By Bethany Gavaghan

Copyright walesonline

Lewis Capaldi’s recent gigs seem to have been strong full circle moments after he took two years off to work on his mental health. His Cardiff show was no different, and as I was comparing it to the last time I’d seen him in the same stadium in 2023, there were several things which stood out to me at his latest gig at Cardiff Utilita. He greeted the fans with lots of enthusiasm, adding: “It’s good to be back. It’s good to be back in Cardiff. Everyone all good, everyone all happy? “It’s Saturday night in Cardiff as well. Me and the Welsh.” He added: “Listen, I’m here, I feel relaxed. I feel loosey goosey. This is the third last night of the tour. This is the last show in the UK.” From superstar gigs to cosy pubs, find out What’s On in Wales by signing up to our newsletter here An ever down to earth soul with a likeable edge that makes it easy to put yourself in his shoes, he put the crowd at ease and I love how calm his fan base was. There was definitely a sense of respect for him and what he does, especially in the face of the personal struggles he has had to endure. Given how he’s described the past couple of years I can only begin to imagine what it must be like facing crowds of thousands and singing to them about the different chapters of your life. The Someone You Loved singer didn’t hold back when it came to giving us some clues as to what’s going on for him career wise, as well as an insight into the making of his recent music. He said at the beginning of the show that his plan is to “release as much music as possible before the end of the year” – which was music to many ears of his fans I’m sure. Lewis also hinted at his thought processes when writing recent music, as he explained that The Day That I Die was a song he wrote at the beginning of taking some time off. “I just felt horrible”, he told his Cardiff fans. “So this song is about that time.” On a performative level, one thing I found was that he was definitely more grounded. He was slightly less raw and maybe even less connected from the crowd while still being the candid, amazing Lewis that fans know and love. But the new Lewis which Cardiff witnessed is still just as open and honest, but now with a level of intentionality I don’t think we’ve seen as much of before from him. His boundaries with the world, and possibly with himself are now more clear cut. But instead of dulling him down, this seems to bring a new dimension to his work. That added level of perspective shines through strongly and actually gives a new sense of meaning to a lot of what he says – and sings. He brought great energy and plenty of jokes to the stage. He effectively told a child in the audience who had just turned eleven, that it was all downhill from here, before proceeding to get everyone to sing them a happy birthday. I always really admire singers who speak to people in the crowd because you never know what you’re going to get, but he certainly got a big cheer after he approached someone with a sign which they held up, and without knowing what it was started reading it aloud and ended up announcing someone’s pregnancy to their family. I’m assuming they were filming that part, and I’m sure that moment made its way into a few of their group chats. He sang all of his classics, including Pointless which I thought was his best. Although he’s famous for his heartfelt ballads there was slightly more production with this one and the juxtaposition between the words and the way he performed it was amazing, and really immersive. There was also a poignant moment which again reflected how much work he seems to have done on himself personally, as before he sang How I’m Feeling Now, he noted with a certain level of defiance that he “no longer resonated with it – at all.” Musically, his voice sounded as good as ever and hearing all of the tracks in person is such a moment, given the type of artist he is and how much of himself he puts into his work. The next time he is back in the capital will be on June 30, in 2026 at Blackweir Live, and again on July 1. He alluded to this, saying he would be back “very soon.” You can read more about these gigs and how to get tickets here. He then joked: “I wasn’t sure if we’d announced that. But we will be back very soon.”