REVIEW: Sam Fender, Headline Tour | Camden Assembly

Sam Fender headlined a sold out Camden Assembly on his UK Tour – a venue which is a milestone in any independent artists’ career, though he is well on his way to becoming one of the UK’s largest commercial pop acts.

Sam opened the night with vibrant two-minute track ‘Millennial,’ perfectly setting the scene for a guitar heavy night. He followed on to played his most popular hits released online ‘Greasy Spoon,’ ‘Play God,’ and ‘Start Again,’ which focus on addressing issues in the world Fender observed, from government surveillance to sexual harassment.

The great thing about seeing independent artists is seeing them perform new music not yet released and experiment and refine their sound in front of your eyes. Some of Sam’s songs in his live set, including my personal favourite ‘Blue Monday,’ are an example of this, where the release of much of his set is overly anticipated. He performed both with his full band behind him (two Geordies and a Frenchman, as he describes), as well as some solo on his acoustic guitar and keys, the multi-instrumentalist talent he is. The acoustic tracks however are just as vibrant, as it's an opportunity for his crystal clear voice takes over the room.

Reaching the end of a run of 50 shows across the globe, Sam has definitely acquired fans across the world and deservedly so. Though this particular London crowd might have been a bit less vibrant than Sam may have hoped, being fairly industry heavy as the label bidding wars commence for him, Sam still delivered a beautiful set.  

His friends from home, group The Pale White, a group on the heavier rock side, supported him on the night, together really showing London the best of the North right now.

To hear directly from the man himself, check an interview with this future BRIT Award winner (I’m certain of it!), as Sam graces the cover of the new issue of our magazine – make sure to grab your copy from here!

‍