Louis Tomlinson - June 27th, 2023 - Mcmenamins Edgefield , Troutdale, OR

British musician Louis Tomlinson recently brought his Faith in The Future tour to one of Oregon’s most spectacular outdoor concert venues at the McMenamins Edgefield. The concert grounds were located on the field of their 74 acre property that can seat up to 7,000 concertgoers per show. One thing I always enjoy about Louis Tomlinson gigs are that the openers are always amazing - at our show we got to see incredible opening performance from Andrew Cushin and The Snuts.

Andrew Cushin performing in Troutdale taken by Sarina Solem

First to perform was Andrew Cushin with just his guitar and a keyboardist. Cushin had freshly released his song “It’s Coming Round Again” just two hours before taking the stage, which had him pretty animated through out his entire set. Many fans showed up early and braved the harsh sunlight during his set which goes to show how good of a performance he puts on.

The Snuts in Troutdale, OR taken by Sarina Solem

After a short change over, The Snuts took the stage. The four-piece Scottish band has a classic indie rock sound that you’ll be a fan of if you like artists such as The Wombats, The Kooks, and Catfish & The Bottlemen. I’m certain many concert goers who went into the show knowing nothing about The Snuts left as brand new fans - people were singing along to their songs like “Always” and “Hallelujah Moment” and dancing along even when they didn’t know the lyrics.

Anticipation was high as Louis Tomlinson took the stage right as the golden sun rays peeked through the trees. Adorned with a pair of Ray-Bans and a bright yellow Jamaican football jersey, the screams were at an all time high. He opened the show with “The Greatest,” which also happens to be the opening song of his second studio album Faith In The Future that was released in 2022.

Louis Tomlinson performing in Troutdale, Oregon with fireworks going off during the song "Kill My Mind" — Louis Tomlinson performing in Troutdale, OR taken by Sarina Solem

You can tell how much thought Louis and his team put into making sure this tour would be one the crowds will remember for a lifetime. The production was a huge step up from his previous tour, with LED screens hanging from the ceiling of the stage and pyro that went off a handful of times. It was fun to sit back and watch the show - there wasn’t a bad seat in the venue. Throughout the night Tomlinson took time to sign fans signs when he found them funny, and would occasionally flip fans off which has become more of an inside joke with fans that he’s done throughout his career.

Alongside his impressive touring band, the 31-year-old singer-songwriter performed a total of 23 songs, mostly from his first studio album Walls and his most recent album Faith In The Future (even performing some of the songs from the bonus version of the album that was released this year). But Tomlinson didn’t stop there - we also got to hear a couple of One Direction songs and the cherry on top was his cover of Arctic Monkeys’ song “505.” I personally would love to see him explore the Rock/British Rock genre a little deeper, as it suits his voice so well and you can tell he is heavily inspired by bands within this scene. One of my favorite aspects of Louis Tomlinson concerts is that they feel curated by Tomlinson himself - the pre-show playlists, the openers, the production, and even the merch. It’s truly been a pleasure getting to witness Tomlinson’s musical growth and creativity since the disbanding of One Direction.

The night ended with Tomlinson’s final encore song of the night, “Silver Tongues,” where the singer made his way down to the barricade to interact with fans as red streaming confetti shot into the crowd further back. This moment surely left the show on a high note.

Louis Tomlinson will be touring through North America til July, then will be heading back overseas to finish up the world tour in Europe and United Kingdom. You can find out if a show is coming near you on his site here.