Luke Hemmings Brings The Future With Nostalgia

toronto, canada - may 30, 2024

Luke Hemming’s Nostalgia For A Time That Never Existed Tour left us yearning for the future, one embracing our previous stories and diving in head first. The well-known 5 Seconds of Summer singer took steps in his own direction in 2021 with his debut solo album, When Facing the Things We Turn Away From. Three years later Hemmings brought the charming live performance to Toronto supporting his second solo album, Boy.

The audience at HISTORY in Toronto, made up of both former 5 Seconds of Summer fans and new-to-the-game Luke Hemmings fans, cut through so strongly with their screams. As the preshow playlist faded into the background and the stage lights dimmed, if your eyes were closed you wouldn’t need those indicators to know the star, Hemmings, was on his way to take the stage.

The, somehow, electronic and acoustic ballad, “Mum”, was a gut-wrenching break in the set. In a song duly dedicated to his mother, Hemming sings notes of losing himself and needing to find his way home. This track is the heartbeat of his first album, When Facing the Things We Turn Away From, and there was no doubt that fact while a group in the audience clung tight to each other, tears drowned out with Hemmings’ clear vocal tone. 

The title of Luke Hemmings’ solo tour, Nostalgia For A Time That Never Existed, was spot on – while nostalgia is sweet, sometimes it’s a longing for what was never there. The sonic and lyrical themes from the set painted the picture just as it was.

On theme with nostalgia, Hemmings brought an energetic cover of The Cure’s, “Friday I’m In Love”. The famous track has been covered throughout the years, but through it’s many variations Luke Hemmings gave The Cure song a poppier feel while maintaining the body & soul of its original form. That is one of Hemmings’ greatest strengths, both live and in the studio, maintaining a sense of authenticity within lyricism contrasting pop signifiers in the tunes.

A classic debate was settled by the crowd when the Aussie singer inquired the classic question of the city's pronunciation, “Is it ToroNO or ToronTO?” Regardless of how it was pronounced, Luke Hemmings made the crowd feel special in remarking about Toronto beingthe only Canadian stop on the Nostalgia For A Time That Never Existed Tour.