Speaking to crowds at the Isle of Wight festival, Lewis Capaldi admitted he wasn’t sure he would ever sing live on stage again after his battle with anxiety and Tourette’s in 2023
Lewis Capaldi will perform at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival(Image: Dawn Fletcher-Park/SOPA Images/Shutterstock)
Lewis Capaldi has revealed he thought his music career was on permanent hiatus after his public mental breakdown while on stage at Glastonbury. But now three years on, the star took to the stage again at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival and appeared comfortable as he addressed his adoring fans.
“I had what the kids call ‘a complete and utter mental breakdown’,” said Lewis Capaldi, back from the brink and making his first UK festival headline since his two-year break from touring in 2023. “But my mind is no longer broken, I’m fine.”
The devotion that greeted him from the sold out, 50,000 people Isle of Wight Festival the audience consisted of both support and relief.
When Capaldi was unable to finish his Glastonbury 2023 set due to anxiety and Tourette’s issues and canceled all further live commitments, many feared his career could be over, including Capaldi himself.
“It was really a difficult period in my life,” he said, sitting at a piano in a plain gray sweater at odds with his comeback superstar.
“There was a time when I didn’t think this would be possible. Not being afraid to be on stage and feeling comfortable and enjoying it means a lot.”
Headlining an exciting day 1 main stage ticket including Two Door Cinema Club, Alessi Rose, Ash and homecoming heroines Wet Leg – who themselves are maturing into a formidable live act, all post-grunge buzz and exotic dance moves – Capaldi was not only good, but also ultra-safe, witty and on top of his game.
“It’s all ballads, you know the score,” he said, not kidding. Beyond the canyon pop opener Hollywood Sam Fender-esque Heavenly kind of state of mind and the sinewy funk off Forget me Capaldi’s set consisted of acoustic and piano-led love and heartbreak songs of varying scales.
Bruises and Something in the sky were dark, sharp and soulful things, Meaningless came drenched in a melancholy mood and Almost evoked the stirring acoustic peaks of The Verve.
Most tracks built to pop crescendos that showcased Capaldi’s relatable, selfless and endearingly respectful lyrics about heartbreak and loss, and a voice that – at its tumultuous peaks – could probably drown out any radar within a ten kilometer radius.
He lightened the tone with regular intervals of stand-up between songs, complaining of gusty winds during the more emotional moments of Love the Hell Out of You talks about his underwear woes and monster festival fee and provides running commentary on the Scotland v Morocco World Cup match.
“We’ll beat Morocco and then we’ll beat Brazil and we’ll win the bloody lot,” he declared early on, but later admitted a second-minute goal for Morocco had put a damper on things. “It’s not very Scottish of them. The second half will be even more miserable.”
Encore was lump in the throat thing. “How long until it feels like the wound is finally starting to heal?” he sang under a shower of rain from the lighting system on Survive and closed with One you loved the ultimate song that had held him back at Glastonbury ’23, performed here with tear-jerking panache. “I’m going away and making a new album and I’ll try to come back as soon as possible,” he promised. There is a huge support network here for him at any time.
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