Birdy at the Forum

Fresh off her latest album Young Heart, which was released earlier this year, singer-songwriter and all round virtuoso Birdy is back with her one of her first shows in four years (a hiatus that she openly admits to the audience has left her a little nervous). If she is uncomfortable here, there’s no telling it as she confidently commands the stage in an intimate performance in Kentish Town.

Opening with the soft, wistful trickling of piano keys, the night begins with Deepest Lonely, a new offering off Young Heart that starts with a whisper before erupting with a thunderclap of drums, orchestral rhythms and her trademark vocals that rock the heart and pierce the soul. This is essential Birdy: verses that build like the calm before the storm and then burst into a wild, choral cry of youthful love and heartache.

The night continues with Young Blood and 1901, before settling into her most intimate song of the night, Nobody Knows Me Like You Do, for which she sets herself down at the piano. She plays alone and silences the crowd who, as well as her fellow performers, watch as she lays herself bare through one of her most emotionally raw tracks yet. We’re reminded once again that Birdy is not just a phenomenal singer, but also an incredibly talented songwriter whose lyrics are drawn with a tenderness and vulnerability that is reminiscent of artists such as Carole King.

Highlights of the night include one of her latest tracks, Loneliness, where she meshed together a masterful cover of Fleetwood Mac’s Dreams (if anyone can recite Stevie Nicks, its Birdy), and the anthemic Keeping Your Head Up – a standout performance, with Birdy at her most energetic and powerful, and a clear crowd favourite. 

Later she takes her audience back to where it all began with her early hits Wings and Skinny Love, before finishing with Comforting Sounds, a hopeful and optimistic finale that ascends from the gentle strings to the rapturous crashing of drums to finish. 

It’s a welcome return to the stage for Birdy as every performance feels as personal as the next, and listeners can’t help but get lost as she invites them in and gives it all back. Fans considering her European tour next year are in for something big.

Ronan Fawsitt
Photos: Virginie Viche

For further information and future events visit Birdy’s website here.

Watch the video for the single Deepest Love here: