Event Reviews

I maybe drinking in a converted bank in Nottingham’s trendy Lace Market but for the next hour I may as well be toe-tapping alongside rustic boots in Nashville.

With reckless disregard for modernity and any concept of how trendy newcomers should present themselves Johnny Flynn casually demands your attention.

And tonight he produces a set that will certainly leave his forthcoming South by Southwest crowd in swooning adoration.

With more than a shade of Ryan Adams about him there is something ultimately transfixing about this London-based troubadour.

His subtle yet witty lyrics and mannerisms are both endearing and enthralling.

Seamlessly swapping instruments from harmonica to banjo, Flynn’s musical pedigree is never in doubt.

And it is Johnny’s ageless approach to songwriting which is perhaps most impressive - this despite one of his tracks being called Wayne Rooney.

However, the first stumbling block this promising folkster is undoubtedly going to encounter is the weight of expectation which is quickly piling up on his young shoulders.

Having just signed to a major record label (Mercury), scoring a support slot with one of 2008’s biggest soon to be stars, Laura Marling, and amassing an impressive array of singer/songwriter fans the pressure will be on Johnny Flynn to impress with his debut release.

Thankfully, this performance would suggest that Johnny Flynn will be more likely to be found atop a Texas barstool come March and not a fragile pedestal like so many of his predecessors.