Lewis Capaldi takes Birmingham’s Utilita Arena as part of his Broken By Desire to be Heavenly Sent Tour
After always saying I was hesitant to go to a concert for artists that primarily sing slow songs, thinking it would be ‘too depressing’, Capaldi proved me wrong. Having seen him back in 2019 at ‘Free Radio Hits Live’ and being utterly blown away, I knew it was time to see a headline show. And for the show being more reasonably priced than other artists of a similar demand, I wasn’t going to turn down the opportunity to go to his sold-out arena tour where most expensive ticket was £70*.
(*that’s if we’re ignoring Ticketmaster’s ridiculously priced ‘Platinum’ tickets, essentially scamming the general public into paying triple the price for a bog standard ticket… but that’s a discourse for another day).
Although perhaps the price was reflected with the length of the set. The set was a shorter set than I’d seen at most concerts, 13 songs to be exact, kicking off with ‘Forget Me’, ‘Forever’, and ‘Lost on You’. Despite Lewis’ slow songs, the crowd is electric – I don’t think I’ve seen many artists who have slower music that can pull this kind of crowd off at shows.
Despite the actual setlist being the most gut-wrenching, heart-breaking set I’ve experienced. Lewis lifts the mood, making hilarious and absolutely unhinged jokes (granted not all of them are family-friendly, so beware if you bring young children!).
As most of his fans know, he tends to make dirty-minded jokes, one of the funniest parts of the show had someone deciding to throw their bra onstage, which led to Capaldi actually sliding it on and walking around stage with it!
It’s safe to say that not only do you get an incredible concert, but you also get a comedy show! It’s the perfect balance.
Not only was the set and charisma perfectly executed, but the set was stunning. The most beautiful visuals featured alongside the heart-wrenching songs, fuelling the emotional moments further.
He made a point numerous times throughout the show, to (unnecessarily) apologise for any tics as a result of his Tourettes. I think it’s safe to say most of the crowd, including myself had not even noticed, and it was certainly something that he shouldn’t be feeling the need to apologise for. It’s something that Lewis clearly felt the need to talk about while on stage, which was a totally admirable and brave thing to talk about to an arena full of strangers .
But it wouldn’t be long until he was back at it, cracking the jokes, “This is a tour for my new album which isn’t even out yet,” he pauses, “I know that doesn’t make sense… blame my manager!”
The 26-year-old Scotsman didn’t leave the stage without singing some of his most well-known hit singles ‘Wish You the Best’, ‘Grace’ – bonus points for the amazing confetti canon during this one, and of course ‘Hold Me While You Wait’.
Although the biggest surprise song on the setlist had to be his cover of ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift, which was a very unexpected but very welcomed surprise!
Before we know it, it was coming to the end of the set, finishing with ‘Someone You Loved’. By the end you can see him soak it all up one last time, getting the crowd to sing the chorus over and over.
Capaldi had the crowd through all the motions. They laughed. They sang. They screamed. They cried.
To top off the night Capaldi continued to bask in the show, even once it was over. Reposting fans videos and photos from the night “Birmingham that was fucking amazing!”, spelled out in caps was the caption that went along with one story he posted, which just so happened to be mine!
Overall, Lewis is extremely down-to-earth, his shows are the perfect balance of heart-breaking yet hilarious. He sounds exactly the same as he does in his recorded songs, which is somewhat rare in today’s technological world.
It’s safe to say I thoroughly recommend Capaldi, perhaps not a ‘family-show’ for those with young children. But attending will leave you with a rollercoaster of emotions. The Scottish class-clown of pop singing songs so sad they’ll rip your heart out. It’s the perfect balance.
And when you’re paying £70 (or less) for a concert and a comedy show… what more could you ask for!
In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I’m now off to the BRIT Awards next month to see him perform again!