Sam Poole was just 12 years old when he picked up a guitar for the first time. At the height of the pandemic, the pre-teen used his time stuck indoors isolated from his friends to learn his first two guitar chords, going on to pen his first song – Concrete Bench. 

Last night, a little over two years after picking up an instrument, the 14-year-old songwriter seriously impressed as he opened up the bill for Yoodoo Voodoo at The Underground on Easter Sunday.

Despite his young age, Sam draws on his lived experiences to write heartfelt and emotionally intelligent lyrics that feel mature beyond his years. Although a little nervous between tracks, with shouts of encouragement from friends and family in the crowd, the teenager earnestly described the stories that inspired his music, including one called Easy On Yourself, which he wrote about his father’s grief at losing his dad – Sam’s granddad – in 2019.