Mike Rosenberg AKA Passenger was joined by The Once, filling Rock City with their folk sensations and melting the audience’s hearts.
The Once, a folk trio from Newfoundland, Canada, began with extraordinarily beautiful harmonies. Lead singer Geri’s vocals were incredible, and when band members Phil and Andrew joined her the crowd was left silent. ‘We Are All Running’, lead single of their new album Departures, was popular with the crowd and showcased the range of Geri’s vocals along with the instrumental talents of all three band members. Playing the mandolin, guitar, drum and tambourine between them, The Once filled the venue with folk-rock Gram Parsons would be proud of.
The Once filled the venue with folk-rock Gram Parsons would be proud of
Passenger was welcomed onto the stage with deafening screams of excitement. With a mix of old classics like Let Her Go and tracks from his new record Whispers, Mike poured his heart and soul into every song.
Stating that he had a true love for Nottingham and performing in the city, Passenger was eager to connect with his fans- and spent a lot of time during the set talking to them. Explaining the story behind popular song Riding to New York, Passenger detailed his long-term addiction to smoking and how a chance encounter in Minneapolis had changed his life. Wiping away a tear himself, there was barely a dry eye in the house as he launched into the emotional song.
Stu Larson, another talented folk vocalist and friend of Passenger, joined the singer on stage for a very special one night only duet. The harmonies were incredible and the crowd were disappointed that Larson stayed on stage for just one song.
Witty from the beginning, Passenger apologised to those fans who had bought tickets to see what they believed was a band
Witty from the beginning, Passenger apologised to those fans who had bought tickets to see what they believed was a band, telling the crowd it was just him and his guitar. That was more than enough though. Playing with more passion than seemed possible, Passenger needed only his guitar to capture the crowd, and was on his third guitar by the end of the night, having broken strings on the first two.
After an hour Passenger left the stage but the crowd were already ready for the encore and kept singing for the five minutes until he returned. When he did, The Once joined him on stage for a cover of Van Morrison’s Brown Eyed Girl. The song was the highlight of the night – mixing the vocal talents of all four musicians and going down as a great success with the crowd, still buzzing as they left the venue. Passenger clearly had an amazing night, thanking the crowd for being “fucking fantastic”. Right back at you, Passenger.
Beth Rowland
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