Tom Odell’s Striking Performance at Newport Music Hall
With his nostalgic music and his electrifying vocals, Tom Odell took over Newport Music Hall on October 13th for the Columbus stop of his tour.
The 32-year-old English singer-songwriter has been releasing songs and touring the world for more than 10 years now, with the 10-year anniversary of his debut album, Long Way Down, having just passed in June. His US tour, titled “Tom Odell And His Band Play Live In North America” ended on October 29th, taking over more than 15 states. His band consists of Max Clilverd on guitar, Max Goff on bass, and Toby Couling on drums, with Tom himself primarily playing the piano throughout the shows.
*All photos by Aanika Bhatia
On the day of the Columbus concert, he announced that his new album, Black Friday, will be released on January 26, 2024, an incredible gift to all Columbus fans as it was the first show that got to hear him talk about it in person! His new song, “Somebody Else,” was also released on the day, making the show at Newport even more exciting than anyone could have anticipated. Since then, Odell has announced his 2024 tour, titled “The Black Friday Tour,” which will span across Europe and the UK. He has established an awesome fan base—one that has followed him throughout his career and supported him in every way!
Starting off with “Giving a Fuck,” a song from his 2022 album titled Best Day of My Life, he started the show in a melancholic yet incredibly powerful way. Since the song is all about not caring about all the negative things people say about him anymore, by choosing that song to start with and stretching it to be almost six minutes long filled with piano solos and instrumentals, building it up again and again, he gave the audience a wonderfully powerful message—one that they could not get enough of. Following with “Magnetised,” from his 2016 album Wrong Crowd, the song was more uplifting and made the crowd dance happily. It is a classic and very loved song, upbeat yet still melancholic, following his feeling of heartbreak that is all the more relatable with the audience.
Throughout the concert, he mostly played the piano, standing up and singing for only two songs. His skills on the instrument are brilliant, vibrating the crowd with his phenomenal talent and leaving them speechless! His third song was “Black Friday,” a magnificent yet unbelievably sad song that was recently released from his upcoming album. The instruments were very present on this track, building up slowly throughout the song and joining in with his voice altogether in the end and leaving a teary-eyed audience impressed. Although most of his songs are about heartbreak, he has such a unique way of creating each one, both lyrically and sonically, to sound quite different from each. All of his words are beyond relatable, singing about feelings and emotions that everyone understands to a great extent—something the audience was prepared for yet still ended up dancing hand in hand with their partners or alone as they were silently crying. It emitted such a feeling of peace and comfort, creating a remarkably accepting and loving environment where everyone’s emotions were validated and accepted, sung so beautifully by a singer they love.
After that came a song primarily played on just the piano, “Falling,” letting solely him and his talent on the piano shine. The lighting on the stage was beautiful, with blue lights scattered around and showing him in an iridescent glow, matching the tone of the slower song beautifully. This was followed by a tremendous cover of “True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper, catching the audience by surprise and following the pattern of just him and his piano, a match made in heaven.
His first time addressing the crowd specifically followed right after, as he spoke about a lovely experience he had while walking on High Street, the infamous street on the OSU campus, earlier that day. He said, “A lovely lady came up to me, I believe her name was Dana, and told me that when she got married, her first dance was to “Somehow.” While we do not usually play it, we will be singing it tonight for her.” It was discovered during this bit that Dana was in the crowd, along with her husband Andrew, to which Odell said before singing the song, “For Dana and Andrew.” It was safe to say that the couple got the most pleasant surprise, allowing the audience to hear the wonderful song as well when they would have otherwise not. It was such a moving and romantic moment, it showed clearly what a marvelous person and performer he is—one who truly appreciates those who love and listen to his music!
A few songs later, he played “Hold Me,” an astonishing, upbeat, and catchy song. For the first time throughout the show, he stood up from his piano and ended up standing on top of the actual piano, as the crowd cheered loudly. With a deep growl in his voice, he sang his heart out, while the piano was building up and he was interacting with the crowd, asking them to sing with them. He even took a small moment while the song was playing to ask the people to give a hug to whoever they were with, whether it be a lover or a best friend. It was a welcoming change that got the audience unbelievably excited!
Most of the songs after that were more of the rock genre, upbeat and heavily guitar-oriented, as he was dancing around singing jazzy, almost Elvis-reminiscent songs. He asked the crowd to dance with him as he was having a blast on stage, while the guitar shredded a phenomenal solo. He continued by playing “Somebody Else,” the song that was released on the day of the concert, a terrific melancholic song about lost love, which greatly showed his superb vocal power.
Throughout the whole concert, it was clear that his vocal abilities were undeniable. He has a voice that travels in a remarkable way, so timeless and controlled, making each song irresistible to the ear. Hearing his vocals live was an indescribable experience, as he sounds even more powerful live than on his studio recordings, a fact that cannot easily be said in the music industry.
Leaving his sensational hit for last was an outstanding decision, as “Another Love” is one of those unforgettable and perpetual songs that will remain timeless through the years. The piano chords are sensational, as the crowd knew immediately from the first chord which song he was going to close with. It is one of Odell’s most groundbreaking and successful hits for a reason, as it leaves the listener with such an enjoyable, tremendous, and nostalgic feeling. You can never get enough of it, no matter how many times you hear it. The instrumental is wondrous, with the band doing a terrific job accompanying the iconic piano, as well as his everlasting vocals that I will forever remember hearing. It was quite a thing to witness—one of those concerts that will not be easily forgotten. It was an honor and a pleasure to experience it, and I hope Tom Odell will be back in North America soon to tour his new album!
Listen to his latest single, “Answer Phone,” released on November 17, and “Black Friday” from his upcoming album on Spotify!