Sam Fender: O2 Academy, Leeds — Review
25-Year-Old Jordy songwriter, the iconic Sam Fender, is currently on his ‘Hypersonic Missiles’ Tour. This is not one to miss. From one evening in his company, it’s pretty clear to Ashley McAulay that every date he has played has gone off with a bang.
What can I say about this performance? It was explosive. Every minute was packed with energy! Even between songs, the audience chants of ‘Yorkshire’ evoked a sense of pride in the heart and soul of the Yorkshire; there was never a dull moment. Jordy boy Sam Fender has always felt a deep connection to the North of England, having garnered a huge following even prior to the release of Hypersonic Missiles, which debuted at number one last year. And yet — my experience was completely unexpected. A whole mix of ages sat amongst the crowd and every single one of us were absolutely buzzed to see Sam.
So, all the lights go off, and ‘Will We Talk?’ starts to blast out from the speakers; roars from the crowd start as soon as the band appear, one by one, until finally, he’s here: Sam f’ing Fender. The band members were smiling at one another, making apparent a sense of chemistry which only added to the expansive tension that was already soaring. Everyone was bouncing energetically and singing every syllable — simply put, people were having the time of their lives.
‘Will We Talk?’ is a hard song to start things off with, so when the song finished, we all wondered how Sam could top it. What was coming next? Out of nowhere, a drum fill thumps and ends swiftly on a rap of the snare. It felt like the whole of Leeds was participating in screaming ‘‘This tube is the gospel’’ — Sam was following with ‘Millennial’, and with the energy of the room still at a peak, a mosh-pit opened in the middle of the audience; people were stacked on one another’s shoulders, screaming their lungs out. Whatever was happening at the O2 Academy Leeds, it was special.
The set continued with this same, intense energy; the audience expressed overwhelming compassion at the chorus of ‘Dead Boys’, a song about the suicide rate of males in his home town and many members of the audience shed a few tears. On a happier note, though, Sam’s band included a tenor saxophone, whose left-field solo in ‘Hypersonic Missiles’ was only met with an overwhelmingly positive response. This led neatly into intimate renditions of songs ‘Poundshop Kardashians’ and ‘Leave Fast’, where it was just him, his guitar and the audience. Fender riled the audience into singing the high note of the chorus, smiling ecstatically as the whole venue was thrown into ‘Saturday’. At this point, it’s electric.
After all the this, the crowd was constantly chanting band members names (“Deano!”, “Fender!”). It didn’t seem like it could get any better. Yet nothing from the night could even attempt to top the last two songs in the set. Sam began with ‘Dancing in the Dark’, originally by Sam Fender’s icon, Bruce Springsteen, and finished the night on Oasis’ ‘Morning Glory’, completely unexpectedly; the song was nowhere on his setlist. I have honestly never seen a sea of people in my life expressing such euphoria as in that one moment: moshing, crowd surfing and causing a constant rippling of movement. Even people in the seated section danced uncontrollably.
If you haven’t already, I would highly recommend listening to Sam Fender: go see one of his shows. He has supported the likes of Liam Gallagher and Vant — but he’s now headlining his own concerts all over the Globe. So go: stick him on, give him a try and you might just like what you listen to.
Did you enjoy this read? Give Sam Fender’s setlist a listen here!
Check out the rest of Sam Fender’s Hypersonic Missiles Tour dates below!
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