Tom Chaplin charms the Palladium with his honesty and humour

The show celebrated the release of his latest solo album Midpoint, which came out in September this year, the cover artwork of which adorned his visually vibrant stage set. The theme of ageing and midlife is strong throughout his performance, in his words a “Time of life that doesn’t get much coverage in rock and roll, exploring facets of gaining new perspectives in getting older”. In an aside to the crowd, he reveals that his priorities dramatically changed with time, and he candidly opens up about his addiction struggles in the past.

In the third song Stars Align, he sings about trusting your instincts.

He jokes that this is the sort of evening that starts at an intimate place and will end in a jubilant and raucous fashion.

The following song Gonna Run is raw, about living with regret, and introduces the electric guitar alongside the cello and strings, with Tom moving around the stage with real ebullience.

His debut 2016 solo album The Wave was generated by the newfound energy gained from no longer having the” plate-spinning act of being an addict”, and he says he was “left with lots of excess energy for writing the album” – which he describes as a human story of the depths of despair to redemption, much like the current situation in British politics.

His set briefly moved into a Q&A session, where he welcomed questions from the audience via social media.

This showcased Tom’s easy charm and rapport with his fans, and harked back to the Saturday Nights at the Palladium variety shows, with genuine comedic moments from the singer.

His previous band Keane were frequently referenced, and although his relationship with Tim bassist is clearly fractious, drummer Richard was in attendance, and in Tom’s words “Has always supported his solo endeavours and been there throughout his dark days ‘.

Tom was at his most human when talking about his family, and the song he wrote for his children New Flowers was particularly poignant, as well as his dedication of the final song of his set Overshoots to his wife of 20 years Nat, who he described as long-suffering and a rock to him in his struggles, which clearly he as now overcome and is back to his very best.