Photo Credit: Caitlyn Ebsworthy
We took a mid-week trip to O2 Academy Bristol to catch American artist Del Water Gap on his UK/EU headline tour supported by Unflirt.
O2 Bristol is a favourite of ours, with the guarantee that so long as you turn up early enough, you’re in for a fairly intimate show due to the layout and capacity of the venue. We got down for around 19:30 (not early!) and were surprised at how short the general admission line was. We learned after, that the gig had only sold around six hundred tickets, which for an artist of this quality was peculiar, especially with him almost selling out London Roundhouse the night before. Still, those there were in for a treat, and a chance to be even closer to their favourite artist than they’d perhaps anticipated.
Opening the show was Unflirt, a singer-songwriter from London who found herself called into the music industry during the lockdown in 2020. Her sound is likened to that of beabadoobee, with a more breath-y quality that sounds ethereal with indie/alt tones. The audience seemed to enjoy her well balanced mix of sing and chat and it felt well judged for a support slot, giving her a chance to really sell herself both musically and personality wise.
Something Familiar was a particular highlight and it was refreshing to see her also play guitar, often an artist with this style of vocals sometimes shies away from playing an instrument but it certainly helped add depth to her performance. We could see her doing well at a festival like Forwards as she felt suited to the TikTok generation. Overall, Unflirt felt like a well selected support act. 7/10
Del Water Gap was on stage promptly at 21:00, opening with hit song, Small Town Joan of Arc. Talk about setting the mood, the opening chords amassed a huge cheer and a chorus of singing along. His chorus of fans stayed like this for the the rest of the night, word for word on the barricade, with enthusiasm not dwindling at all. A smaller crowd than he probably expected, but he played like it was a full house. There were no dramatic entrance or gimmicks, DWG jogs onto stage and starts the show. The staging is simple but striking, with the top and back draped in kind of a white curtain.
Immediately it’s clear that the last few years of touring haven’t gone to waste, his vocals sounding arguably stronger live than on the record. DWG has been on and off the road with the likes of Niall Horan, Halsey and Maggie Rogers so by this point he comes across as a well seasoned performer. There is a reason why he’s got over two million monthly listeners on this Spotify alone, songs such as Ode to a Conversation stuck in your Throat and Marigolds are just two examples of how beautiful and poetic his songs are written. This paired with such a composed and deliberate performance mark DWG as one to really keep an eye on.
A wonderful performer and songwriter who we hope to see keep climbing in popularity.
Sometimes seeing an artist like this can help to re-energise you in ways you hadn’t expected, and this show really felt to us like the turning of winter into spring. A lovely evening at the Bristol O2. 8/10
Word and Photos: Caitlyn Ebsworthy
