Carly Rae Jepsen Shows She's Much More Than Call Me Maybe at London Concert

Call Me Maybe is the only song I’ve ever heard from Carly Rae Jepsen, despite a career of what is closing in on a decade, and 4 studio albums worth of material. I wasn’t really sure what to expect going to her concert at the London Music Hall on Thursday night (Sept. 19, 2019). Evidently I have been under some sort of rock, because it was a busy night at the venue, filled with folks of all ages.

RALPH started the night, opening the show. She did a good job warming up the crowd with a few memorable songs rattling around in my head on the drive home from the show.

Jepsen was very different than what I expected. Call Me Maybe has a very catchy, but very young sound to it, that, in a vacuum, wouldn’t age particularly well with the artist. Anyone who has sat through KISS singing about Christine Sixteen, or Neil Sedaka singing pretty much any song about falling in love with a teenage girl well past middle age knows how even a great song can outlive the ability of a singer to pull it off. Being familiar with exactly one song in her catalogue, I sort of assumed she would be someone singing trite songs with a short shelf life that had long since expired. I impressed and surprised by the show. She had more of a Gwen Stefani vibe to her voice and delivery than that standard American Idol inspired pop music generated for a mass market.

Jepson’s songs had a pop hook to them, but also had enough substance and quality songcraft to keep them interesting. She did a great job building and working the energy of the crowd. She is a great singer with good songs and that’s what makes her a standout at the moment. She has a good band and connected with the audience, who sang along to most of it.

There was nothing gimmicky or over-produced in Jepsen’s act. Even when Call Me Maybe came up in the set, there was a balance to the overall sound and performance that made the song seem a lot less trite than had it been the one trick pony she rode into and out of town on.

Admittedly, I wasn’t sure what to expect, and I was less sure I was going to enjoy it, but Carly Rae Jepsen rocked the joint.

All photos by David Booth: