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At long last, Ed Sheeran has released a live album for his ongoing Mathematics Tour.
And it is great to report that it is pretty great. It is a thorough commemoration of his hit tour, with 26 songs making up the tracklist.
Overall, it is a fairly well-produced live album. The mix incorporates Sheeran's backing band (whenever they perform) well, giving fans a definitive live rendition of songs like “Castle on the Hill” and “Overpass Graffiti.”
But the mixing falls flat in one key area: the sing-alongs. That is one integral part of Sheeran's shows, as the second half of his concert is predominantly his biggest hits that the crowd knows word-for-word.
For one reason or another, the producers whiffed here. Instead, it sounds like they used Sheeran's preferences for his IEM (in-ear monitor) for these songs.
Ed Sheeran's Mathematics Tour: Live Collection review
The Mathematics Tour: Live Collection starts with a bang. The digital version, mixed in Dolby Atmos, slightly differs from the CD. Instead of opening with “Castle on the Hill,” the digital album opens with “Tides,” which opened most shows on the tour.
While “Tides” is not Sheeran's most famous song, it is an effective stadium show opener. After the countdown that introduces Sheeran, it is an up-tempo song that gets the crowd moving and one of his lone stadium rockers.
Hearing the live rendition on the Mathematics Tour: Live Collection is great because it mixes Sheeran and his band together. I've always been an advocate for Sheeran playing with a band, as it gives his songs more depth than a loop pedal.
Not to dismiss his loop pedal — Sheeran has mastered the art of it. However, some songs, like “Tides” and “Castle on the Hill,” just sound better with drums, bass, and electric guitar.
Nine tracks are missing on the CD from the digital version. After the opening song, “BLOW,” from Sheeran's No.6 Collaborations Album, is up next. It's not a great song, but he certainly gives it his all when playing it live.
The heavy hitters then start coming after the first two songs. “Castle on the Hill” has a U2 stadium anthem feel that even the studio version lacks. Sheeran and his band do a wonderful job bringing the song to life in a live setting when they play it together. I was relived that he included a full band version on the live album.
How does he handle the loop pedal songs on the live album?
One question I had going into the Mathematics Tour: Live Collection was how they would handle Sheeran's loop pedal songs. When you see his show, he sometimes spends a minute or two setting up the layers of his song on a loop pedal.
It is impressive, no doubt, but hearing that on a live album can kill the momentum (see his Apple Music live album for Subtract). Luckily, they found a workaround.
My question was answered in the fourth track with “Shivers.” The song requires several sequences and layers before he can start singing. The live album fades in as he is winding down.
At most, you will hear him make one layer for most of the loop pedal songs. Some may be disappointed to learn they won't hear him construct “Bad Habits” from the ground up. For a listening experience, this was the right move.
Which songs sound the best?
“Tides” and “Castle on the Hill” start Sheeran's live album strong. Some of the deep cuts he includes on the album were surprisingly stronger than his greatest hits.
He includes renditions of “Lego House,” “Dive,” “I See Fire,” “Lay It All on Me,” “Tenerife Sea,” and “Happier” in the digital version. While I may not have picked all of those to be a part of his first major live album, I'm glad they were on there.
Sheeran sings a difficult song like “Dive” with eloquence on the live album. It is not as rugged as the album version from Divide, but it is one of his most impressive vocal performances on the album.
The same could be said of “Lego House,” a standout from his first album, Plus. Despite it being one of his oldest songs, “Lego House” remains a classic. Sheeran's
I still remember seeing Ed Sheeran's Mathematics Tour in Landover, Maryland, in 2023. One of the highlights was “Overpass Graffiti.” He previously performed full-band renditions during the promo tour for Equals.
Allowing the song to be performed this way on tour was a smart move. It is one of Sheeran's best recent pop songs and requires a real bass and drums to soar.
Some of his other greatest hits sound good on the live album as well. Usual suspects like “The A Team” and “Galway Girl,” “Photograph,” “Perfect,” and “Thinking Out Loud” are all captured beautifully.
The sing-alongs
Again, the live album's biggest flaw is the crowd, which is tough on a live album. There are several times when Sheeran would throw to the crowd, and it would sound so quiet.
Now, maybe the performances featured dead crowds. But I'm not sure why you would choose those performances to include on a live album, then.
And I'm not sure that's the case either. During “Lego House,” he compliments the crowd. “You guys are loud!” he tells them. However, whenever he throws it to them, it sounds like 100 people out of 70,000 are singing.
Sure, on “Sing,” he slowly builds the crowd's chants up. But other songs like “Thinking Out Loud” are underwhelming when the crowd isn't mixed in properly.
Perhaps the producers didn't want to drown Sheeran and his band out. After all, no one likes a live album where you hear the crowd more than the artist.
But there was a happy medium that they did not strike. These occurrences make it sound like they simply took Sheeran's IEM feed and then remastered it.
If you listen closely, you can hear how many people are singing. A live album should transport you to the show and make you feel a part of the experience. For those who have seen the show in person, they will relive it. For those who didn't catch it, they will feel it.
Should you listen to Ed Sheeran's Mathematics Tour: Live Collection?
The Mathematics Tour: Live Collection falls just short of greatness due to the crowd level. There are several reasons why they may have gone the route they did, but it takes away from what's supposed to be a commemoration of a live show.
Instead, the sing-along songs like “Thinking Out Loud” and “Perfect” sound like live studio recordings. It is great to hear the little imperfections that a live performance can bring, sure, but more rawness would have been appreciated.
That said, the tracklist and performances are strong. Sheeran has one of the best voices in pop, and that is on display in his first major live album. Hopefully, on his next live album, the crowd's singing will be heard.
All of that said, a concert film would be the next step for Sheeran. The Mathematics Tour is Sheeran's Eras Tour, so he should commemorate it for his fans as much as possible.
Ed Sheeran's Mathematics Tour: Live Collection is out now.
