Review: Zach Bryan at BST Hyde Park
When American singer-songwriter Zach Bryan last performed in London, it was to 1000 people at Islington Assembly Hall. Just over two years later, he performed to 130,000 over two nights when he headlined BST Hyde Park.
Following hits like ‘I Remember Everything’ and ‘Oklahoma Smokeshow’, Zach Bryan has established himself as one of the leading figures of the Country revival in recent years which has made waves across the Atlantic and become a mainstream genre.
Walking up to Hyde Park from Marble Arch, you would think you were at a Texas rodeo with hundreds of people wearing cowboy hats and boots, ready to see Zach Bryan.
I wasn’t quite dressed up myself but I was equally as excited to see Zach Bryan. I first started listening to his music properly earlier this year and have been addicted ever since, there’s something captivating about his music with the vivid, Springsteen-esque lyrics that draw you in and provoke real emotion in a way that very few artists can do.
This was encapsulated from one of my favourite moments in the Hyde Park show as he performed ‘Oklahoma Smokeshow.’ It’s just a masterclass of a song and it was a pleasure to witness it live.
The crowd were in great voice and during the last chorus of numerous songs, Zach Bryan would shout to the crowd, “Do you have one more in you, London?” When the music stopped, the London crowd knew what to do and sang their hearts out word for word.
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Zach Bryan invited Dermot Kennedy – who performed earlier in the day – back out to perform a duet of ‘Hey Driver’, originally a collaboration with The War and Treaty. Dermot Kennedy brought such a power and emotion to this song which was a beautiful contrast to Zach Bryan’s effortless and naturalistic tone.
One of the words that comes to mind when thinking about Zach Bryan’s is ‘effortless.’ He has a natural effortless charm when talking to the audience as if it was just to a small group of friends, not 65,000 people in Hyde Park. There’s also the effortless nature of his performance as he makes it look so natural as he is singing and sharing his heartfelt stories which paint a clear mental image.
There is something special about a performance in Hyde Park that creates incredible moments as 60,000+ people are sharing this communal experience. It can almost feel like a religious experience.
One moment that I’ll never forget is watching Paul Simon perform an acoustic version of ‘Sound of Silence’ at BST Hyde Park in 2018. Everyone in the crowd was softly singing along and it felt like a choir.
Something similar happened tonight as Zach Bryan sang, ‘Something in the Orange’ as the sun was setting on Hyde Park. It’s these kinds of moments that live long in the memory and what live music is all about.
The set ended with a 15-minute version of ‘Revival’, which had everyone dancing around with their drinks raised high. Fitting for a magical evening in Hyde Park after Zach Bryan had performed two iconic shows, fireworks lit up the London sky as everyone watched in awe.
