The Vamps have shot to fame over the last few years, stacking up on their achievements as a band after initially coming together over YouTube. The band, who previously performed in drummer, Tristan’s garage have excelled themselves to reach where they have today; headlining the first of two consecutive sold-out evenings at one of the UK’s biggest arenas, the O2.
Opening the evening of stellar acts was tenth series X-Factor finalist, Luke Friend. Since leaving X-Factor, Luke achieved Top 40 chart success; with his debut single peaking at no.22 in the chart. He previously supported The Vamps on their last tour, Meet the Vamps and has returned again to perform at the arenas. Luke’s performance was very solid as he belted out Hole in My Heart/Stand by Me, which the crowd vocalised straight back to him. The tribute to the late Ben E King reminded us of the raw talent he projected on the X-Factor and left us excited for what is to come. Although his set only lasted a mere 6 minutes, performing just one song, it was lovely to see him still so grounded and humble to be performing and doing so with pure talent.
The second support act of the evening was The Tide; a four-piece Californian band signed to The Vamps record label. I was sceptical about what to expect from this band, having only seen recorded covers on YouTube. However, this feeling was soon suppressed; they took to the stage as if it were natural. Their set began with a cover of Neon Tree’s ‘Animal‘. It was evident they had already established a good following off the back of The Vamps. They were met with thundering cheers and screams. The crowd were undoubtedly enthusiastic about the band, calling their names from afar, encouraging the band to further thrive off the crowd. The rest of their set consisted of 3 original songs, which were all ridiculously catchy. They put on a radiant performance with great energy, excitement and hunger to perform. Their talent clear to see both in the vocals and instrumentally, led by Austin Corini. Drummer Nate Parker, put his all into the performance, pounding the drum with all of his strength, sending a drumstick flying over his head. However, this caused no distraction as he continued as a true professional. I underestimated the talent of this band from their covers online, however, having now seen them live I am really excited for what the future holds for them. The original songs performed are hits in the making, and I see a bright future. Who knows, we may see them performing their own headline shows here soon.
The last of the special guests, Union J took to the stage to perform. They proved to be popular with the crowd who were screaming and singing along to each and every song. The arena seemed to be the perfect venue for the group’s immaculate vocals and beautiful ballads as the entire crowd lit the arena in glowing white lights. It was a beautiful atmosphere whilst they performed; they were a brilliant asset to the show. Among performing some of their best known songs and several from their album, Union J also performed a couple of covers. First up was ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’, which was a magical moment of their set. The group stood on the front of the D-shaped stage and looked out to the crowd of 20,000 people. The atmosphere and vocals were incredible. A special moment occurred when George Shelley looked across to Jaymi Hensley; eyes wide open and clasping his chest at the incredible note hit by Jaymi. The engagement with the audience was also admirable. The group worked up the crowd ready for the headliner. Union J’s set also featured a different acoustic cover every night. Tonight they performed a cover of Rihanna’s ‘Four Five Seconds’; which exhibited their harmonies and showed how strongly they work as a unit. The group ended their set on their most recent hit, ‘You’ve Got It All’, yet another beautiful ballad. Union J proved they aren’t just a pretty faced boyband but also have the vocals to match. I hope they continue with their success and hopefully we’ll see them on their own tour sometime soon.
Finally it was time for tour headliners, The Vamps. It was just over a year ago that the band were performing on the same stage in support of Taylor Swift on her UK tour. Since then they have toured the country with their debut album and accomplished many admirable achievements. The current arena tour is still constructed off the back of their first album, however this proved to be no issue for the band who performed some of their biggest hits and tracks off of their album that hadn’t made the first tours set list. Mixed among these were several covers, which shifted our minds back to how far the band have come. From performing covers on YouTube, how we came to love the band, to performing a sold-out show at O2 Arena.
The Vamps hit the stage performing ‘Wild Heart’, followed up by a song they wrote for a Disney movie, ‘Hurricane‘. It was great to hear the whole crowd singing along to the massively catchy and upbeat tune, with phones in hand, frantically recording whenever each of the boys manoeuvred towards them. The stage layout for this tour featured a D-shaped stage with a pit in the middle for those who were willing to pay extra to get up close and personal with the band. Those in the ‘Wow pit’, as it were called, were interacting with the band; hands in the air reaching up to touch the members. It was incredible how much energy was bouncing around the arena from the band to the audience. Particularly, Bradley Will Simpson, lead vocalist who was bouncing around the stage with more energy than a child on Christmas day. It was electrifying just how much energy and excitement the band were putting into their performance which was being recorded for their live DVD.
