Review: I went to see Stranger Things actor play his TikTok megahit ... now I understand what the fuss was all about
It's easy to be cynical about an actor turned singer. But Djo is the real deal.
The 1980s was a wild time, right? Big hair, big shoulders, interballistic missiles pointing in every direction. As a 40-something who was there, it’s quite the thing to see 80s culture permeate music, film and fashion once again.
Joe Keery - who plays Steve Harrington in Stranger Things - knows a thing or two about the enduring influence of this decade. The cult Netflix show, which wraps up later this year, is a delightful mashup of mullets and monsters. But outside of acting, Keery has been beavering away on a bedroom synth, gradually cultivating a huge musical catalogue - much of it, dare I say, 80s-inspired.
Disguised by the moniker 'Djo', the 33-year-old actor has amassed a staggering 1.5bn listens of his viral track End of Beginning. And although it was released three years ago, the sleeper hit was all over TikTok last year (or so I’m told), reaching no 1 in the global Spotify charts, essentially, for a short while, becoming the most famous song in the world.
He’s now embarked on a world tour to promote new album, The Crux, which showcases a new style, beyond the bedroom DIY ethos. Initially booked to play Manchester Academy, the venue was switched to the larger Victoria Warehouse, which last night was completely sold out. A relatively young crowd, polite and well-behaved, fill the industrial confines as they enjoy the support act, Post Animal. Keery’s former band are joining him on tour, delivering dirty rock music, with big riffs and some eye-catching guitar gymnastics.
When Keery takes to the stage in his own right, in a dark suit jacket and perfectly coiffed hair, he’s every inch the star, radiating a breezy confidence. Djo’s body of work is an eclectic bingo card of genres (most of them 80s-themed). It shouldn’t work. But it does.
Synth pop tracks such as Basic Being Basic are reminiscent of Tears for Fears or Manchester’s own one-hit wonder When In Rome. Charlie’s Garden is a song which leans so heavily on The Beatles’ Day in the Life that Paul McCartney should order bailiffs to kick the doors down.
I could keep going about the point where paying tribute to your musical influences becomes pastiche - and (for me) the discombobulating world buffet of music styles. But it matters not a jot. The audience loved every second of it.
A forest of iPhones sway above the crowd for most of the gig. And the fans are poised to jump in on every chorus, filling in any blanks left by the singer, who clearly knows his audience well.
The highlight of the night was, of course, mega hit End of the Beginning. A tribute to the city of Chicago, where Keery spent his college years, the track has been plonked on millions of TikTok clips - but nonetheless is a heart-melting and affecting ballad.
As a singer Keery has a good vocal range, with a slightly adenoidal quality, reminiscent of a Bowie or Brett Anderson. Many of the songs are delivered in a near falsetto - and his band harmonise well on backing vocals. He’s backed by a talented group of six musicians (including two drummers). They certainly know how to play their instruments and create a big, varied sound. One or two of the songs veer into jam session mode. The audience don’t seem to mind.
Transitions between the songs are slick, as you’d expect from a band a month into their tour. The mid-song interaction is relatively restrained, with Keery limiting his interlocutions to a few polite observations or ‘oh yeahs’ and ‘Manchester’.
There’s no mention of Stranger Things (although the honeycomb-style backdrop lighting and permafog of dry ice evokes an Upside Down vibe). The actor has been at pains to play down his link to Netflix’s most popular TV show. In previous, early-career concerts, he’d been prone to wearing a wig and sunglasses on stage. It’s perhaps easy to be cynical about an actor turned singer.
But Keery is the real deal. A talented singer and songwriter, who has a genuine stage presence. This was a slick and professional performance.