Lawson - Are the next stadium Pop Rock band!!!

March 16th 2013

Oxford, o2 Academy, UK

****

Impressive show by a band that will be filling stadium's soon!!!

Lawson ****1/2 coming on like models with their jackets off because of the heat in the packed Oxford o2 Academy. The band that have been making waves on their 'Chapman Square' tour... open tonight with 'Everywhere you Go' which sounds like a song that could be done by Maroon 5 with a slightly cleaner Pop chorus. Singer Andy Brown has a nice tone to his vocals as he sings the lyrics like he is telling you a story. He seems to be a heart throb for so many girls in the crowd tonight and so many hearts melt behind the screams as he says the first words.

The Polydor Records band can't fail to disappoint when they break into second track 'Gone' and you realise that they have so many great track!. Any of these could have been a single and 'Gone' is an anthem that needs participation and in places resembles bands like Coldplay and 30 seconds to Mars, but it is more Pop chart friendly. Imagine these bands if they were a boy band.

Bass player Ryan Fletcher sings every track with feeling singing out the words like the World is going to end tomorrow. Maybe he feels like the music is 'Taking over Me' Eg. the fans and taking over him. Yes I am now a fan the band have won me over and this song is so catchy it's exactly what you want from Pop music catchy choruses and harmonies. This band are just simply brilliant and if you haven't got 'Chapman Square' your missing out.

The crowd sing every word to songs like 'Die for You' which lyrics "Standing on the edge of Love" go out like a knife penetrating the nights air. This song sounds like a song by Welsh band Lostprophets, the song that actually goes on about 'Rooftops' but it's not a copy it's a new song with just similarities. 'Anybody out There' and 'Make it Happen' have a U2 feel about them but with an edge of Lawson added in and are good mid set fillers.

It's though the singles that everyone always get's excited about and I would love to hear 'Learn to love Again' at a festival or in a massive venue because with the singing that is going on tonight it will sound so amazing. This is a real Coldplay Live 8 moment song, with songwriting that The Rasmus would be proud of this band in my eyes can do no wrong. The band keep going on about when they played a small venue in Oxford called the Jericho to three people and that they will come back to Rock it to a packed venue, that would be a show I'd love to see!!! intimate and sweaty.

Check Out! the Video for 'Learn to love Again' Below...

'When she was Mine' hits on the hearts of the band and fans a song that must be really hard for Andy to sing about because it's obviously about a relationship. I know myself when you love someone and it doesn't work out it is hard, and revisiting it sometimes can be even harder. So this is so beautiful tonight.

The best moment of the night must be their cover of Swedish House Mafia's 'Don't you worry Child' which originally featured John Martin but tonight features the Lawson boys. When this hits into the Dance / House / Techno loop and hit in, is mesmorizing everyone is on the feet jumping around like it's their last moment to shine. For a moment we could be at Creamfields or a Ministry of Sound event going mad for it. Incredible and will probably be one of my favourite gig moments of 2013.

The band who left the stage after the last track come back on to Andy bursting into the 'Girl I knew' which seems a even harder song for him to sing than 'When she was Mine' which shows that he really puts feeling into his songs. I think when he sings this, their isn't a girl in the crowd that doesn't wish he was singing it to her. Truly magical song.

Ending with the song that brought them into the mainstream 'Standing in the Dark' which the band don't even need to sing because the audience knows every word and sings it at them. You realise this is a band that have really made it. I think they totally deserve it to, I would just like to see them mix it up a little bit more because their cover of 'Don't you worry Child' sends shivers down my spine. I have not heard a cover done so well for years and they really put their stamp on it, I think it sounded even better than the original and that is really saying something.