Concert Review: DAN & SHAY, O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire, London

*Scroll down for a photo gallery from the concert!*

If you’re looking for some music to make you feel good ASAP, look no further than Dan & Shay. I’ve loved every track on all three of their albums, and there’s something about each and every song that just has a way of putting a smile on your face. So, the obvious cure for a boring Thursday evening? A Dan & Shay concert, of course!

The night kicked off with opening act Devin Dawson, who was back in the UK just months after touring with Thomas Rhett (you can read about that experience here). I appreciated from the moment he walked on stage just how chatty Devin was – this certainly wasn’t a ‘get in, get out’ kind of set, but a ‘get to know me’ set, and I think that really helped draw the crowd to him.

He began with War Paint, ‘a song that goes out to anyone who’s ever been cheated on’ (there were a bit too many whoops after that!) and Placebo, two songs from the rocky end of his catalogue. However, they were so different to me than they had been on the Life Changes tour – here Devin was acoustic, and it made such a difference. Instead of being shrouded by drumbeats and loud guitars, this stripped back setting really showed off Devin’s musicality.

Devin took a moment to explain his influences to the crowd, from the rock style we’d just heard, and the almost easy listening vibe of Symptoms; telling us that it was his mother who always used to play country music around the house, inspiring him to try his shot at writing ‘a damn good country song.’ The result is Asking For A Friend, which is up there in my top two Devin songs – if you want to get an idea of just how well he can write and sing, this one’s for you.

Not only was the music nice to listen to, but I was really impressed with Devin’s attempts to engage with the crowd, stopping after every song or so to talk to us. He introduced his favourite song to play in the UK, and the first song he wrote about breaking up with someone rather than the other way round, and just how much it sucks no matter who does it – Secondhand Hurt – give it a listen for the most pleasing ‘ooh’s you’ll ever hear.

He finished his set with arguably his best songs: the first, All On Me, a super catchy crowd pleaser which, like Dan & Shay’s music, can’t stop you from smiling; followed by the autobiographical Dark Horse. I was surprised at just how many people in the audience hadn’t heard of him before when he asked, and thought this song, and indeed his set, had been a great introduction to him playing as, IMHO, he deserved to be heard. Long live acoustic Devin Dawson.

And then onto the main event. I’ll preface this by saying that the first time I saw Dan & Shay tour was two years ago at Bush Hall (read about that here) – two microphones and Dan with his guitar. A lot has changed. Here we had a full band, 2,000 fans, and as Dan stated “a much better guitar!”

We were immediately transported back to the good ole days with 19 You & Me and Nothin’ Like You. I noticed similarities and differences with the duo since when I’d last seen them: one thing which certainly hasn’t changed is Shay Mooney’s incredible vocal range, and one thing that had was Dan Smyers’ confidence and energy – whereas before he’d stayed in one place and sang (granted, the stage was a lot smaller), here he was throwing himself all over the place, kicking his legs this way and that and posing for fan videos like a true rockstar. I swear I have never seen anyone who loves performing more than Dan!

I loved that the duo promised to play us songs from their whole history, and we then moved onto more recent songs including the hugely fun Alone Together. I should note that by this point we were only three songs in, and I already had a sore throat from scream-singing. If that doesn’t give you an indication of how much I was enjoying myself, what will?

Dan & Shay have a unique ability of writing songs that would really make a girl feel lucky if they were about her – case in point next two songs All To Myself and Show You Off. With every song, you knew what it was from the first two chords (or whistles, as the case may be) which made for a great concert full of non-stop singing.

We moved onto the joyful All Nighter from sophomore album Obsessed, followed by a song about appreciating the people you love, Keeping Score. There were plenty of heartfelt moments throughout the set, and this certainly was one of them.

