Kip Moore at Cadogan Hall, London

Photos by J. Bailey

Last Christmas I was lucky enough to be given tickets to Kip Moore's acoustic set in London. The timing worked out perfectly, with the concert taking place on the 30th of May, a few weeks after I came back from university for the summer. Kip Moore ticks all of my boxes as a musician: he's country with a little bit of a rock influence; his songs are guitar-heavy with a relaxed yet upbeat tone, and his gravelly voice never fails to win me over. I'd seen him perform a few songs at the CMA Songwriters Series a couple of years ago, where it was obvious that he was born for the stage, flirting with the crowd all night long. 

The outing was a family affair and we used our tried-and-tested routine of driving to the venue, intending to arrive towards the end of the support act's set (a method which has yet to fail me). This meant that I could avoid the overwhelming bustle of trains, as well as limiting my exposure to unnecessary sensory stimulation from a support act I wasn't a particular fan of. 

Photo by Emily Bailey

The concert started off slow, with just Kip on stage playing his guitar, singing through some of his softer songs. He was then joined by his band and they played a multi-instrument acoustic set. Not that this meant the concert was quiet. Whilst the number of instruments was limited, the volume of the speakers was very loud and a lot to process. I think that the venue being rather small made this worse, as there was nowhere for the sound to go. I spent most of the night with my earplugs in and my headphones on over the top, to dampen the sound. About ten songs from the end, the band upped the tempo once more. At this point I would say that it was a stretch to call the concert acoustic; the arrangements were only lacking in electric guitars. Whilst it was a lot to process, I managed to handle it (although I did have really bad toothache afterwards; I think I was either clenching my teeth or the reverberations from the speakers affected them).

That being said, there is a fundamental flaw in Cadogan Hall's layout which makes being a wheelchair viewer difficult. Their wheelchair seats are at the back of the venue, and when everyone is sat down you have a brilliantly unobstructed view of the stage. However, the seats aren't on any sort of raised platform, which means that when the crowd in front of you stands up you have absolutely no way of seeing the stage. Unfortunately this was the case for the latter half of the set. This left me and my mum darting backwards and forwards between the two aisles as we tried to find me a view of the stage from my wheelchair. The venue attendants were very kind in showing concern, but there was little that they could do other than commanding the entire crowd to sit down (and no one wants to be the reason everyone else has to stop dancing). This fundamental flaw in the venue's design meant that I wasn't able to enjoy the second half of the set as much as I might have otherwise.

The Obstructed View, Photo by J. Bailey

After the show we headed to the merch table, where I intended to buy a t-shirt or something similar. However, all plans for this were pushed aside when my mum spotted some signed lyric sheets available. We snatched up the copy of "Last Shot" (one of my favourite songs), which is hanging on the wall beside me as I type this.

Wheelchair 2.5/5: 

The venue has an accessible entrance to the side of the main entryway (ask an attendant for directions if you can't spot it). We were then shown to the lifts, which came out right by the door to the main theatre. The wheelchair seats are then just inside of these doors and you will have an excellent view if you are at the type of event where everyone remains sitting. However, like I have said, the fact that they are not raised means that their view is completely obstructed when people stand. The venue really needs to fix this issue.

Sensory Input 1/5:

I feel like this rating is pretty self-explanatory: it's a concert. There is lots of noise, lots of people moving around and a lot of lights flashing. 

Food and Facilities 4/5:

There was a bar with some snacks available downstairs, after you have entered the building. I had brought my own snacks with me, so I don't know whether those available were any good. The disabled toilets were just next to the entrance into the main theatre and were easy enough to get to (they were close enough that I could have walked to them if needed). 

Travel 3/5:

The drive was no worse and no better than any other drive into London. It was longer than I generally like to be in a car, but a lot of the time was spent waiting in traffic, which helped me to deal with the motion of the journey. The venue is a two minute walk from Sloane Square Station and a one minute walk from various bus stops on Sloane Square and Sloane Street. There is also a taxi rank in Sloane Square.

Overall 2.6: The concert was over two hours, and we spent around two hours in the car each way.

*I currently have moderate ME, meaning I use a wheelchair pushed by someone else, and a walking stick. Please take into account your own physical capabilities when planning a trip, if you need to start small then start small. Look into what you can see nearby for when you're ready. Although, when at my best, I may be able to post every 1-2 weeks, that does not mean I am well enough to travel that frequently! Many of my posts come from a backlog of trips taken over the past few years.