Review: Brandi Carlile @ Hyde Park, London
A career defining set deserving of all the accolades and continued global recognition
Opening for Stevie Nicks at her British Summer Time headline show on July 12th, Brandi Carlile proclaimed her hour-long set at Hyde Park to be the biggest of her career thus far.
Though her discography spans 7 studio albums with 2018’s By the Way, I Forgive You establishing her global breakthrough, Carlile’s performances throughout the UK have been sparse. Now, with Friday’s show under her belt, it seems fair to assume she may embark on frequent transatlantic journeys going forward, given her warm reception and ability to entice a British crowd.
Kicking off her set with Broken Horses from her latest album In These Silent Days released in 2021, Brandi Carlile delved into hits from five of her respective albums before rounding off with covers of Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock and Queen’s We Are the Champions; the latter intending to pre-empt the outcome of the Euro 2024 final between England and Spain taking place later today.
Fully immersed in the entirety of the gig, three things become clear about the live experience of the Washington-born singer: vocal harmonies play a signature part in her artistic process, she and her band’s musicianship standards are up there with the best, and each member conveys a sincere gratitude towards their craft and career which make watching them all the more enjoyable.
Whilst Brandi Carlile predominantly falls into the Americana genre, there are obvious elements of rock and roll and easy listening alike within her catalogue; The Eye and The Mother applying to the latter with their minimalistic instrumentation and heavy focus on the intertwining vocals of Carlile and her long-time collaborators Phil and Tim Hanseroth.
That being said, her setlist was not without it’s bigger moments with songs such as Sinners, Saints and Fools and the 2007 hit The Story exhibiting stadium-filling characteristics with their larger-than-life compositions and full band involvement. Better still, despite all the production value, nothing takes away from Carlile’s vocal ability with her impressive range and endless versatility.
Alternatively, and whilst the gig displayed no form of downfall, it felt as though more songs would have been worthy to include. Timetabled to play for 70 minutes, Brandi Carlile and her band met the hour mark before departing the stage in time for Stevie Nicks. As a longtime fan, it seemed odd to end a brilliant set with two covers, leaving a true sense of completion to remain somewhat unrealised. It is at this point that songs such as Party of One, This Time Tomorrow, or My Song could have had their time to shine and bring the set to a more rounded conclusion.
Such omissions could however be tactical. Now that her Hyde Park show has catalysed further receptiveness of UK audiences towards Carlile, maybe future visits to Britain will gradually allow for more expansive showcases of unsung material. Whether this will prove to be the case or not, it seems that Brandi Carlile and her band will have no trouble attracting and maintaining a crowd.
On behalf of all those lucky enough to experience the biggest show of the songstress in real time, it is safe to say that any future return to British venues will be met with open arms and an eternal loyalty.
Setlist
Broken Horses
You And Me On The Rock
The Story
The Eye
The Mother
Right On Time
Raise Hell
Sinners, Saints and Fools
The Joke
Hold Out Your Hand
Woodstock (Joni Mitchell cover)
We Are The Champions (Queen cover)
Listen to Brandi Carlile’s hit The Story here: