Presenting your first album in six years is no small feat. Especially when that album is one made in the wake of your mother’s passing in 2023. One with heartfelt tracks oscillating between themes of homecoming, missing loved ones, and being in the countryside away from the city. Nonetheless, Dev Hynes aka Blood Orange was up for the challenge, selling out four dates at London’s Alexandra Palace in the blink of an eye. Needless to say, the hundreds of fans who snatched tickets were not disappointed as Hynes and his band brought Essex Honey to life beautifully while weaving in deep cuts, fan favourites, and a surprise guest appearance on their second night.
As the historical venue went dark and cheers erupted, passing through the crowd and out of the shadows, Hynes emerged and made his way onto the stage. With a single spotlight on him, he started the night off with Essex Honey’s opening track, Look At You. One piano key is all it took for the applauding audience to cease suddenly and tune in. As the song started coming to an end, strobe lights lit up the venue in time to welcome Hynes’ band to the stage situated in the middle of the room. The voices and instrumentation of Eva Tolkin, Ian Isiah, and Tariq Saleem Al-Sabir accompanied Hynes throughout the night as he displayed his versatility floating between the keyboard, guitar, and cello. Dreamy soul-hitting vocals worked together with the live instrumentation to perfection, creating a meticulously layered and vibrant embodiment of the setlist.
Thinking Clean, a surprise solo cover of The Smiths’ How Soon Is Now on electric cello, Saint, Somewhere in Between, and Jesus Freak Lighter followed, the latter causing the venue to erupt into flashing lights and cheering from the crowd after merely hearing the very first guitar chord. All eyes were glued to the round stage throughout the night as the audience stood struck in awe, dancing, singing and even crying. It felt equal parts intimate, heartwarming, and hazy as it did buzzing and dynamic, a testament to Hynes’ eclectic and varied musical repertoire.
Although most of the performance was drawn from Essex Honey, the artist also delved into his earlier stuff. After stoking things up further with Mind Loaded and Countryside, we got to hear You’re Not Good Enough from his debut album as well as the swaggering social media viral hit Charcoal Baby. However, it was Champagne Coast, the track that has become his biggest hit because of its popularity on TikTok, that garnered the biggest reaction of the night. It pulled everyone away from heavier sentiments of melancholy for its duration and filled the crowd with energy as they all sang their hearts out. The cherry on top? Hynes’ hypnotic guitar solo. And while he was in close proximity to the audience throughout the night, making his way around the stage, he said little to nothing between songs, occasionally acknowledging everyone being there and being present and speaking of his bandmates and collaborators.
Reeling it back to Essex Honey, he delivered mesmerising renditions of The Field, The Last of England and a tender acoustic version of The Train (King's Cross), with the live band adding ecstatic propulsive warmth and depth to each track. The pairing of ongoing drum vibrations, guitar riffs and ethereal vocals was musical beauty in all its glory. With many friends and collaborators in town for the time of the performance, including Erika de Casier (whom Hynes did an NTS show on the day of), Daniel Caesar, Oklou and more, it was highly likely for a guest to make an appearance. Luckily for us, Mustafa joined Hynes on stage for a starkly exquisite performance of their collaboration with Mabe Fratti, I Can Go.
As the show came to a close, Hynes is left alone on stage, all but with a single spotlight on him, the same way he started the night out. As he begins to sing the profoundly melancholic Time Will Tell, a song about the passage of time and the uncertainty it brings, the emotion overcomes the crowd, heard in their collective voice singing the lyrics back to Hynes. Taking a bow with the backing track of it still playing, he thanks the crowd and leaves the stage victoriously, soundtracked by the dynamic cheers from the audience grateful to have witnessed such unique and versatile talent in the flesh. Dev Hynes is one of those generational musicians that comes about every decade and one of those that will stand the test of time. His four-night residency at Alexandra Palace? Unforgettable. What a breathtaking show.
