Four critically acclaimed albums in, Michael Kiwanuka’s star has ascended so high he could well be considered British songwriting royalty. From Mercury Prize wins and Grammy nominations to performing on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury 2024, there are few accolades Kiwanuka can’t boast. Yet it is with utmost poise and humility that he graces the Usher Hall stage this evening (‘I wish my uni teacher could see me now’ he says when expressing his gratitude for tonight’s audience). Joined by a no-expenses-spared band, complete with strings, an analogue synth player and three backing vocalists, we are treated to an all-encompassing setlist of Kiwanuka’s complete discography.
The show commences with the hand-plucked guitar opening of ‘The Rest of Me’ from Kiwanuka’s latest album Small Changes. One by one the band emerges on stage, taking their places before the groove-locked bass and keyboard lays the plush foundations for psychedelic guitar warbles and stacked vocal harmonies. Persian rugs for each section of the band and numerous free standing lamps provide a soft glow from which you can just make out the lilting smoke of an incense burning. Slow moving graphics and projected videos depicting scenes of platonic, romantic and familial love elicit deep nostalgia that seems to mirror Kiwanuka’s body of work, which in its entirety marries statements around politics and personal identity with rousing mantras of hope.
The band’s energy is cosy and subdued but its sound looms large, Kiwanuka’s vocals cutting through as flawlessly as they do on record. The majority of the set is densely orchestrated with few energetic peaks or valleys. That is until Kiwanuka marks the 13th anniversary of his debut album Home Again with a breathtaking acoustic rendition of the title track with the help of his string duo. There are some more percussive moments, too. The intro to ‘You Ain’t The Problem’ made the crowd, a cross-generational mix of music lovers spanning from young lads to elderly couples, erupt into claps and sways, and the breakdown in ‘Hero’ invited a welcome guitar solo.
Described recently by a critic as ‘Bill Withers covering Radiohead’, it is precisely this combination of technical musical accuracy and heart-wrenching soul that Kiwanuka embodies so completely. His latest tour show isn’t full of flashy solos or showmanship but rather an invitation to sink deeply into a musical meditation that is as much a feast for the eyes and ears as it is for the soul.
Reviewed at The Usher Hall, Edinburgh on Wednesday 12th March