The band later bounced into an exciting cover mash-up of ‘Uptown Funk’, ‘Seven Nation Army’, ‘Shake It Off’ and ‘We Can’t Stop’, which brought a whole new level of energy. It was new and exciting for the fans who were dancing along to the tunes. However, the covers didn’t stop there, as we later heard a cover of ‘Teenagers‘ by My Chemical Romance and Connor Ball, bassist perform a cover of Sum 41’s ‘In Too Deep’ in his own solo piece. He brought his own spin on the song, and although the entirety of the young crowd didn’t know the song, they were still enjoying themselves; jumping about the arena.
The other members of the band also had their own solo pieces in the show. James McVey, lead guitarist and original Vamp, performed a version of ‘Move My Way’, a song he had written before the band, which made their debut album. This was a particularly magical moment of the show as the spotlight shone down on McVey and an expression of pride lit up the fans faces. It was amazing to see how far the band had come from their YouTube days and just how dedicated their fans had been on their journey; many of whom had followed them from the start.
Tristan Evans, drummer, did not hide away however, when it came to his time to shine. They took full advantage of the privileges of performing in a big arena as he was lifted high above the crowd on a small platform. The pyrotechnics and lighting also added to this part of the show; with fire blasting from the stage floor, which was especially exciting. The talent of him as a drummer fully emerged, engendering you to appreciate them as a band who play their own instruments. It was a thrilling part of the show and similarly to McVey’s solo left fans screaming and cheering louder than ever before.
Next up was a standout moment for frontman, Bradley Will Simpson as he took to the piano performing ‘Another World’, from their debut album. This was a nice change to the show that projected Simpson’s vocals, with no distraction from jumping around the stage. Smoke filled the front of the arena as purple and blue coloured lights illuminated the stage. It was a beautiful yet fairly emotional moment that demonstrated the diversity of the band who have great energy and talent.
The energy of the show was revitalised, however, during ‘Oh Cecilia’, which was a hugely successful single for the band. The energy during this song was great in the crowd, everybody was singing along at this point, even the parents who had been dragged along by their children. It was a moment where you didn’t want the show to end. However, it did have to end at some point as the band left the stage and the lights dimmed to black. Some of the crowd left their seats and began to make an exit from the arena to beat the wave leaving at the end. However, the stage relit to cheers and screams as the band re-entered for a two-song encore.
The encore consisted of ‘Risk It All’ and the band’s debut single ‘Can We Dance’ which provided a magnificent ending to a brilliant night. If the crowd wasn’t fully engaged before, they definitely were for this as they danced and sang along as if nobody was watching. The wow pit in the centre of the stage looked to be having their own little disco as they were jamming away to the catchy tunes. It was lovely to see all of the bands friends and family gathering in the wow pit also, looking as if they couldn’t be prouder. It was a spectacular atmosphere, and those who had already left had definitely missed out. The night ended with cannons of confetti filling the arena and covering those at the front, as screams cheers and claps echoed the room. The band stood centre, at the front of the D stage hugging one another and took a final bow to the crowd. They lent down to high five a few fans, hand out some guitar picks and walked off to an ecstatic crowd. As the crowd began to leave the arena those most dedicated rambled to find the remaining picks on the floor under the confetti and scoop the confetti from the stage into their bags. It was clear they had all had a fantastic night and so had we all!
Overall, I would give this show a 10/10. It was fun, energetic, and full of catchy songs and brilliant moments. The arenas proved to be a brilliant stage for the band who excelled in their performance. Who knows what’s next; Stadiums maybe? The band will be taking their tour across Europe and will return for summer shows later this year. If you can’t make it to a show, we still have more excitement coming from the band, who announced their second album will be released on 27th November, and their live DVD filmed at this very show, directed by Dean Sherwood would also be available. All that’s left to say is I cannot wait for the next tour, the post-concert depression is kicking in!
Words – Mollie Maddox
Photography – Kayleigh Warren
