Concert Reviews (181)

• January 28, 2025
• Colleen Johnson
• 214
• 0

It takes a lot to get me out on a chilly night in January, especially when you see it’s a four-band bill. But I’m very grateful I headed out to the Royale recently in Boston to catch Ben Barnes at his first Boston show. While Barnes put on a cinematic show feted by a crew of incredibly talented musicians, one won’t get ahead of herself here. 

That wild amount of openers for a sleepy night in Boston was a serious treat on a Tuesday at that. Funneling onto the stage in swift twenty-minute or so sets, the stage was warmed up by three talented musicians providing some serious magic in Barnes’s performance later that night. Up and comers in their own rights, Zoe Sparks, Sophia James, and Charles Jones all took the stage for swift sets that set a serious bar for the rest of the night to come. The ease and veteran experience between the three performers was clear as they eased into each other’s performances and introduced each other as the other took the stage and started their own set within thirty seconds max. 

Be it Zoe Sparks’ 70s esque performance of moments like her opening track, “The Fake-Up Song,” with some seriously angelic vocals. To the shimmery synthy nature of Sophia James, one that brought to mind early Ed Sheeran, with the way James set up her own loops through out; ending on the incredibly dancey, “Cicadian Rhythm”. And to wrap it up, Charles Jones came on stage with a stunning cover of Radiohead’s “Creep,” amongst a slew of originals. It was a non-stop sixty minutes or so of serious talent for which we should all keep our eyes peeled. All three have already started to create some serious success in their own rights, and it’s no secret why the trio secured a place in Ben Barnes’ live band. 

Only twenty or so minutes later, Barnes took the stage with his lovely crew, and right from the beginning, the band cascaded into big moments off his debut full-length, Where the Light Gets In. Early on in the set, a great moment hit with “Nevermind,” and it swam on from there throughout, touching on the majority of his aforementioned album and a handful of covers. The set also included moments of his 2021 EP with “11:11,” and the show barely slowed down over the hour and a half or so that Barnes and his band were on stage. The moments it did, though, were to forever comment on how lucky he was to have such a talented band around him. Barnes said, “It’s an entire band of artists that are much better than me.” As well as sharing, “I’m so lucky to have these brilliant women and gentlemen on this journey with me.” 

As well as commenting about his band’s talent, he was an absolute storyteller between songs. Which, of course, should come naturally considering his experience in the acting side of the world. A moment that brought a particular amount of laughter from those in attendance, talking about how, yes, most of his songs were love songs, “But not this song, this song is about sex.” 

The band eased through a performance where the stage was set out with everyone in a line instead of some in front of others, which gave a very practiced but good way. Highlights included moments like “Slow it Down” and “The In Between”, both off his most recent album. The show gave a veteran performance, and as Barnes spoke about it, his band screamed veterans to back up his debut run of performances. It also speaks to Barnes’ character that he didn’t outsource his opening acts, instead giving the stage to members of his live band to showcase their talents in their own rights. Overall, it was a great night of music to kick off the wild amount of music about to hit the metro Boston area this year. Be it the big arena shows, the anniversary shows, or my favorite, those intimate club shows. While live touring may not always be the focus as Barnes still has an acting career to focus on, definitely keep your eyes peeled for the next time Barnes hopefully brings his tunes to your part of town.