As videos spread like wildfire across the internet, the worlds collective heart broke as they watched Lewis Capaldi struggle to deliver his signature track as Tourette’s racked his body; the crowd coming together as one and singing the song in its entirety for him.
A two-year hiatus, to focus on his mental health, and a brand-new EP later, Capaldi is back having already conquered Glastonbury earlier in the year and now returning to New Zealand, a country he has not performed in for five years.
When last here Capaldi packed out the Auckland Town Hall, this time he sold out Spark Arena, a feat he would later explain to the audience that he was not only surprised about, but eternally grateful for. I don’t say this in every country you know, but Australia and New Zealand are my two favourite places to come to!
The night began on a crescendo, Capaldi’s five band members appearing first and building an incredible wall of sound between them as the perfect accompaniment for his entrance.
Dressed in a casual white t-shirt, linen pants with a denim jacket, he looked refreshed and elated, grabbing a guitar and stepping forward to play his powerful new single Survive, which the fans sang with him. While Capaldi has always been an emotive singer, this opening track set the tone for not only the night, but it would seem his future.
Moving swiftly into Grace, he strolled along the stage, signalling to the seating on either side and pointing his mic at the front rows so that they could play a little call and response, as if to say I know you are there, and I want you to sing with me.
The opening notes of Forever saw more than a few teary eyes, many people swaying slowly as the song that speaks of heartbreak from his debut album Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent rang out across the room, his vocals commanding, the words sung with meaning that was palpable.
And this has always been the magic of Lewis Capaldi. When broken down his songs are simplistic ballads, but they have an ability to speak to all with a raw emotion that touches everyone who have ever loved and lost.
Standing before all the crowd roared, Capaldi having to wait a good thirty seconds until it died down before speaking, his appreciation written all over his face.
However, in true Glaswegian style, he immediately started making jokes about the on-stage fans and whether they could be lowered to blow around his middle section instead as that is where all the sweat gathers, stating that he looks like Celine Dion when they are blowing in his face.
His authenticity and self-deprecating humour have always made him so endearing to audiences across the world. Here is a man that can often voice perfectly what most people are feeling when experiencing the trials and tribulations of relationships, and yet who never takes himself too seriously.
Speaking openly about his mental health and why he had to step back for two years, and how he was worried that no one would even care when he began to tour again, he genuinely thanked everyone for being there and showing their support.
But it was at that moment that he spotted a sign in the front row, the camera panning to show a young woman holding up a piece of paper that said, Would you like my cock? Intrigued Capaldi read it out and said yes? and was promptly handed a small, crocheted rooster which amused him greatly.
Back into the show and Capaldi and Co pulled out one of the big guns, Wish You the Best, the fans once again singing along and yet never overpowering him, instead sharing the moment with him.
Each song was accompanied beautifully by sumptuous lighting, or visuals of rain falling against a windowpane, the images chosen matching the feeling of the song perfectly.
Giant rose thorns glinted from the shadows for Bruises, Capaldi stepping back for a moment to allow the arena’s collective voice to be heard before coming back in with such power it sent delicious shivers down the spine.
Continuing to intersperse each set of tracks with banter that only he could pull off, he joked with the audience about who was drinking on a Tuesday night, and who had managed to take the next day off. Asking who was from Scotland, he genuinely seemed taken aback by the amount of people who cheered.
Delivering Something in the Heavens, one of his latest singles, was the only point in the show that just didn’t quite hit the same, the chorus which is sung completely in a higher register, is quite different for Capaldi, and while the lyrics are certainly his usual heart wrenching fare, it just doesn’t seem to work as well as when he sings in his usual lower register with the occasional higher notes.
Encouraging the audience to have a bit of a dance ay? – Forget Me had more than a few jumping up from their seats for the up-tempo song, the lighting once again morphing into spectacular big show spotlights for The Pretender, before Capaldi took a seat at the piano for The Day That I Die.
Closing the set with Before You Go another gargantuan single from his debut album, he joked with the audience about how it was his last song for the night and that he was definitely not coming back out in the next five minutes.
The audience played along and stamped and cheered for an encore, Capaldi returning a few moments later and laughing about how those seated closest to the stage would have been able to see him just standing awkwardly in the wings and that everyone present was complicit in the charade that is encores. That honesty and humour often making it feel like a club show rather than an arena one, such is his ability to draw people in.
Throughout the evening, Capaldi had been accompanied stunningly by his quintet of musicians, who knew exactly when to deliver that big band feel when required and even a stunning guitar solo. Sadly, at no point were they ever introduced by name, something that was noted the first time that Capaldi played in Aotearoa.
The three-song encore that began with How I’m Feeling Now, saw phone lights fill the room unprompted as Capaldi explained that it was about when he was really sad, and how he was so very grateful that he no longer felt that way.
As the night inched closer to the finale, there was an anticipation in the air, as everyone held their breath for that last song that they knew was coming, Capaldi’s delivery of Someone You Loved breathtaking as he took the time to allow the audience to sing the chorus back to him unaccompanied, the unity in the room reminding everyone of how exquisite live music is and how for that short moment in time, everyone connects through a single song.
And that is where Lewis Capaldi truly shines, not only as a musician but as a human being, his sincerity and candour about himself and life bringing entire arenas together as one.
May his path of happiness and wellbeing long continue.
Sarah Kidd
