“THIS IS WHAT THIS YEAR IS ALL ABOUT” | MEET OWEN VINCENT: A MUST SEE FOR 2025

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT | OWEN WILSON by Tom Jenkinson

It takes a certain level of dedication to leave the comfort of home on the coldest night of the winter so far; more so to play a new act night in Camden when most people are observing Dry January and avoiding the pub like the plague. However, it is here I meet singer-songwriter Owen Vincent, who has travelled from the South Coast, showing scant regard for the cold as he sups pints of Guinness, preparing to play his first London show.

Owen is riding a wave of nostalgia for 90s Britpop with his semi-acoustic sound and has made an impact on the local music scene of his native Portsmouth, having already caught the attention of Tom Meighan (Kasabian) and James Walsh (Starsailor), supporting them both in their respective Hampshire shows last year.

Playing both as a solo acoustic artist and as part of a full band, tonight he is joined by bass player, Fin. In my introductions I naively ask how the two know each other, “we’re brothers!” replies Fin, “everyone says we don’t look alike”. The pair are part of a growing Portsmouth music scene which has two studios behind its growth and success: Casemates Rehearsal Studios in Hilsea, built inside disused railway arches, and Quay West Studios, built inside an equally impressive old church. The atmospheric settings of both have been a training ground for the likes of Owen who follow in the footsteps of local bands such as Kassassin Street, The Hill Brothers, and most notably, The Lottery Winners.

Owen has a short but impressive catalogue of tracks already released. The latest, ‘New Shoes and Fake News’ is a mature, dark, track which taps into the anxiety of modern society. There is a Jake Bugg-esque moodiness to his sound which has an ethereal quality to the production. There are plenty of belter choruses (‘The Observer’, ‘One by One’) and tracks like ‘Nowhere’ feature the kind of psychedelic melody usually found on some of the best records of the 90’s (think a mixture of acts like Radiohead, Paul Weller & Supergrass). Owen credits the development of this sound with Nick Bowen, the producer at Quay West Studios, “He knows what he’s doing. If I put an idea across, he’s like, ‘I’ve got it.'” Their symbiotic songwriting relationship shines through on his back catalogue, giving a polish to his sound rarely heard on such a fresh talent.

When we meet before their show, the brothers are excited yet relaxed by the prospect of what has the potential to be quite a difficult gig. Owen tells me that their set tonight will consist primarily of new, unheard material. “The first two tracks [on the setlist] have been written in the last two months, we’ve played them live before, but not to point where we can record them yet”. Some songs are still in their embryonic stage, “I will probably be making up some of the lyrics as I go tonight”.

Owen Vincent (Tom Jenkinson)
Owen Vincent (Tom Jenkinson)
Owen Vincent (Tom Jenkinson)
Owen Vincent (Tom Jenkinson)

But if the songs are still under construction, then Owen and Fin do a good job at fooling the crowd that have come out tonight. Tonight’s audience are completely lost in the set and you can hear a pin drop. Stripped back, their band tonight consists of just acoustic guitar and a bass, but this provides space for Owen’s songwriting and his vocal to carry across the room. I am somewhat stunned that two people can have this kind of comfortable, but tight, on-stage relationship but then again I am reminded that Owen and Fin have been playing together for far longer than their ages would suggest, given that they are in fact brothers.

The crowd seem genuinely warmed by the end of the set, not just from having a shelter while it snowed outside, but the feeling that this might be a showcase of some genuinely fresh music. Owen assures me that “this is what this year is all about”. If tonight is the measure of things to come, then he has hit the ground running.