The duo turned the emotion up to 11 for quote unquote potentially-one-of-the-greatest-love-songs-of-all-time From The Ground Up – if you’ve not seen a wedding video set to this song by now, you must be living under a rock. These tracks are truly swoon-worthy, and all I can say to all the women out there is get yourself a man who treats you like a Dan & Shay song. Unsurprisingly, this song got a huge standing ovation from the crowd, so much so that the duo had to take a moment to take it all in, both genuinely grateful for how far they’ve come, and indeed how far they have still to go.

I was well and truly having the time of my life, and this was only exacerbated by hearing two of my favourite of their songs, How Not To and Make Or Break, back to back. Shay’s vocals were utterly insane on the latter (check my Twitter @CiarasCountry for video proof), and genuinely, if you can find me a better vocalist than Shay, get in touch.

Not only were their energy and vocals on fire, but their personalities really shone through. Dan was a firecracker around the stage, with Shay singing most of the things he said, with ‘make some noise’ sounding like the sweetest song you’ve ever heard. We took a moment for the sexy Up At Night before two stools were brought out for an acoustic section.

Here they stopped to say something which I’ve heard a number of artists say over the past few years, and that is that UK fans are unique in that we don’t just listen to the singles, but the whole album, which means that artists know we’ll always know the words to all of their songs. I can imagine how special this is, to look out and see everyone singing along, even to the songs that aren’t played on the radio (and when it comes to country music in the UK, that’s pretty much every song!)

It’s evident as well that artists feel very close with their fans over here, as not only do they come over to tour so often, but in this instance, Shay asked if we wouldn’t mind recording a video to wish his two year old son Asher a happy birthday. Singer second, always a dad first – now if that doesn’t make you love him!

We had plenty of chances for a sing-along during the stripped down My Side of The Fence and Can’t Say No before bringing up the singing and adding in some dancing too for Stupid Love. One thing I will say is that I wished we’d had more opportunity to hear Dan’s voice – of course Shay’s is utterly magical, but I frankly don’t think I could hear Dan at all (was his mic even on?) so he seemed more like a backing singer than one half of the duo. This is something Florida Georgia Line have dealt with very well, with Brian Kelley now singing more solos than ever on their tracks when it used to be that Tyler Hubbard was always the frontman, so I’d like to see whether we can hear more of Dan on future albums.

The main set ended with a song written by the duo but recorded by perhaps the only artist who could compete with Shay’s vocals – Rascal Flatt’s I Like The Sound Of That; and then another of my favourites, Lately. It was evident that the crowd wanted more, more, more as the foot stomping shook the upper levels so much I thought they might collapse!

Thankfully Dan & Shay didn’t keep us waiting for long and ran back on stage for their latest potentially-one-of-the-greatest-love-songs-of-all-time Speechless – I’d heard a couple had gotten engaged to this song at their show a few nights ago so was half expecting it to happen again, but the beautiful lyrics and vocals were enough to tide me over. The crowd loved it and the screams hit the roof, with Shay having great fun controlling the audience with his hand, turning the cheers up as loud as they would go.

We had a super-fun and unexpected cover of Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop The Feeling before coming to the final song of the night. The band started to play but were stopped by Dan: “Do you think we can perform this last one in the middle of the crowd?” The two picked up their mics and squeezed their way right into the middle of the mosh pit – a very brave move!

They were completely squished on all sides, smartphones creating a huge halo around them, but that didn’t stop them from pulling off a stunning performance of Tequila. This for me was truly the epitome of fan interaction, giving the audience perhaps the most intimate concert we would ever experience as they were literally part of the crowd. I have never seen an artist do this before and doubt I ever will again – what a special moment for us all.  

To conclude, if you want a night of good fun and great music, I don’t think you’ll find a better option than Dan & Shay’s tour – make sure to check it out next time they come around, although I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re selling out much bigger venues by then!

I hope you enjoyed my review of Dan & Shay at the O2 Shepherd's Bush! If you'd like to see more photos and videos from the event, and stay up to date on upcoming concert reviews and interviews, make sure to follow me on Twitter @CiarasCountry, and drop me a message below with your favourite moment!

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