Dean Lewis showed in Prague that Roxy is already small for him
The first ever Czech concert of the thirty-four-year-old Australian singer-songwriter was met with great interest. The Roxy club, which celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this year, was bursting at the seams. And so Dean Lewis, who is about to release his second album, easily conquered the audience with his sweet voice, which hung on his lips.
Live: Dean Lewis
Support, support: Anson Seabra
place: Roxy, Prague
date: October 3, 2022
set list: Falling Up, Stay Awake, 7 Minutes, Looks Like Me, Small Disasters, Chemicals, Hold Of Me, Straight Back Down, All For You, Let Me Go, Scares Me, Half Awake, Lost Without You, How Do I Say Goodbye, Be Alright, Hurtless, Iris (Goo Goo Dolls cover), Waves
Photogallery
© Marie Trávníčková / musicserver.cz
One of the most rewarding things about being a music writer is the fact that you get to see a lot of world stars before they become famous. And you can follow their growth. In the long past, when covid didn’t exist and The Coronas could become the discovery of Berlin’s Lollapalooza for many, without anyone associating it with what happened later, they also played Dean Lewis at the same show. That was September 2019, and no one had any idea at the time that it was one of the last summer festivals for a long time. The Australian singer-songwriter played his then-fresh singles “Waves” and “Stay Awake” there, which were delicious for fans of pop-sweetened folk, despite the fact that he left his mark on the memories of those present on one of the main stages in those afternoons. The following concerts of Kings Of Leon, Rita Ora or Hozier put a certain Dean in his pocket, and it seemed that this musician would not make it to slightly above average in his career. But that was three years ago. And even though at that time it was some Friday since his songs were heard in the series “Grey’s Anatomy”, “Magnum PI”, “Riverdale”, “Suits” or “Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments”, and his beginnings watching the live performances of the beloved Oasis were long gone, he still performed with just his voice and guitar. The vocals aren’t bad, but they aren’t breathtaking either. Remembering a set just a few days old competitive Jack Savoretti in the same place seems incredible that while the Roxy was half-empty by a class of better singer, Dean Lewis sold him out. Reason? Say what you want, but when you’re played by Evropa 2, it still has a huge impact on concert attendance in the Czech Republic.
© Marie Trávníčková / musicserver.cz
But Dean in the 2022 version is a much better songwriter and performer than he was back then. First of all, he already has two colleagues around him, who add more colors with their compositions. In addition, they are multi-instrumentalists like him, so they have no problem replacing drums and bass with keyboards or for example the pedal steel guitar that served as an accompaniment to the ballad “All For You”. The winner of three Aria Music Awards is also much better at communicating with people. And this does not mean that he repeated perhaps five times that the Prague audience is the best, or that he tried to say in our language that he loves the Czech Republic. Rather, shyness fell from him. And he exposed his inner self both when composing music (the new song “How Do I Say Goodbye” is dedicated to his father fighting cancer) and when performing live. He provided an introduction to almost every song, in which he remembered when and where he wrote it, and almost apologized for not having a special story for “Straight Back Down”. His relaxed, chatty manner and small quips at times resembled Tom Holland’s likable ramblings on various talk shows. They even have, in their place of birth, a fairly similar accent.
© Marie Trávníčková / musicserver.cz
We learned, for example, that “Looks Like Me” was created on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles, where Dean was sent by a publisher to look for inspiration. That the new song “Small Disasters” from the upcoming second album “The Hardest Love”, which will be released in November, doesn’t work well for him live yet, because it has a complicated guitar part. That he’s glad he didn’t go on a road trip around Australia with his friends once and stayed home to finish the composition “Chemicals”, to which an ocean of mobile phones lit up in Prague. And a lot of other trivia, mostly about his ex-girlfriend and his relationship with her, which is basically the whole debut album.
“That’s enough, I’m moving to Prague! After all, you here are cheering on absolutely everything I’m doing right now!” he beamed after the mostly female audience let out a few giggles after taking a drink of water. And it wasn’t the only moment when there was an amazing atmosphere in the hall. The fans were singing along with him right from the second song “Stay Awake” was played, by the way one of the best songs he has in his repertoire. And “Lost Without You” definitely deserves a mention, which is a dance thing he put together with Kygo that worked as a great contrast to the ballads, which at that point I was already slightly lulling.
© Marie Trávníčková / musicserver.cz
And even before the singer said goodbye to Prague with his breakthrough hit “Waves”, in which he celebrates youth, he pulled another surprise out of his hat. Together with frontman Anson Seabra and the rest of the band, they performed the iconic and fateful rock ballad “Iris” from the Goo Goo Dolls repertoire. And it was by far his best performance of the night. Not only was this unexpected considering the previous stages of his tour and the songs played on them, but at the same time it fit them so wonderfully that it was indistinguishable from the original. An incredible finish. And anyway, why drag it out? After all, there is nothing to solve here. Huge sympathies are here, and the return to the Czech Republic at the next line will also be the same. It’s time to call the Karlín Forum and ask when they are free there.