Charlie Simpson live at St. Pancras - The Station Sessions

A few months back I went to see the lovely Nerina Pallot at The Station Sessions, a beautifully British sort of affair which unfolds pretty much as its title makes out: a session in the station. Of course, when that station happens to be the wondrously baroque St Pancras, it makes everything that little bit more special. I was blown away by Nerina's performance and the overall atmosphere of the place, and it's an atmosphere Charlie Simpson managed to re-create with ease.

I've been a fan of Charlie's debut album Young Pilgrim for a while now, it's full of acoustic, melodious tracks that seem a far better fit for him than his previous material - they bring his voice to the fore and serve to show his talents as a songwriter.

Indeed, with the likes of Ed Sheeran and James Morrison purveying a supermarket brand of singer-songwriting, Charlie's material seems thoroughly more authentic and heartfelt, a quality only emphasised in tonight's performance.

Set up on a stand in the middle of the station concourse, beneath the cavernous arched ceiling, Charlie had commuters stopping in their droves to listen. One breathless girl stood behind me enthused to a friend on the phone 'You'll never guess who I'm just listening to! I can't believe my luck!'. Overhead, two lovers kissed and cuddled as Charlie worked his way through a smattering of tracks from Young Pilgrim.

As an album, Charlie's debut solo effort lends itself incredibly well to intimate live performances like these - the tracks are content to let good, honest quality do the talking rather than flashy studio trickery and seeing them in this setting, they seemed to speak out to every one of the onlookers. Particularly touching was Charlie's dedication of his song Thorns to the sad passing of Apple boss Steve Jobs.

All in all, another resounding success for the Station Sessions and a wonderful showcase of Charlie's solo material.

The set-list was as follows:

Thorns
Cemetery
Down Down Down
Sundown
If I Hide Will You Come Looking
Parachutes
Farmer And His Gun

Nerina Pallot live at St. Pancras Station - The Station Sessions

Of all the places you could conceivably hold a gig, there's something undeniably charming and oh so British about having it in a station.

And at St. Pancras, you really have the creme de la creme of stations. There, in the high vaulted Eurostar terminal, the delightful Nerina Pallot's voice could truly soar, enchanting every one of the commuters rushing through.

Set up on a tiny stage with a string quartet arrayed behind her, a sizeable huddle of people grouped around, listening as she delivered a selection of tracks from her soon-to-be Top 10 album Year Of The Wolf as well as a few old favourites like Sophia.

There was a real immediacy to the gig, something we were all too readily reminded of as the station announcer boomed out over the tannoy, wittering on about left-luggage. Nerina, bless her heart, carried on, wonderfully composed and charming for the gig's entire hour long duration.

Sipping from a glass of wine, she addressed the audience in both English and French; a lovely reminder of the gateway to the European continent we were all standing in - St. Pancras International indeed.

Much as Nerina's new album is a meeting of the old and new, so to is the station itself, archaic brickwork  and iron facing up to glass and boutique snack bars. A meeting of worlds, a melting pot of countless people, and right in the middle - holding everyone's attention - Nerina herself.

'Hi restaurant people!' she announced, waving cheerily up at the diners on the balcony above the stage. At another point, she told how her track History Boys always made her emotional - so much so that she had been moved to tears earlier in the week when she performed it - yet sing it she did, and beautifully.

In this place of frantic busyness, there was there for a moment, an instant of intense personal connection. And that, in a way, is what these Station Sessions are about - the audience so close to the performers they can see the whites of their eyes. All the usual technical complexities of a gig stripped away, just quality music at its very best.

Year Of The Wolf is available to purchase now.

The Guilllemots set to play St. Pancras Station

We hear a lot about Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds, Isle of Wight... those behemoths of the festival world. But in the heart of London, something exciting is happening. In a station. Kicking off on the 15th June and running until the 29th July, St Pancras International station plays host to the Station Sessions Festival.

The Guillemots launch the festival at 6.30pm on the 15th June with tracks from their new album Walk The River, including the brilliant single I Must Be A Lover, which we reviewed last week.

If you think about it, a station is a properly amazing place for a festival - 1 million people travel through St Pancras every week - and we're sure these commuters will enjoy a little musical refreshment to brighten up their day.

Oh, and did we mention that the station contains Europe's longest champagne bar? Crack out the bubbly!