It's been quite a year.
Emeli Sande arguably had a better Olympics than Lord Coe and Chris Hoy combined, but more significant is the fact that her debut album, Our Version of Events, is still in the top five 14 months after its release.
She seemed absurdly grateful of her good fortune at this raucously partisan homecoming, with much breathless gush about "sharing". At their least engaging her songs seemed similarly polite, while her six-piece band were efficient rather than thrilling, rarely matching the unwavering passion of the singer.
When the right song connected with her killer voice and the energy of the crowd, Sande's glossy, socially engaged, unthreateningly urbanised soul was capable of raising some heat. My Kind of Love, Read all About It and Next to Me were thrilling. The crowd were reluctant to settle for a soulfully subdued Suitcase, winningly performed with bass accompaniment.
Although still touring her first album when others would be settling down to make the next one, she has been writing. The new material neatly summarised her core concerns: The Half of It was an empathetic response to the London riots, while This Much is True was an unambiguous love song dedicated to her husband. The cumulative, climactic joy of Wonder and Next to Me was undeniable, but she would do well to heed the sentiment of another of her songs, Beneath Your Beautiful, performed last night with her backing singer rather than Labrinth. The sheen of her music is impressive, but Sande will be more interesting when she allows some imperfections to slip through.
HHH
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