The chants of Dylan John Thomas’ name begin long before he gets to the stage, clearly his is a hip name to drop right now and as he arrives with a simple: “my name is Dylan John Thomas, I’ll be playing tunes for the next half an hour”, its easy to see why. Breakthrough artist of the year at the Scottish Music Awards, he’s got a massive future ahead. Singing in his own accent, toting an acoustic, lets be honest, the Gerry Cinnamon comparisons write themselves, but they are not totally fair or accurate. “Jenna” his opening tune is jaunty, “Problems” is fine indie rock trio stuff – and this is very much a band on stage and “What I Need” has the extra special ingredient. Along the way, he plays covers of Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes as well as “Ring Of Fire” but he ends with one of his own, and “Nobody Else” has the same light, warmth and skill as the rest – clearly on the rise. It won’t be long until the kid with who had the troubled upbringing is inspiring others and taking on the world.
“Likewise, there’s a moment here towards the end of the set, when the three full-time members of DMA’s, singer Tommy O’Dell, lead guitarist Matt Mason and acoustic guitarist Johnny Took – who have been playing acoustically for a few minutes – are joined by their three touring brethren and “Delete” kicks up to its crescendo, and you think: “crikey, these boys are going to be huge.”
I wrote those words on 12th December 2018. I’d just watched DMA’s for the first time, in Leicester. I might as well of written them tonight after seeing them in Wolverhampton. They do the same trick, and the same thing happens.
Except it’s a very different band tonight. One that in 10 days’ time is going to headline Wembley Arena, and one that has grown their sound to match. Tonight, in many ways, is the story of how they got massive – this show sold out weeks ago, as do their gigs everywhere in the UK.
And its an easy answer as to how it happened: the DMA’s have songs that connect with a lot of people. There’s plenty of people as you look around the room here, for whom these are anthems.
What makes it interesting is the same thing that keeps it fresh. The sound has developed. The first two, “How Many Dreams?” and “Olympia” are both on an album that came out a week or so back and although it is a “dancier” collection – more Hacienda than Oasis in Manchester terms – the crowd have clearly taken them to their hearts.
Nowhere, really, is that “old and new” if you will, better shown than on “Silver” – which is stadium ready, never mind arenas – mixing with “Something We Are Overcoming” from that “How Many Dreams?” album and dancefloor ready and doing it so well.
At its heart, the core of the three members who play in the studio, are I’d contend, an acoustic band and “Forever” – which sees Mason switch to keys – is superb. “Delete” comes next and that’s sort of where the review started. It’s not, however, where the gig ends, as both “Play It Out” and “Lay Down” reach crescendos.
As ever with the band, the encore is long and interesting. “Blown Away” (which they’ve never played before reckons Johnny Took, the most avuncular of the group) early pair “Laced” and “Smells Like 37” and its clear who far they’ve gone from those raw roots when they finish with “Everybody’s Saying Thursday’s The Weekend” – one of the standout moments from “….Dreams?”.
Yet, its still the same band, the same love for their music, the same unlikely rock stars – and there’s still no bombast about them at all, nothing of the usual spectacle. They’ve got it, though, that X factor that all big bands have got, that ability to command a crowd, even if like O’Dell, you barely speak. It’s a charisma. A gift. Call it what you like. DMA’s have it all. How many dreams? Lots. And they’re all coming true right before our eyes.
