London, O2 Academy Brixton, Thursday, September 17

As the confetti settles on the ground after showering down during a raucous rendition of his latest single ‘Burn Down The Disco’, James Marriott has a bit of an announcement to make.

“I’m trying not to fucking cry right now,” he admits to the 5,000 fans gathered within a sold-out Brixton Academy before him.

“My third album, ‘Warning Signs’, is going to be out on January 15. I want to say thank you to every single person in this room, because without all of you this dream of mine to make music wouldn’t be possible.”

It’s an announcement he’s been saving for this moment, and what a moment it is. Taking to the stage for his biggest ever headline show at his dream venue, there isn’t one person in the room who doesn’t understand the magnitude of what’s happening right now in this sweatbox of a room.

Over the last six years, James Marriott’s fans have become a formidable community who’ve championed his every move, taking the 29-year-old from his first single to his first number one album with ‘Don’t Tell The Dog’. That’s why tonight, as much as it’s about celebrating the end of one album cycle and the start of another, is about every single person who’s gotten the musician to this point. 

Really, there’s a huge difference between the way many artists have sold out Brixton Academy before, and the way James has done so tonight. Throughout the evening, whether you’re standing at the front, back, sides, centre, up on the balcony, or by the bar, there is not one person having anything less than the time of their lives. There’s no idle chit chat between friends who’ve only come along to hear the last song, nobody online checking the setlist to see how long’s left, and no pair of feet planted on the ground for more than a few seconds at a time. 

From the pure joy of ‘Plasticine’ that has everyone jumping from front to back, to the euphoric singalongs that come courtesy of ‘Toothache’, there’s an unstoppable feeling of unity in the room. There are strangers singing into each other’s faces, friends holding one another’s hands whilst belting out every word of ‘White Noise’, and phone lights raised high into the air during ‘It’s Only Love’, infectious smiles spreading with each and every new surprise thrown their way.

Rattling through the hits with a disco ball glistening over the stage, quite a few of those surprises come in the form of brand-new music. In fact, three unheard songs from ‘Warning Signs’ make the setlist, including a dance-ready duo of ‘Sleepwalker’ and ‘Freak’, as well as a live debut of ‘Lovestruck’ which James sentimentally dedicates to his band. Given it’s the last show of the ‘Don’t Tell The Dog’ era, there’s also a set-closing run-through of the album’s final track ‘Limbs’, the musician choking up slightly as he hears every word of the tender acoustic ballad sung back at him.

“Sometimes as an artist you write a song that feels bigger than yourself, or more important than yourself,” James explains to the crowd as the evening draws to a close.

“For me ‘Car Lights’ is that song… Sometimes the journey towards self-acceptance can be long, and it can be arduous. But I’m here with you every step of the way.”

With more than a few tears shed during the track’s soaring emotional climax, that sentiment sums up just how special all of this is. A project that has grown to become something so much bigger than the one person who started it all, of course James has worked tirelessly to reach this point, but he also knows just how incredibly lucky he is to have done so with fans like these by his side.

Bringing that spirit to London in its most concentrated form for one night only, as we round things out with an almost deafening singalong to ‘Grapes’, it’s a triumphant reminder of how incredibly far James Marriott has come, but perhaps more importantly – how far it’s now possible for this next chapter to take him.

James Marriott’s third album ‘Warning Signs’ will be released on January 15