I took my now wife to see Kodaline at the Wedgewood rooms in April 2013, having bought tickets at a bargain price a couple of months before. In the short time between buying the tickets and seeing them play, they had suddenly hit the mainstream charts with “High Hopes” reaching 16 in the UK charts and it was clear that smaller gigs such as this was going to be a thing of the past – certainly everyone at the sold out Portsmouth venue relished the close up vibe including two songs performed acoustically in the middle of the crowd. The album “In a perfect world” was a sublime mix of indie folk and indie rock sounds and achieved a number 3 in the UK weekly album charts.

Fast forward to 2019 and to be honest I had not enjoyed the much more indie pop vibes of their second and third albums. However, with such a good experience of them performing live, I was looking forward to seeing what the much larger stage of the O2 Southampton Guildhall would bring.

Support came from American performer Patrick Martin, who bounced onto the stage with great flair. With unknown artists, it can be difficult to bring the big performance, but Patrick’s energy and flamboyance had won over the crowd by the first chorus. Backed by a band of excellent musicians, the tight performance was a fantastic start to the night. Having shot at a wide range of sized venues, Patrick Martin definitely is born to form on a big stage in front of big crowds. I expect you will be seeing him at a festival near you in the future!

With a relatively simple but beautiful stage setup, Kodaline came to the stage to a very loud round of applause. As the first venue of the tour, the band were full of energy, which was met by a very appreciative Southampton crowd. Immediately it was clear that pop sound of their follow up albums was more of a production decision, as they played true to the rock style that I had known back in 2013. Steve Garrigan’s vocals were simply beautiful, not just from the piano led ballads but also from the more upbeat numbers.

With a relatively simple but beautiful stage setup, Kodaline came to the stage to a very loud round of applause. As the first venue of the tour, the band were full of energy, which was met by a very appreciative Southampton crowd.

The encore brought out the two big tracks that had gained them a lot of the loyal following, High Hopes and All I Want. The latter is often thought of one of the most popular songs by the band, although having been made popular through YouTube videos and many TV shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, its chart position did not reach the heights of its popularity. Indeed, the sound of the 1800 capacity venue singing along was deafening, only being beaten by the subsequent cheers. The band are continuing their tour around the North of England and Scotland, brining it back to London’s Roundhouse on 17^th, which is definitely worth the travel if you missed the Southampton show.

Website: kodaline.com
Facebook: facebook.com/Kodaline
Twitter: twitter.com/Kodaline
Instagram: instagram.com/kodaline
Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/kodaline
Apple Music: music.apple.com/gb/artist/kodaline

Words and photos: Jesse Lawrence
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