Gig Impressions: Gabrielle Aplin at Albert Hall, Manchester

Hey guys! 

I am ridiculously excited for you to see this post!

This is a very special article in many ways;
it's a gig review including a lot (!) of photographs of one of my favourite artists in the world
and
it's also the first time we have a co-writer on HITS!

Our new Liverpool based photographer Alex Lloyd wrote a brilliant review and we both had a blast photographing the Gabrielle Aplin show.
Both being proper fans of the artist, it was a delight to grab the cameras and capture the night.

Without further a-do, enjoy our review of this very fantastic concert!



Gabrielle Aplin is a singer/songwriter based in Brighton, UK originally hailing in from Bath, UK.

Her music is heavily inspired by the Laurel Canyon music area and combines the beauty of folk with the vibes of  pop/rock.
After uploading covers and originals on YouTube the British musician founded her own label Never Fade Records to release her first few EPs.

Then being signed to Parlophone Records Miss Aplin released her debut album "English Rain" in 2013 and followed up with her recent release "Light Up The Dark" in 2015.

There is far more to say about Gabrielle, but let's focus on her marvellous gig at Albert Hall in Manchester (UK) on 28th January 2016 today.

You are about to see photographs of Gabrielle herself and her fantastic support acts Hannah Grace and Lewis Watson.

Being the first night of her tour, people didn’t know quite what to expect, apart from the fact that it would be incredible. Joining Gabrielle on her tour are Hannah Grace and Lewis Watson (filling in for Hudson Taylor), both of whom were excellent.



Hannah Grace opened the show with Blue With You, and the audience instantly realized just how talented she is. 

 She jumped from soulful renditions such as her cover of Just The Two Of Us and her song Broke, to the more energetic Mustang, and upon leaving the stage, it seemed as though the onlookers wanted a second set from her.




Hannah Grace online: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram



Lewis Watson was up next, and he had prepared a very stripped back set, sans band (likely due to his last minute addition).

Performing a calmer set than Hannah did, on stage with only himself and his acoustic guitar, all eyes and ears remained firmly fixed on him whilst he performed, and again, the audience wanted more.

He claimed to have played an entire song out of tune, but it seemed as though nobody had noticed until he mentioned it, as his voice was so powerful.



Lewis Watson online: Website | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram

After Lewis Watson departed, everybody was eagerly waiting for Gabrielle Aplin to take the stage; she came on in near darkness, and armed with only her acoustic guitar and microphone, opened with a stunning rendition of Coming Home, to an audience already stunned to silence.

She continued to wow throughout the night, playing both her older songs, such as Panic Cord and Please Don’t Say You Love Me, as well as her newer ones, Light Up The Dark, Heavy Heart and Fools Love to name just a few.
Light Up The Dark did just that, bringing with it a massive eruption of light into the Albert Hall, and a loud audience singing along passionately.

Around mid-way through the show, she paid tribute to the late-great David Bowie, with a cover of Space Oddity, and did his legend justice with an incredibly well done performance. At this point, it was impossible to the audience to see how she could top her performance thus-far, as she had already blown them away with her powerful, all encompassing voice, but she did just that with Slip Away. A track that was already amazing recorded became even more powerful live, her voice echoing in the ears of everybody who had the privilege to hear it.

She continued to impress with the upbeat Sweet Nothing, and the audience was more than happy to mirror the fun, pop-like vibe that the song puts out. The purple and blue light show with the song ended and Gabrielle walked off, but the audience wanted more and cheered her on for an encore.

After the mood-lifting Sweet Nothing, the encore definitely soothed the room, she first sat down at her piano, and with nothing but a single spotlight on her, she sang Salvation beautifully, followed by the fan favourite, Home.
She impressed once again with her soothing yet powerful voice, and the audience harmonized with her one last time, before she left the stage, leaving the Manchester crowd to go home feeling lucky to have watched such an incredible performance.



Gabrielle Aplin online: Website | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram


Well, what a post! I know you just went through a lot of photographs, but I'm honestly so proud of them, so I really wanted to share them with you.

I hope you enjoyed having a look at this post as much as I enjoyed co-creating this.


Please go and check out our dear photographer Alex Lloyd who is not only super talented but also a very wonderful lad! (And he deserves an award for helping my chaotic self out!)


Alex Lloyd online: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Thank you for reading!

 

Credits // Text & Photography: collaborative work by Vanessa Jertschewske and Alex Lloyd
**with special thanks to Warner Music UK and Harry Hudson-Taylor for arranging photo passes**