Nell Mescal plays an evening of intimate, acoustic songs in Birmingham
On April 7th, the Irish-born indie-pop artist Nell Mescal took to the stage of The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham for an evening of acoustic performances.
Located within the heart of the city’s music scene, the queue outside The Sunflower Lounge wrapped around the building long before doors, with fans exchanging bracelets, writing signs and discussing which songs they hoped would be on the setlist.
Shortly after doors, the sold-out venue was ready for the show’s opener, Eve Christina. A folk-pop singer-songwriter from London, Eve paired delicate guitar melodies with her classically pretty vocals on stage.
Throughout her set, the crowd were very respectful, quiet and paid complete attention to Eve as she sang a variety of songs, from one about loving someone who’s not quite found themselves to another about never being satisfied within a relationship and challenging gender roles within it.
A particular favourite was You Stay, I’ll Go, the fifth track from her 2024 EP, Call Me Baby. An apologetic and emotional ballad about having to leave someone behind, the crowd swayed as Eve sang, “You’re sweet to me / Sorry that I labelled you as history […] I tried to be everything you wanted, call me plasticine / Ended up the villain in your fever dream.”
It was clear to see how the crowd related to Eve’s music, with fans in the front row hugging each other and singing along to every lyric. For her final song of the night, Tangled, Eve said: “Let's lift it - let’s lift the vibes!” before teaching the crowd the melody of her song. As the entire room sang back to her, we’re certain that Eve felt nothing but welcomed by the city on her final night opening for Nell Mescal.
Having set a perfect atmosphere for the evening and built up the audience’s excitement for Nell’s upcoming performance, Eve quickly headed off the stage and into the crowd.
In case you missed it, here’s Eve Christina’s full setlist from the night:
In 4 out 5
You Stay, I’ll Go
Amber
Loved out Loud x Anything
Be My Man
Tangled
Less than thirty minutes later, the lights dimmed and Nell Mescal stepped onto the stage of The Sunflower Lounge.
Her face soon filled with shock as she spotted a group of fans in the crowd who told her ‘they couldn’t make the final show’ but in reality, already had tickets and wanted to surprise their favourite artist on the final show of the tour.
For her first song, Nell played Electric Picnic, the fifth track of her 2024 EP, Can I Miss It For A Minute? One of the most up-tempo songs from her discography (with gut-wrenching lyrics, of course), the crowd sang loudly alongside Nell for the chorus: “I’m looking down the barrel and I’m missing my old bedroom / Why’d you show face? You’re so selfish / I’m not gonna forgive you cause you’re crying at a song I wrote you last year / It’s been a whole year, it’s been a whole year.”
A standout moment of the night was Nell’s performance of In My Head, which featured in the LGBTQIA+ coming of age series, Heartstopper (2022) - based on the graphic novel series by Alice Oseman. An angsty anthem where Nell sings about looking for someone in the shadows and “gripping memories” till her fingers turn blue, the crowd at The Sunflower Lounge danced along as the lights flickered to the beat.
After performing a gorgeous rendition of her upcoming single, Thin, Nell opened up to the room about how deeply she was feeling the love that the crowd were giving her. Gushing about how fans were making friends and friendship bracelets with each other, she got so emotional during LYAT that the crowd began cheering and encouraging her to finish the song.
Nell’s fanbase really sent her final show off with a bang with a fan-organised project as the crowd all held up paper hearts which read ‘I love YOU in a big way,’ using this gesture to thank the singer for everything she’s done for them.
Nearing the end of the show, Nell took the time to tell stories about her songs to her Birmingham fanbase, sharing how important each of them are to her and how she felt after writing them. Giving fans a vulnerable insight into her writing process and the stories behind her lyrics, it was lovely to see just how much love is put into every second of Nell’s music.
Though the setlist for this acoustic mini-tour had been 10 songs each night, for this final show, the crowd begged Nell to sing her fan-favourite 2023 single, Homesick. Giving it a last-minute, penultimate spot on the setlist, fans sang along to every word in gratitude before the final song - and one of VoiceNoted’s personal favourites - Killing Time.
A track with electric guitar melodies and one of the best bridges in Nell’s discography, the entire crowd sang along to the final lyrics of the night: “And I wanted to stay but you called it / Did I make a mistake, was it over? / Are you sorry like I was in August? / Flying home, now it hurts but I promise / That I wanted to stay but you called it […] Would you let me get away?”
For those who missed the Birmingham show, here’s Nell’s full setlist:
Electric Picnic
See You Again
Yellow Dresser
In My Head
TCWG
Warm Body
Thin
LYAT
July
Homesick
Killing Time
If you missed Nell this time around, you’re in luck as she’ll be performing at Reading & Leeds Festival on August 24th alongside other iconic acts such as Suki Waterhouse, Matilda Mann and Nieve Ella. To find tickets, you can head to their website here.
And next Wednesday (April 23rd), Nell is releasing her latest emotional ballad, Thin - which those signed up to her mailing list will have already heard the demo of!
Whilst we wait for what’s sure to be one of our new favourite songs, make sure to follow Nell Mescal on Instagram and enjoy the rest of her music on Spotify: