He doesn’t look for the depth that Sam Fender found on the songs of his new record live ★★☆☆☆

The British Sam Fender (28) has become one of the most successful rock stars in his country in just a few years. He has two number 1 albums under his belt and arenas full of twenty-somethings sing along passionately. Remarkable for someone who certainly doesn’t make hip music. You can call his songs firmly anchored in Bruce Springsteen’s rock ‘n’ roll rather oldish. But they are certainly well sounded, and Fender’s powerful tenor voice completes his songs.

His following is also growing rapidly in the Netherlands. In a short time, the rocker from Newcastle has outgrown the club circuit, on Thursday he will be performing with his big band in a packed Amsterdam Afas Live. But unfortunately, in that room the music remains just a bit too much on stage and Fender works his way through his one-hour set too dutifully.

How well he has studied Springsteen’s work is apparent from the tearing sax parts that lift things up at the right moments, but Fender has clearly not yet learned from The Boss that it takes more to enthrall a room than yourself dutifully through a pre-determined song list.

There are all kinds of points for improvement. It should be looser. The depth he put on the songs of his new record Seventeen Going Under managed to find, he does not search live. It stays a bit flat live. But The Dying Light and Seventeen Going Under (accompanied by enthralled o-ho-ho vocals from the audience) finally have just the right power to leave the room humming hard and to conclude that good old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll with someone like Sam Fender decides still has a future.