Powerful vocal vulnerability from Luke Sital-Singh at St. Pancras Old Church

Photograph by George O’Brien

Luke Sital-Singh is building a reputation as an esteemed singer-songwriter with a serious live voice and, having performed a number of showcase gigs over the Summer, as well as supporting The Staves, his first headline London show served to completely justify the excitement surrounding the North Londoner.

A sold out, candle lit St. Pancras Old Church provided an entirely suitable venue for the set, which touches on gospel and choral influences. It also allowed for an unplugged rendition of ‘Honest Man’; a story of temptation delivered to a silent congregation. This silence was one of the most notable elements of the performance, as the powerful vulnerability in his vocals, alongside the heartfelt lyrics of ‘You Love, You Love’ in particular, demanded and held our attention throughout.

Relaxed humour between songs, and the brilliantly building ‘Bottled Up Tight’, served as respite from the melancholia of the set, exemplified by the beautifully sad ‘Dark’. What is more, the controlled use of Telecaster crunch, matching the rasping vocal on ‘Fail For You’, added a depth to the assured performance and sparked a well-earned encore – his “first one of those”. It’ll be well worth keeping an eye on Luke Sital-Singh, whose second EP is due early next year.

Set List
I Have Been A Fire
You Love, You Love
Blinding Light
Honest Man
Dark
To Wait
Bottled Up Tight
Nearly Morning
Fail For You
—
Inaudible Silence