Kele Okereke Plays First Hometown Show

Kele Okereke played his first ever show in London, premiering his new solo direction as well as playing a host of older Bloc Party material on Tuesday, July 6.

Taking to the stage at Village Underground in Shoreditch, East London, Kele opened his set with the rallying call of 'Walk Tall' before a riotous 'On the Lam.'

Dressed in a pair of black shorts and tank top, Okereke thanked the capacity crowd for joining him on his first tour since Bloc Party went on hiatus.

Speaking about Bloc Party, Okereke told the crowd, "As some of you will know, I have a day job when I'm not doing this night job." He then proceeded to play a medley of Bloc Party songs, consisting of 'One More Chance,' 'The Prayer' and 'Your Visits Are Getting Shorter.'

Though the older material was well received, the largest cheer of the night rang out for Okereke's first solo single, 'Tenderoni,' with the audience gleefully spelling out the name of the song in time with the singer.

As the heat rose inside the converted warehouse venue, Okereke drank Jägermeister from the bottle and threw his cap into the audience. Clearly enjoying himself he went on to play the majority of his new album 'The Boxer,' including 'Rise,' before ending the set with 'All the Things.'

Coming back out for an encore, Okereke appeared to possibly fire a barbed comment at his former Bloc Party bandmate Matt Tong by introducing the drummer in his new backing band as "the best drummer I have ever worked with." However, Okereke still clearly holds fond memories of Bloc Party and ended the show with a raucous rendition of 'Flux,' one of the band's biggest hits and a firm fan favourite.

Kele's tour continues tonight (July 7) in Newcastle.