The British singer-songwriter’s catalogue is one big collection of poetry. Rarely can you hear a pin drop during the opening song at Rockhal, or pull in such a generational range of fans.
Following the release of his sixth studio album, Black Friday, Tom Odell is on a mostly sold-out European/UK tour this spring and summer, returning to the Grand Duchy for a 6th time on Tuesday night, presented by den Atelier at Rockhal.
The Tom Odell show is an emotional rollercoaster, playing with intimate, solo moments from behind the piano alone, as well as sudden, roaring full-band choruses that come out of nowhere, keeping listeners on their toes. It is rare for an artist to start a set with a handful of intimate ballads, but it works: Less is more, and the audience is quietly captivated from the beginning. His voice sounds incredible and needs no instrumentation to shine.
Seated to the centre right of the stage, Odell puts his music at the forefront at all times. There is very little chat about the creation or meaning of songs, and with some acts this could feel disconnecting for the audience, but that is the complete opposite with Odell. The music speaks for itself, and the occasional invitation to sing along is more than enough.
His dynamic six-piece band plays a key role in the show, with violin, saxophone and trumpet presenting a really surprising and lovely opposing palette to the rhythm section. Unlike many pop acts these days, Odell refrains from playing with pre-recording backing tracks or even a metronome, weaving between different tempos and volumes and directing his band like a conductor with punches in the air from behind his piano. The music feels real.
The light show was carefully crafted and emphasised the contrasts in the show. The use of backlighting and silhouettes established that sense of mystique and aura surrounding the artist that we like to see, with dominant red, dark blue and silver colours, and it only strengthened the show, not distract from it.
His biggest hit, ‘Another Love’, was of course the grand finale, but the set list also included wonderful performances of ‘Heal’, ‘The End’, ‘Best Day Of My Life’, ‘Hold Me’, ‘Black Friday’, to name but a few, and two covers, ‘True Colors’ (Cyndie Lauper) and ‘Stick Season’ (Noah Kahan). “Luxembourg, whenever you’ll have us back, we’ll be there,” Odell closed off.
All of Odell’s songs manage to find a deeper meaning, peeling away at the layers of an union to find the true meaning behind a lyric. He is inspired a great part by literature, he has often noted in interviews, which visibly feeds his creativity from different angles.
‘Black Friday’ is an emotional, raw and passionate album that showcases Tom Odell’s craft for songwriting and storytelling. It is refreshing, authentic and honest. At only 33 years old, Odell is already becoming a legacy artist like David Bowie or Leonard Cohen.
