Live Review + Gallery | Nick Mulvey @ The Union Chapel

Nick Mulvey | Jerub

Union Chapel, London

18th June 2025

Photography by Matt Wellham

Matt Wellham

After years of photographing and filming the London music scene, Matt’s now based in Sydney, Australia. A lover of the post-punk and alternative movement, he can usually be found in the grassroots venues, camera in one hand and a beer in the other.

Folk musician Nick Mulvey finds light in the shadows at London’s Union Chapel

Nick Mulvey, formerly of Mercury Prize-nominated Portico Quartet, is one of the UK’s most distinctive musicians, blending folk and spirituality into songs that feel deeply personal and intimate. Since rising to fame with his debut record ‘First Mind’, Mulvey has come a long way in both his songwriting and personal life. During his live shows, those years of experience and maturity are worn on his sleeve, clear for all to witness.

On a blisteringly hot summer’s day in North London, the Union Chapel in Highbury became a place for fans to find solace. It was my first time visiting the independent, functioning church and as I stepped inside, my head tilted back in awe at the beauty of the structure. The simple red brick exterior gives way to a breathtaking stage, framed by vaulted ceilings and stained-glass windows that filter soft, coloured light across the tiered gallery. It’s a stunning venue, where acoustics, atmosphere and history work in perfect harmony.

Opening the night was local musician Jerub. Known for his soulful melodies and honest songwriting, he found success with his 2023 EP ‘Finding My Feet’, which includes his biggest hit, ‘There Till The End’, now sitting at over 32 million Spotify streams. Hailing from Homerton and joking that it took him just 12 minutes to get there, Jerub took to the stage as the chapel’s pews began to fill. Armed with just a guitar, his rich, soulful voice echoed throughout the space. Over the next 30 minutes, Jerub surely won over new fans; his performance felt like gospel and the Union Chapel was the perfect setting to share that sense of community.

As the sun dipped behind the stained-glass windows, it was time for Nick Mulvey to take his place in this gathering. Walking out to a wave of applause, Mulvey paused to soak it all in, smiling and waving at individual members of the audience. The warmth of the crowd’s reception made it feel as though he’d already finished his set.

He kicked straight into ‘River to the Real’, the most recent single from his newly released fourth album ‘Dark Harvest Pt. 1’. The song set the tone for the evening. Both the single and the album are shaped by the loss, challenges and empowerment Mulvey has experienced over the past three years, resulting in some of his most mature and profound songs to date.

Three tracks in, Mulvey began the intro to fan favourite ‘Cucurucu’. As he gently plucked the melody, he spoke openly to the crowd about the challenges of touring, the costs involved and the difficulty of leaving his young family behind for months at a time. In these moments, Mulvey lays his vulnerability bare, creating an immediate emotional bond with the audience. When the song begins, the entire crowd joins in, singing every lyric back to him, a powerful reminder that his struggles haven’t been in vain.

The stage setup is minimal. Mulvey is flanked by four guitars and a keyboard, which he switches between throughout the night. It’s halfway through the set, once the daylight outside has faded, that the stage design truly comes to life. A semicircle of warm spotlights radiates above him, casting a golden glow into the chapel’s arches. Sat in the central rear gallery, I had one of the best views in the house.

With the stained glass glowing behind him, Mulvey worked through much of ‘Dark Harvest Pt. 1’. ‘Radical Tenderness’, ‘Holy Days’ and more made appearances before he played my personal favourite ‘Solastalgia’, a song inspired by the feeling of homesickness while still at home. It was a brutally intimate moment, evoking nostalgic memories and a deep sense of displacement.

After the encore, Mulvey returned and asked the audience, “Shall we do this?”. Met with a roar of approval, he launched into the instantly recognisable ‘Fever to the Form’. In the chapel, it became a moment of true communion. It felt spiritual, as the crowd’s voices swelled and almost overpowered Mulvey’s own, chanting the lyrics: “Oh fever to the form, won’t you hear me at your door, singing give me some more.” For someone who had spoken so openly about his recent challenges, I can only imagine how much this moment meant to Mulvey.

Nick Mulvey’s ‘Dark Harvest Pt. 1’ feels more relevant than ever. Both the album and his live performance are honest and grounded in personal experience. Mulvey isn’t pretending to be a high-flying musician who’s ‘made it’. Instead, he offers us a candid view of the real struggles he faced and the strength he’s drawn from them. To sum up my review of this evening, I’ll leave you with Mulvey’s own words: “In this dark harvest, the king will return.”

Check out ‘Dark Harvest Pt. 1‘ for yourself: