LIVE REVIEW: STEPHEN KELLOGG - TORIA WOOFF - ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH

Having recently met one of the pop up acts from C2C 2014 in Maria Byrne last month, it was time for #TEAMw21 to meet for the first time another of the Class of 2014 with a visit to St Pancras Old Church for a thoroughly entertaining evening with Stephen Kellogg. More a classy singer songwriter than an Americana artist, he may not be a widely familiar name among the UK Country community but there is barely a week that goes by without "Forgive You Forgive Me" ringing out at #TEAMw21 towers. While waiting for the doors to open it did seem that this might be a sparsely attended event however on gaining entry we were greeted by a throng of other fans who had arrived early for a pre show Meet & Greet - Many of whom had flown in from the US specially for this show - any artist that can demand such fervour was surely going to deliver and he certainly did with his reflections on family, time passing and much much more.

The evening would commence with a set from Toria Wooff ( pronounced Woo - ff ) who brought a sense of folky Americana as well as more than a hint of Northern goth to the proceedings, being dressed all in black. Standing tall and devoid of the glasses of her publicity shots, her eyes did seem to sparkle a little in the light. Her opening tune, not included on her debut album was called "The Bargain", it would be a delicately picked on her guitar, which Toria would sway around as she played. Her vocals would be atmospheric while on the verses, while the choruses would see Toria burst into another level of volume.

With her shadow bouncing off the white walls of St Pancras Old Church behind her, it was on to "Lefty's Motel Room", where another beautifully picked tune immediately grabbed the attention. This was a chance to play songs from her recently released debut album and the set seemed to divide into 2 parts, with the front part more folky while the latter part more at the Americana / Country end of the spectrum.

"I wish I was where you are" being one of the mournful lines at the end of the chorus.

There was soft beauty on the delivery of "Sweet William", while "The Flood" came with a most unusual phrasing with the words delivered in three word batches that gave it a most quirky feel, it also saw a return to the guitar swaying style of earlier. It would prove an enthralling combination the insistent guitar and the unusual delivery. Feeding into the Goth vibe, her ghost tale "The Waltz Of Winter Hey" was rich in narrative.

The closing two numbers displayed the talents of someone who could easily flick between genres and had much more of an Americana feel to them, "See Things Through" was slightly slower, a gentle strumming style rather than the picked style of earlier with a chorus rich in a melody, with Toria's voice delicately exploring each part of it, in the most delightful of ways. For the closing sections, Toria would just let her voice echo around the old church to great effect. A final belter of a song "That's What Falling In Love Will Do" would close things out, a simple melody beautifully delivered was wonderfully hypnotic and totally enchanting, which would probably sum up the captivating time we spent with Toria.

Not to be outdone, Stephen Kellogg would create his own sense of atmosphere from beginning to end, arriving to a bit of Bon Jovi before immediately grabbing the audiences attention with an a capella "Right There With You", there was a Gospel feel to it and what better to open with when playing in a church - it would close with Stephen repeating the title three times, breaking out into a broad smile as he finished, Immediately launching into "Lost and Found", with a jaunty guitar matched to an exquisite vocal, it set the scene for the rest of the evening.

A performer totally at ease with between song chat, this was as relaxed and enjoyable an evening as we've had in ages. The opening lines of "Satisfied Man", with it's comical lines about expecting "a strapping son" and getting an ever growing family of daughters.and having the snip! The most heartening news of the evening was that a new record would be coming in May, the saddest was that at the merch stall you could collect a memory stick containing Stephen's lifetime of work for £25, #TEAMw21 totally understand why it's being done after all many will just listen for free, it just feels wrong.

From the lighthearted we then moved to a wonderful song "The Waitress", from his forthcoming EP, essentially a retelling of history, inspired by the passing of a first love, full of detailed little personal observations, it was a delight to witness. Following with the uplifting "You're My Diamond" which was introduced "as the way a love song should be", still finding time to poke fun at Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" where he is boasting of loving someone until they're 70! Moving on to parenting, the introduction and observations on "It Goes Fast" would chime with any parent. perfectly observed and delivered.

Breaking out a singalong, the chapel was soon singing "I will always be your harbour", which would end in big smiles and Stephen punching the air. Squeezing his whole life story in a 3 minute song, "4th July" it came with a stunning and stirring introduction and saw Stephen firing out the lyrics at pace, gradually building the volume and ending by taking off his guitar and taking in the applause.

In a truly special moment - Stephen would then hand over the stage, to his tour manager, Trae Sheehan a songwriter in his own right for "Sleepless Heart" With Stephen looking on, capturing the moment on his phone Trae would put on a great display before then going back to sell merch at the end! The magical moments kept on coming with Stephen stepping from the stage to sing "Chasing Dreams" wandering up and down the aisle. The main set would close with "Objects In The Mirror", which in another highlight would be interrupted by the church bells ringing. It might have thrown a lesser performed but Stephen just took it in his stride.

The encores would start with "Kiss The Ring" from "The Waitress" EP, with a truly impassioned delivery. The final tune of the evening would see Stephen and Trea send us off not with a goodbye but with "See You Later See You Soon" including a final piece of audience participation. It took10 years to finally catch up with Stephen Kellogg, we won't wait that long for the next next time - an exceptional night with a special performer, we cannot recommend him highly enough.