Paolo Nutini casually takes to the stage of the Sunderland Empire theatre shortly after 9pm to the pulsating sounds of ‘Jenny Don’t Be Hasty’. The audience reaction is anything but casual. A slow roar emanates from the darkness as he slides into the spotlight. Everyone is up off their seats to greet the boy from Paisley.
This ecstatic level of audience participation becomes a theme of the evening as ‘New Shoes’ is given a rockier makeover, turning the usually civilised stalls of the Empire theatre into a mass of flailing arms and wayward camera flashes.
There’s a sense of fun on stage as well as in the audience. Paolo shuffles gleefully around the mic stand. He even dons a straw hat for live favourite ‘Funky Cigarette’.
The band are having a whale of a time too. Consisting of guitar, bass, drums and a 3 piece brass section, they negotiate their way around Nutini’s genre hopping set list with great aplomb.
One could be forgiven for thinking we were watching some veteran performer armed with a vast back catalogue delivering a greatest hits show. Not a 24 year old only two albums into a career. Every song is met with rapturous applause. The simple fact of the matter is that Nutini is a born entertainer. Charismatic and versatile he can seemingly turn his hand to any genre. Be it the soul of ‘Coming Up Easy’, the reggae stylings of ‘10/10’, or his folky take on ‘Worried Man’ he nails it every time – it’s like being at five gigs at once!
Nutini showcases his softer side with ‘These Streets’, a reminder that he could quite easily captivate the audience with his voice and guitar alone.
The highlight of the evening however is undoubtedly the slow build of ‘Candy’. The mass sing along to the closing refrain “I’ll be there waiting for you” would give even the most hardened of gig goers goosebumps.
The encore holds a couple of pleasant surprises. Hot Chip’s ‘Over and Over’ is given the Nutini treatment as is the MGMT anthem ‘Time to Pretend’. Then the beautifully understated delivery of ‘Last Request’ keeps the die-hards happy and almost gets lost under the sheer volume of crowd participation.
With a busy summer of UK and European festivals ahead of him and a new album on the horizon Paulo Nutini is going from strength to strength. He remains an accomplished performer and a delightfully unpredictable artist. This may be one of the last chances we get to see him in a relatively intimate venue. It could all go stratospheric from here on in.
