Billy Lockett isn’t like most other musicians. The scruffy-haired singer-songwriter has already achieved more than most, for a start; his last few singles have enjoyed airplay across the UK’s top radio stations, while his self-released EPs have reached the top five of the iTunes singer-songwriter chart. He’s also more approachable than most; he happily announces on stage that he spent the afternoon hand-making a hundred home-recorded EPs, which he then proceeds to sell at the merchandise table after the show. This is all very nice, and it’s all very well. However, the truth is that this is all meaningless if he hasn’t got the tunes to back it up. Well, it’s fair to say that Billy Lockett doesn’t have to worry about that, because he’s one of the best unsigned artists in the UK today.
Lockett’s show at London’s Bush Hall is an exercise in songwriting talent. He uses his hour-long set to showcase songs from his upcoming debut album, as well as a smattering of fan favourites, including Toxic and new single Never Let You Go. Of the fan favourites, it’s Old Man that’s greeted with the biggest roar from the crowd, yet it’s the new songs that seem to get the biggest reaction of the night. A great song is one that a crowd are singing along with the first time they hear it, and we’re willing to admit that we’re singing the words back at Lockett by the end of every new song played. This isn’t lost on him, either – he regularly pauses between songs to thank the crowd, as well as to share stories about his time as a touring musician.
A slew of rhythmic new songs are thrown in towards the second half of the set. These sound promising – arena-sized choruses are blended with pounding percussion to create brilliant little slices of piano-pop. An atmospheric and subtle cover of Royal Blood’s Out of the Black rounds off the main set, before an impromptu encore of Balance brings the gig to a close. We think that it’s only a matter of time before Billy Lockett hits it big – he’s got the talent, the fanbase and the tunes, and we can’t wait to hear his debut album.
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