Tom Chaplin: ‘Midpoint’ Tour 14/10/22

This was sadly my last time seeing Tom Chaplin during his ‘Midpoint’ tour. The night was bittersweet for me since I don’t know when I’ll see him perform again but the atmosphere on this night was out of this world. Fans were up on their feet within the first few minutes and were by far the most enthusiastic I’ve come across yet. I’m not sure if it is because I was closer to the stage this time and had a clearer view (I secured a seat in the front row but it wasn’t an easy task) but TC appeared to be enjoying himself a lot more, responding to the positive energy of the crowd. I’ve had a fantastic time seeing him at venues up and down the country, visiting places I never would have otherwise. I’ve learned a lot about the towns/cities which have been new to me and feel much more cultured now. These shows were a very good incentive to get out of my comfort zone. The Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow is my most “local” venue out of all the locations. I’m glad he made the trip to Scotland and he seems to have many fond memories of Glasgow. I travelled up from Newcastle and was even more exhausted than I had been the previous day. Luckily, my travel plans weren’t impacted by strikes, even after ScotRail e-mailed to warn me trains might be impacted by the overtime ban. They were doing everything in their power to keep trains running on schedule. I’d originally booked a 7am train to be on the safe side but decided to be kind to my body and switched to one nearer 11am. It still got me into Glasgow in plenty of time and I was still too early to check-in to my hotel. I’m so happy I waited to meet TC the night before, as I looked like a walking zombie by the time evening came. I read online that he didn’t meet fans after this show, so I definitely made the right choice to stay late at Gateshead.

The timings are the same each night now, so I knew exactly when to get into my seat for Edie Bens. There was tons of leg room in the front row, which was way more comfortable for my anxious self than having to awkwardly sidle past people grimacing and muttering “sorry”. It looked tighter in the rows behind me and I got hit on the head by handbags a few times as people struggled to their seats. I don’t remember it being so bad when I saw Elvis Costello here in June but I was delighted to have all that space to myself. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed EB’s performances and would hate to miss them by showing up late, even though lots of people skip starter acts. Sometimes venues are nearly empty when the opening act comes on but there was a good amount of people already seated. I was surprised nobody was sitting in the balconies, though. I overheard a member of security tell someone they didn’t sell enough tickets to justify opening up the balconies but it had been a full house when The Drifters performed there the night before. Even though it was a smaller turnout, the crowd was loud. Those empty seats didn’t put a dampener on the evening. EB finds new things to say about her songs each time she introduces them, so seeing her never gets repetitive. She regretted trying Scottish oatcakes for the first time moments before coming on stage, as they made her mouth dry. Despite this, she insisted they were lovely. She hasn’t built up enough courage to sample haggis yet and I don’t blame her. People have been very complimentary about her and I am betting she has a bright future ahead. I was pleased to hear her cover of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘I’m on Fire’ again but my favourite song of hers has to be ‘Therapist’.

TC opened with the same songs tonight – the slower but very atmospheric opening tracks off his new album ‘Midpoint’. After a gigantic round of applause, he thanked everyone profusely and said he knows the show starts off in a more reflective place which “doesn’t chime with the idea of Glasgow on a Friday night” but assured us we’ll get there in the end. People in Glasgow definitely know how to party. He explained the meaning behind his new album, which is about the aspects of middle-age which he is beginning to experience – a subject not often touched upon in pop music. I can’t think of another album which tackles this topic so head on, or really any which explore this topic at all. It’s a very clever idea for an album and it’s inspirational enough to help people through tough moments of their lives, especially if you fear getting older like I do. It’s not all doom and gloom, though. The album is actually more uplifting than not and celebrates all the beauty there is to find in this stage of life. He told us he wishes to go through life with good grace and not strive to achieve mountainous expectations like the ones he formed when he was younger. He said his life is a lot more enjoyable now he’s not trying to “force the issue” and chase fame and fortune. ‘Stars Align’ is the song which perfectly illustrates these themes and his change of attitude over the years. It’s probably still my favourite off the new album after ‘Gravitational’. It’s obvious he’s a lot more satisfied with life now and all the big and small things it has to offer him.

Before ‘Gonna Run’, he discussed his “checkered past” and how the song is about if all his fears come and attack him all at once he’s going to face them head on. He has slowly come to terms with his regrets, realising it’s human nature to make mistakes and the older you become the easier it is to accept this. Lots of people cheered after this, obviously relating to him and appreciating his vulnerability and honesty. He has reportedly been sober for a number of years now but said he often has dreams where he’s fallen off the wagon again but wakes up relieved he hasn’t gone back down that path after all. It’s amazing to see how far he has come and how he has a lot of love and support behind him. He then expressed his immense love for his first solo album, ‘The Wave’. He talked about how creating the album was such a positive time of his life. He released it after not working on anything for a few years and lifted the mood by claiming it’s been a very good child to him – maybe even better than his own children, which he instantly regretted joking about in case anybody caught him saying that on film. Sorry, it was too funny not to include in my blog. He explained how the record was a huge outpouring of energy and he was nervous about how it would be received but it did very well and set the way for the rest of his solo work. He doesn’t like to write songs unless he is truly inspired and can’t understand how some people can churn songs out constantly. I look forward to more solo projects or bonus tracks from ‘Midpoint’.

