Sydney has cooked up a lovely evening in the aftermath of an afternoon shower, just in time for Dean Lewis to bring his Epilogue tour to the ICC.
As the lights drop and the packed crowd screams (2 November), a spoken word intro plays, inciting us to remember the good times. 'Memories' starts the feeling off strong. Above the stage hangs a giant, crumpled sheet of paper covered with scribbled words, the lights bouncing off it in a visually stunning feast.'Hold Of Me' starts with orange lights bursting from the stage, as Lewis runs to and fro, smiling and waving at fans. He is a very comfortable showman. The song beams with vocal harmonies that excite the heartstrings.
"This is a new one," Lewis announces for 'Empire', as the stage drips purple and green. "Take this one!" he commands for the second chorus and the crowd oblige willingly. Patrons jump in their seats and others embrace. Lewis clearly awakens deep sentimentality.
Image © Ilgin Aykut
"Hello Sydney," he greets at the song's conclusion. "The first time we played in Sydney was an open mic to 10 people, and here we are in front of 9,000 people so thank you so much for coming."
He then recounts how '7 Minutes' was about the worst second date he ever had, that led to a wonderful epiphany. He grabs the mic aggressively, coming front of stage to gesture out to the crowd who scream the words back. 'All I Ever Wanted' continues the sentimentality, Lewis belting out the chorus, before a violin enters to add more beauty to a stunning song.
"I write a lot of songs about my life as a sad, single man travelling around," Lewis emotes, relatably, what we're all thinking, "and I get a lot of messages from you guys telling me you're depressed too. At least we have each other," he shares before heading into 'Cold'. Lewis employs a crowd member to hold his mic in a touching fam moment, while he strums, bursting the notes from his chest.
Image © Ilgin Aykut
"Do you know 'Be Alright'?" he asks to rapturous screams. "I'm not gunna play that yet, but this is the sister song to that. This is 'Hurtless',” he says as he takes to the grand piano. He plays the bridge standing to declare: "I hope someday you find somebody to love you like I did," beating his chest with emotion. He is clearly at home pouring vulnerability onto the stage.
Set list surprise 'Chemicals' bleeds out under green lights and remains an epochal song, and there's no time for rest as 'Stay Awake' revs the crowd up under flashing lights.
"Did someone say take your shirt off?" Lewis jokes. "Let me tell you, if my shirt came off, I'd run into a wall and knock myself out. It would be my worst nightmare." He signs a fan's request for a tattoo before another asks him to reveal the gender of their baby. "This is f...ing epic," Lewis says. "Congratulations, it's a boy!" he announces.
Dean then introduces 'With You' as a song that was meant to be for Rihanna, but found its way back to Lewis. He does it the justice only he can.
For 'Lost Without You', Lewis brings a fan onstage to play guitar in what is sure to be a lifetime highlight for them, before the violinist takes a solo so Lewis can head up to the middle of the crowd for 'Half A Man', which stirs deeper.
Image © Ilgin Aykut
He introduces a new song about a girl who was like a sister to him that died suddenly. "I was still hoping one day you'd come around again," he cries out, in a heart wrenching moment. A dramatic thunderstorm interlude plays as Lewis returns to the stage for 'Waves', which absolutely explodes like all good songs do.
A cover of 'Fix You' features the opening artists in a joyous celebration, before Lewis is joined onstage by his father to play the song Lewis wrote for him, 'How Do I Say Goodbye'. 'Be Alright' ends the encore with another great song, as the guitarist shreds through an energetic solo.
Highly emotional, sentimental and committed to giving his all onstage, Dean Lewis writes brilliant songs and absolutely does them justice.
More photos from the concert.
