£1 gig in london? yes, you read that right

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(5/5)

ONLY THE POETS AT O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON, LONDON
PHOTOCREDIT: **ELLA MITCHELL**

Days after the release of their debut album And I’d Do It Again, Only The Poets booked thei largest gig to date, a sold out show at the Brixton O2 Academy. Fans were charged a sum of £1 to attend this gig as one of the core values of the band is to make live music more accessible to the public. Queues of eager fans started from the early hours of the morning outside the venue in hopes to get to the barrier to see their favourite artists.

The evening started with two fabulous support acts; Seren and Belle Dame. Both bands took to the stage a few days before the Brixton show alongside Only The Poets at a small venue, The Purple Turtle in Reading, in a ‘Battle of the Bands’ style competition to win the coveted support spot for the 2nd February. Just one support act was supposed to be chosen but after incredible reaction from the crowd that night, both bands were asked to perform on the Brixton stage.

As the stage was set for the main event, a huge banner above the stage exclaiming ‘Live Music is not a Luxury. Lets keep it accessible’ was revealed to the audience. Later in the set the band referenced this by showing their gratitude for grass roots venues and the importance of ensuring money is not a limited factor in bringing fans to live shows.

Opening the set with I Keep On Messing It Up, I caught sight of some of the first few rows, eyes up, phone in hand, desperate to capture the first few moments of the boys embarking onto the stage. The start of the set remained high energy before the lights came up and Tommy Longhurst, the front man of the band, introduced the rest of his bandmates. The set then flowed onto a fan favourite, Every Song I Ever Wrote. The whole crowd demonstrated perfect arm-ography across the auditorium with waves and claps all in time. As the set began to close out, another address of the fans was made from the band. “This is a stage we have always dreamt of playing” and “We are nothing without you guys” are two emotionally charged statements made by Longhurst. But before any tears could be shed, the band played Monumental, a groovy, clap along pop song which maintained the electric energy in the room.

Only The Poets, a band formed in Reading in 2017, told Rolling Stone magazine they were very excited to put on ‘one big party’ at the O2 Academy in Brixton. The band and all their team behind them should be extremely proud of how far the band has come. On a personal note, I saw this band open for Louis Tomlinson back in 2022 at Wembley arena and it has been a pleasure to follow them all this time. They have such rock solid values, not only opening the world of live music to more people but having such strong connections to their roots back in Reading. It is incredibly humbling to watch a band who are so genuine inspire such a welcoming fan base that they have created.