himself). The evening was also an opportunity for James to promote his upcoming EP aptly entitled 'Demos' which features the high-octane 'Collide' which was very warmly received by everyone, myself included. I typically prefer the songs that are more intimate, dramatic and somewhat atmospheric in their delivery; songs that grab you by the heart strings, and evoke a sense of atmosphere throughout - which 'Let it go' (again a new track from 'Demos') certainly achieves. Throughout 'Let it go' you could almost hear a pin drop. The room fell silent, all eyes transfixed on James with a respectful obedience that is sadly, seldom found at gigs these days. The silence of the room was not only a clear indication but also testament to the true talent that was being observed. The atmosphere was helped by the incredible projection of James' vocals which reverberated around the four walls providing true ambience and feeling to an already immense sounding guitar pick-up. 

With his stunning tone, raw expressions and gravely voice supporting his extremely powerful and emotive songs, there was barely a moment that passed without James gripping the crowd. 

It is always great to feel that you're at a gig that is unique and when James informed the packed Hoxton room that this was a night that marks his largest ever headline concert, you certainly felt it was  a special occasion. With so many of his followers in the audience, selling out venues around the country and with James making waves through the digital music social spectrum you really sensed that this is merely the start for this fantastic and humble artist and as he continues his own tour throughout the UK as well as his continued support with Kodaline, it can only be a matter of time before Bay is taking on the bigger venues. Whilst the nature of his music may give good reason to question whether a larger venue (think O2 Academy Brixton  size) may be a tad too grande for a singer-songwriter armed only with a guitar, James confirmed that he has now got a band in place and will be continuing his personal tour which is taking him throughout the UK and Ireland over the coming months.

JR

Find out more about James Bay by visiting his website www.jamesbaymusic.com

Music, much like film or literature, has the power to move you to another space or time. Be it a memory of a place or moment with a friend, the beauty of music is that it can reflect your mood. Emotions and thoughts are mirrored back to you in the form of harmony, rhythm, melody and lyric. That’s why it has been a fundamental part of human life for thousands of years, all over the world. Not long after fire, the wheel, there would have been tune.  

Simon Green, a.k.a – Bonobo, allows his listeners to glimpse at different cultures and parts of the world that many of us have only seen in films or read about in books. Cleverly using melodic scales or rhythms to denote a particular genre specific to a continent, you can almost picture the scene where the song is coming from; a South American Latino dance, or a tranquil East Asian garden. Jazz, latin, garage and dance all mingle harmoniously as they rub shoulders.

Bonobo then mixes it all up with contemporary beats and instruments to take the listener to a strange, dream-type world where Japanese Kimono women stand next to the edge of the Amazon rainforest in an urban, inner-city landscape. At least in my mind, anyway.

Sometimes we want music to reflect how we see the world and for it to try and explain what makes us angry, sad or happy. The gritty realism and social-commentary of The Jam may be poetry to some and nonsense for others (“Waking up at six am on a cool warm morning/opening the windows and breathing in petrol”).

And sometimes we want music to allow us to escape. Escape from the stresses or troubles of life to another place. Seeing Bonobo live for the first time must be a surprise for most people who have listened to his music. How will he recreate all these weird and wonderful sounds on stage? Who will be playing what?

Delightfully, it’s seamless and entertaining. Green hops from bass guitar to laptop (where many of his own created sounds are used as samples) and is surrounded by a full live band and singers. I won’t give too much away for those of you who would like to see Bonobo (and to stop this sounding like an advert!).

Ultimately, for me, I love to travel and if time and money was endless I would be a full-time tourist, visiting states, nations, republics and kingdoms. Following Simon Green on Instagram, you get to see the beautiful places where he plays his music. In a way it’s too real for me. I’d rather sit back, close my eyes and let the music take me there…

GH