The 7.15 slot at the O2 Academy can be a tough one. An enthusiastic, young crowd like this will at least have started filtering in – but with the best will in the world, an artist likely finds themselves playing to less than half a room.
Singer songwriter Catty doesn’t let that distract her, pacing the stage as she delivers tunes like a punkier-yet-softer CMAT, blending classic rock influences with pop sensibilities.
Next up, Say Now help the crowd remember their name with a little lightbox that looks like something you might order online from one of those sites that allegedly steal your card details.
The three-piece girl group sound – and dance – like something Louis Walsh would eagerly put through to judges’ houses on X Factor. Their vocals, although weirdly low in the mix, sound good and the group are in sync. But as the crowd chat distractedly, it feels that maybe they’re not quite ready for this size of stage.
The KT Tunstall-esque intro to ‘Rebel Child’ kicks off Dylan’s set, as she enters yielding a sparkly red guitar in moody lighting. Her band – who she later introduces as “Phil Collins” and “Axl Rose” – are nestled deep on the stage so as not to detract from the star.
Dylan complains of feeling poorly tonight, but neither her vocals nor her energy ever seem to wane in the 15-song set. Amidst her own tunes, a couple of cover snippets especially please the crowd – Taylor Swift’s ‘Out Of The Woods’ and Sam Smith’s ‘Unholy’ – along with original fan favourites like the suspiciously-similar-to-Taylor-Swift’s-Style ‘Nineteen’.
It’s a solid set over all, but the final third feels like a level up. ‘Someone Else’, recent TikTok favourite ‘The Alibi’ (until the Universal TikTok fall out, of course), the anthemic ‘You’re Not Harry Styles’, ‘No Romeo’ and ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’… – it’s a run of hits most popstars could only dream of.
The biggest weakness tonight, which runs through all three acts, is a massive over-reliance on backing track. But hey, in a cost of living crisis, maybe this is just how things go?
The other thing is, compared to peers like Maisie Peters or Griff – Dylan feels less defined … like she hasn’t quite clicked in to her niche yet. Is it rock? Is it pop? What makes Dylan Dylan? But if she can keep putting out bangers like her final run tonight, well, maybe that doesn’t matter.
