Let’s start this off with talking about the venue. HMV Empire is one of the largest venues in Coventry, and is the largest in the city centre. With a capacity of 1,200 for the main stage, it’s a little smaller than 02 Institute’s 1,800 capacity main room where I saw Jet and The Struts.
It was the perfect setting for a sold out show. With the bar in the back serving drinks waiting for the show to start, naturally the crowd wasn’t as large as it was going to be, however it was growing steadily.
The show opened with Vince Freeman, his music played with him and another guitarist gave an Americana vibe. He had a consistent energy through his set, setting the mood, and easing the crowd into the overall vibe of the night.
The show continued with Callum Beattie. He had some fast paced songs with a lot of energy. The lively energy between him and the keyboardist showed how much they truly enjoy performing. That energy was definitely transferred to the crowd. Honestly was a perfect lead-in to Scouting For Girls.
You could feel the crowd erupting as Scouting For Girls took the stage. They kicked off their set with “Missing Part” then transitioning to “Heartbeat.” Midway through the show, they slowed things down and performed “Butterflies” and “Millionaire” as a mini acoustic set.
The show reached it’s peak during the encore. Finishing up their set with their iconic hit “She’s So Lovely.” The crowd was buzzing, singing along, and creating an absolutely magical moment.
Seeing them live brought a new meaning to their songs, and being able to see the emotion behind them that you can’t get with a recording. Their stage presence and ability to engage the audience made the show the beautiful experience that it was.
Overall a fun night, with fantastic performances from all three artists. After the show fans crowded into the street, songs stuck in their heads still buzzing from the excitement. One fan sticks out in my head, while everyone was heading out to their final destinations of the night, just a goofy grin on his face as he thought about the show that he just got to experience.
If you’d like to know more about any of these artists you can check them out below.