Live Review: Hayden James, Mickey Kojak

Hayden James walks on stage just after 10.30pm and though the walls have already started to drip with sweat, the crowd goes wild. He plays tracks off his new self-titled EP (he’s signed with Future Classic), the kaleidoscopic cover art serving as a visual backdrop behind him. James plays a mix of old tracks and new, including the last song off his EP, Embrace, and unreleased tracks that he admittedly finished producing only last week (which the crowd loves). 

Close to midway through his set he drops his dreamy iconic debut single, Permission To Love, and though released two years ago, it still inspires fans to sing along. Which brings me to my next port of call, and perhaps the one thing I did not enjoy – the crowd; fresh-faced 18-year-old guppies falling over one another while simultaneously spilling drinks on their peers, stepping on toes and elbowing each other in the face. At one point I was convinced the guy in front of me was giving me a lap dance.

In a tribute to Odesza, an American electronic duo act he’d supported at Oxford Art Factory at some point, James played his remix of Say My Name. Not unlike his other remixes, it elegantly combines elements of disco, funk and house to create a balance of something delicate, intricate and harmonious. 

Rounding up the set with the anticipated Something About You, he invited all members of the crowd to jump on stage for his last track, before adding, “I probably shouldn’t have said that,” as the stage was packed in under a minute and filled with enthusiastically dancing fans singing along to the track that’s racked up more than 1.9 million plays on SoundCloud since its release.