The Q&A was highly entertaining again. He tentatively asked who all knew he’d requested questions for him to answer on Twitter and more people raised their hands this time around. He said there was only a “smattering of yes’s from the front row” in Gateshead the night before but people in Glasgow are obviously more connected. He asked someone who immediately whipped their camera out if they’d submitted a question and if that’s what they’re getting ready for but they hadn’t. He replied, “You’re filming though, so you know I’m going to say something stupid!” He followed that up by admitting that’s really the whole point of this part of the show. He was tempted to read the questions in a Scottish accent (which was surprisingly convincing) but refrained, in case glass was allowed into the arena! There were a lot of great ones. For the “funniest thing that’s ever happened to him on stage”, he recalled playing golf at St. Andrews recently and somehow becoming a member of one of the world’s strangest super-groups; himself, Ronan Keating, Bill Murray (who sang folk songs), Tico Torres (Bon Jovi), Mike Rutherford (Genesis) and Dave Farrell (Linkin Park). I’d love to see videos of that! When asked if he would ever grow his hair “gorgeously long again” he said he probably wouldn’t and (since we’re on the topic of his hair) said it is in fact his natural colour as it’s the only part of him which seems to be ageing. He talked about busking for the Big Issue and how he would do it again in a heartbeat and how his favourite Scottish venue is King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, as it’s the first place Keane performed here. Someone suggested Usher Hall but he said “Isn’t that in Edinburgh? We can’t talk about Edinburgh!” He has great memories of TRNSMT in 2021, even though the band were terrified to go on stage in front of a bunch of teenagers already drunk before 9am as they thought they’d get killed. Performing at The Barrowlands sounds horrifying. He said security had to intercept a firework from someone aiming one at them from the front row and joked it might have been a “mercy killing”. The funniest part of the Q&A (for me) was when he answered the question about the best song he’s ever written. He thinks it’s maybe ‘Midpoint’ but not a lot of people voiced their agreement. People were mindlessly hollering Keane song titles such as ‘Bedshaped’ and ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ and he replied sarcastically, “I’m glad nobody said songs Tim wrote!”

The rare Keane song for Glasgow was ‘To The End Of The Earth’, which has only been performed a handful of times in the past. I only saw one person request this one on Twitter, so they must be delighted it was the song they decided to re-learn and perform. A lot of us predicted he would select maybe three or four of our suggestions and rotate them over the course of the tour but they are actually doing a different rare Keane song each night. We shouldn’t have underestimated him. I’m a tiny bit disappointed I didn’t get to experience any rare songs performed for the first time ever during one of these gigs, like ‘Dirt’ in Bath a few days later. I voted for ‘Dirt’ and ‘Closer Now’ and got to hear one of them! I often relive those few minutes in my head. I didn’t realise until more recently he’d actually written that one himself, instead of Tim who writes the majority of Keane’s songs. I do have a newfound appreciation for ‘To The End Of The Earth’ and ‘Thin Air’ after these shows. I wasn’t sentimental about those songs before but they were gorgeous live. Everyone goes quiet during this part of the show because they know how special it is, being treated to these rarities. It was a genius idea and I hope he does more shows like this in the future.

He talked about his love for his children before ‘New Flowers’ again (the song he wrote for them), as he is continuing to miss them a lot whilst on tour. He entertained everyone by sharing his daughter’s new desire to become a pirate, even after he explained to her they do still exist but not like she imagines them from movies etc. but they are more likely “hijacking oil tankers off the Somalian Coast” instead. She’s retained that information and still wants to be a pirate anyway. He laughed at people giving her a round of applause for that and went on to thank his entire team – Roland, Kate, Sara and Seb from his newly formed band (I’ve seen them enough times now to remember their names but I should have made the effort before now), the catering team (who feed them “royally” every day), everyone who handles the equipment etc. and also Edie Bens, who got a warm reception at the start of the night. He said they are all having a wonderful time out on the road together and they are a lovely team to work with. He dedicated ‘Overshoot’ (the final song – about “enduring love”) to the “good people of Glasgow and beyond” and thanked us again for coming out to see him perform during these difficult times. Everyone was chattering away about the fantastic time they had as I was making my way out, which I always enjoy hearing.

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GALLERY:

Atmospheric

Front row goodness

My camera wasn’t cooperating and most of the photos came out blurry

‘Somewhere Only We Know’

Shadowy guitar pic

Band

Stage presence

Getting to the end, sadly