It’s been a long road for The Vamps whose Four Corners Tour, which started way back on April 27 at the Plymouth Pavilions, and winds up tonight at Bournemouth’s International Centre. They have, pretty much literally, toured the entirety of the four corners of the UK, as well as two shows in Ireland, in Belfast and Dublin.
New Hope Club have supported them for the entire 18 date tour, while HRVY performed at the 9 arena dates.
One of the great things about The Vamps concerts is that you get to hear a lot of up and coming artists you might not otherwise have been exposed to. This tour was no different, and we were introduced to The Power Of Muzik, who opened at the O2, with singer Asher Knight performing his single, ‘Step Back’. It was the first time we’d heard the young artist, but we liked his style, and are looking forward to hearing more from him. He was followed by another POM singer, Denis Coleman, who won over the crowd with his cheeky charm and beautiful voice, performing his single, ‘Imperfect’. Before they left they took a photo with the audience:
HRVY came on stage, accompanied by screams from the audience. He opened with his single, ‘Hasta Luego’, which he released last year, followed by ‘Told You So’, a gorgeous cover of Lewis Capaldi’s ‘Someone You Loved’, ‘I Miss Myself’, and finished up with ‘Personal’, which is to date his most successful track, the video having garnered over 221 million views on YouTube to date.
New Hope Club came on stage after HRVY, and it was clear that they were the ones whom a lot of the audience had come for, and for good reason. The trio have gone from strength to strength, and with their seven song setlist, they came on strong and never let up, even when they announced that one of their two covers they’d chosen for the night was the same as HRVYs, ‘Someone You Loved’, by Lewis Capaldi. They put their own spin on it and nobody would have felt cheated at having heard the same song twice on the one night.
Opening with ‘Fixed’, the first track they released from their debut EP, ‘Welcome To The Club’ (can you believe that came out two years ago already?!) they worked their way through their hits, showcasing the fact that they’re only getting better with time. We last saw NHC perform two years ago, at this same arena, and it’s clear they’re three very talented young men with a bright future ahead of them. Our only query was when they announced, “here’s one for the Mums and Dads in the audience”, and launched into a cover of The Beatles’ ‘I Wanna Hold Your Hand’ – surely it’s one for the Grandmas and Granddads? Other than this, their show was flawless, and left the audience wanting more, as they worked their way through ‘Medicine’, new single ‘Love Again’, and finally finishing with ‘Permission’, which was released back in February.
After a short break, it was time for The Vamps, who told the audience that they wanted everyone to leave with a smile on their faces that night – and so we did. A show by The Vamps does exactly what it says on the tin; it’s slick and well produced, nothing goes wrong, you go home feeling satisfied about having had a great night out. Even if you didn’t know any of the songs, you would still be able to relate to the full band sound, and enjoy the vibe of the audience, who to a person took to their feet and danced the night away.
Opening with ‘Just My Type’, which resonates in the brain long after the concert has ended (a week later it’s still going through my head), they wended their way through their repertoire, with 14 songs (and a fabulous drum solo from Tristan) in the main part of the show, and four encore tracks. We were surprised that they didn’t sing ‘Cecelia’, but truth be told, it wasn’t missed, there were certainly enough songs to get your teeth into.
Last time we saw The Vamps here, Tristan and Brad had a “drum off” – the pair competed to see who was the better drummer – surprise surprise Tris won. This time, they swapped instruments, and Brad didn’t do too badly playing drums and likewise, Tristan was a dab hand at the bass as the band performed their new single, ‘Waves’.
The setlist covered pretty much their entire discography, which by now is pretty extensive. It was a history making night, as they announced they’d set a record for being the first band to play five years consecutively at London’s O2 Arena, and James spoke at length about their foundation days back in 2011, and their decision to become a band the following year, and how it’s only got better. Although it was only the second time we’d been to see The Vamps, it was clear the sense of community that they and their fans have.
Winding up the show with a trio of ‘Hair Too Long’, the ever popular, ‘Can We Dance’, and ‘Wake Up’, they walked off stage. We knew it was too early though and sure enough, they came back, this time with ‘Cheater’, which they followed up by speaking about how that day was International Missing Children’s Day’, and their support of the charity, Missing People. They asked Voices For Missing, formerly known as the Missing People’s Choir, to come on stage and sing their latest single, ‘Missing You’, with them. You can watch it below:
Last song of the evening was ‘All Night’. We had danced and sung and laughed and cried, and yes, we all left with smiles on our faces – thank you guys!
The final show of The Vamps Four Corners Tour is tonight, in Bournemouth. If you’ve missed them this time around, make sure when next they come to your corner of the country, you get out and get that ticket. It’s certainly worth it.
