Sudden Lights Live at O2 Academy 2 Islington London.
8 December 2024
It’s been a busy year for Latvian band Sudden lights who made their first UK debut at the Macbeth in Hoxton in February this year. Since then, they have released a multitude of new music, toured through Latvia playing shows and festivals. They even played arguably one of the most popular sets at this year’s Summer Sound Festival in Liepāja over the summer. But that is not all, the band have also recently announced one of their biggest shows yet headlining the Arena Rīga on the 15th of November 2025.
On this return to the UK, they did not only play one show but three starting with a sold out show in Birmingham, a slot in Manchester at the Year’s End Festival and finally ending off their mini tour in London with the O2 Academy in Islington. It must be noted that it is not often you hear of a band from Latvia performing in the United Kingdom with multiple shows (especially ones that sell out). So it is clear that Sudden Lights following their participation in Eurovision have been able to not only cultivate an audience that appeals to people domestically, but also internationally. The show in London was close to also being sold out and many came to show their support for the band not only from across the UK, but also from back home in Latvia. Even though the band are used to playing to much larger crowds back in Latvia, it seemed like everyone in the audience was in agreement that it was a privilege to see them perform in a somewhat more intimate setting.
To open, the band played their song “Mēs turpināmies” (We Continue), a popular song in Latvia that was released last summer. Whilst not everyone in the room was Latvian, or could speak the languages, it was clear that language is no barrier in music with the whole room singing along in unison. Another crowd favourite was “nejauši kadri” (Random Shots) which is a song that many have claimed to be the song of the summer and truly got people off their feet. This was perfect in building the energy in the room for their following cover of “Mūsu mīlestība” (Our Love) which is a cover of the iconic song by Čikāgas Piecīši’s (Chicago Five). The crowd erupted into a cheer for their performance of their latest single “Eldorado” which has quite clearly already gathered a lot of popularity.
There was certainly no lack of energy in their performance, lead singer Andrejs executed each song with a clear passion for his trade and there were no lacks of guitar solos and punchy riffs that kept the spirits high in the audience. It was honestly amazing that even with the band devoting this level of energy to their performance, they had any left to spare to interact with the crowd on what seemed like such a personal and truly genuine level. The band also recounted their time at music school, where two of the members met and bonded over a Nokia ringtone version of Katy Perry’s “I kissed a girl” which sprung into Andrej’s passing the microphone over to Karlis (bass) to lead in singing a cover of the iconic pop anthem.
Of course, it is not a Sudden Lights show without them performing the song that found them their popularity in the first place. Aijā (Shush), their Eurovision entry to the crowds delight was played twice during their set, first in an acoustic setting and towards the end as a more upbeat number and had the crowd screaming for an encore. Overall, Sudden Lights played an energetic show in London that was loved by everyone in the crowd. There is no surprise in their growth in popularity even internationally. The band definitely know to put on a performance, release catchy music and keep their fans entertained with their tik-toks and reels. There were even fans at the show from the UK who have travelled to Latvia to see them perform which is incredible as they are definitely doing a lot to put their country and Latvian music on the map.
With their show scheduled next November at Arena Rīga, it is clear there are no signs of stopping for these guys and I am sure that there will be even bigger things in store for them in the future as they have already proved that good things come to those who work hard for it!
