Live Review: Ed Sheeran @ Optus Stadium, Perth

upnext2blowFebruary 10, 20266 Mins read2

Live Review: Ed Sheeran @ Optus Stadium, Perth

As Ed Sheeran makes his return to Australia for the local kick-off the global Loop tour, it’s clear that he’s at the top of his game when it comes to captivating stadium crowds.

Ed Sheeran

If you ever wondered what fun for the whole family felt like, it’s Ed Sheeran on a Saturday night at Perth’s Optus Stadium.

Armed with a bag full of tricks and a festival worthy line up of supporting acts, England’s Pop Prince returns for a string of shows in aid of his eighth studio album Play.

The Loop Tour sees the singer return to the stadium for a third time after being the first to perform at its grand opening back in 2018. This time quite literally reaching for the stars.

All-female Irish vocal supergroup BIIRD is up first with their blend of traditional instruments in a contemporary style. A very interesting choice of opener but a fun little jaunt, nonetheless.

Queensland’s up-and-comer Mia Wray is on next, delivering a hearty performance as the crowds begin to fill out the stadium. Where I Stand, is a ballad that plunges into personal insecurities where Mia’s voice has enough conviction and depth to fill out all remaining seats before the late comers even arrive. She’s definitely one to watch for sure.

Local legend Vance Joy is the last of the heavy hitters to whet appetites before a main serving of Brit pop rock.

Mess Is Mine and Fire And The Flood send Aussie audiences into a frenzy as the sun begins to go down. He’s a real performer, able to handle the craze of an audience this large with a single guitar and his jazzy backing band beside him. A smooth acoustic cover of I Was Made For Lovin’ You by KISS sees him dig into rock territory. His performance ends with the best thing to come out of Australian music since Kylie Minogue, Riptide.

Sending the crowd into a frenzy and with enough buzz to get them amped for what’s to come. A brilliant supporting act that may even rival Ed himself.

A pink hue is cast around the 80,000 strong crowd. A montage of when he was a young 16-year-old starting out in music beams onto the biggest HD screen you have ever seen. Followed by an intro on how he layers his music live and in real time shows before a cheeky voice quips’ “Now you’re gonna tell me this ain’t live?”

The lights shoot up, then down onto a striking red headed figure in a casual tee and jeans as he bounces out in the middle of the crowd and begins looping his guitar to build up the cocky rap-esque of You Need Me, I Don’t Need You. A bridge extends over the crowd seemingly out of nowhere, leading Ed’s crescendo to the main stage.

Lights turn blue as he hits an upbeat combo of the dancey Sapphire, the first taste of the latest LP, and crowd pleaser Castle On The Hill. Both met with approval and head bobs to the wondrous display of sound and fireworks crystallising in a gemstone of colours above the stadium

“Every single thing you hear tonight is live, layered and looped from the loop pedal,” he boasts rather casually. “There’s no backing track, and everything will be deleted to start fresh tomorrow.”

It quickly becomes apparent during the smash hit Shivers that it is very much just Ed Sheeran, his guitar, a loop pedal, and a gigantic screen. Yet somehow it feels both warmingly intimate and exceedingly larger than life. There are no gimmicks, no set dressing, just a man and his guitar, and somehow it works and he’s able to pull you into the stories and melodies of love, loss, and life.

He returns to the B stage via the magical bridge to perform the Covid crooner and ode to close friend and mentor Jamal, Eyes Closed. All eyes are on him, and they’re filled with tears as the crowd echoes the chorus back to him in a tender moment.

Next up are the QR code crowd chosen songs Coffee In The Morning, Overpass Graffiti, American Town, and Afire Love. Diving into the deep cuts of his 15-year spanning career with a couple tear jerkers. His voice booming around the room as the crowd hangs on every note by the strings of his guitar.

Give Me Love is a true stand out of the night that even has the award-winning musician in disbelief. Layers of guitar overlap and interweave seamlessly as Ed creates new sounds with just his guitar before the melody becomes a stomping wave of sound that sees the audience become part of his choir. Flames ignite. A celestial swirl of rich blues and cosmic scenes overlap on the screen. Lights swoop across the stadium. It feels spectacular and grand.

Ed is finally joined by a band in the form of the talented Ireland based Beoga back on the main stage for Irish jig with the back-to-back swinging ditties of Galway Girl and Nancy Mulligan. He then details his laborious eight-year lawsuit court case, which he thankfully won, and led him to finding his old phone in the process.

Giving an insight into his songwriting abilities on the cool crisp ballad of Old Phone, amped by the Irish stylings of the band where a piano was bittersweetfully needed at this point in the show.

Things start to feel a little weighty around the middle of the set where a little extra on the performance side might have helped uplift an hour and a half into an extravagant catalogue of top 10 hits and ballads. Ed even checks in himself on a lulling crowd “Is everyone having fun, Perth?”

Things do pick up a little as everyone is forced off their feet for the Pokémon-inspired Celestial. It is a very stunning sight to see all of Perth’s mums and dads create a seismic earthquake in sync with fireworks. A medley of the hits he has written for other pop A-listers brings life back into the set.

Transporting punters to the late 2010’s with bangers Eastside, 2002, Cold Water, One Direction ballad Little Things, and arguably the best Justin Bieber song, Love Yourself. It’s proof that the man standing in the middle of the arena has an unmatched pen game when every single person in the stadium is hounding back the words to each song.

Thinking Out Loud, Perfect and I See Fire finally get the crowd back and fully onboard with the Ed Sheeran we all know and love.

It is an impressive feat to create entire soundscapes with one’s guitar and a loop pedal. It’s a further impressive feat to sound crisper than a studio recording. There’s no denying the man’s talent when it comes to music. It does however feel a bit like there’s something missing, that maybe something more grand was needed for a stadium of this grandeur.

Where even the world’s biggest TV starts to lose its appeal to the Ed Sheeran silly stylings and every-man brand slapped across the screen. The magically expanding bridge does deserve merit for how beautiful and original of a concept it is.

An insane triple threat combo of smash hits of only epic Ed Sheeran proportions ends the night with a grand slam as one of the world’s biggest hits Shape of You bounces into the Persian-inspired Azizam, before finally exploding into the unabashed confidence of Bad Habits. It’s a finale of lead singles to end all finales.

A once-in-a-lifetime spectacle of clashing cultures with the ginger heartthrob adding a bit of spice into his musical pot. Plus, there’s enough lights and fireworks to make you think it’s New Years again already.

There’s something to be said about a man that can captivate a crowd for over two-and-a-half hours with just his voice and a guitar. It will leave you asking how he managed to do all that on his own. A true testament to the talented career of a man born in West Yorkshire and one of England’s finest.

Ed returns for a second night at Optus Stadium as well as further dates across Australia. The Loop Tour is a study in music creation that needs to be seen to be believed.