December gig guide

Michael Kiwanuka @ Royal Festival Hall, December 5

Newcomer Michael Kiwanuka has been quietly taking the soul and folk scenes by storm since last year. He was one of the hotly-tipped underdogs for this year’s Mercury Prize, and has even supported the almighty Adele. It seems the only way this guy is going is up, so catch the “Born Again” and “I’m Getting Ready” singer while you can.

Royal Festival Hall, Belvedere Rd, SE1 8XX. Tickets from £17.50 (southbankcentre.co.uk)

The xx @ O2 Academy Brixton, December 16

This September, the band released their hugely anticipated follow-up album Coexist, and it sure didn’t disappoint; their set at this year’s Bestival drew in the largest crowd the festival has ever seen. If you’re more of a small venue fan though, make sure you catch them in Brixton this month, where their dreamy indie pop and new singles Angels and Chained are sure to appear on the set list.

O2 Academy Brixton, 211 Stockwell Road, London SW9 9SL. Tickets from £25 (o2academybrixton.co.uk)

Django Django @ O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, December 21

Django Django narrowly missed out on the prestigious award last month to fellow indie foursome Alt J, but these Edinburgh boys don’t need no Mercury. They're bringing their unique psychedelic electronic indie to west London, where dancing to “Hail Bop” and “Life’s A Beach” will be the order of the evening.

O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, Shepherd’s Bush Green, W12 8TT. Tickets from £17 (o2shepherdsbushempire.co.uk)

Yeasayer @ O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, December 4

Psychedelic Brooklynites Yeasayer bring their experimental sounds across the pond as part of their Fragrant World tour. Their third album of the same name was released in August this year and saw them play a hugely successful set at this year’s Latitude festival. Listen out for Ambling Alp and Longevity.

O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, Shepherd’s Bush Green, W12 8TT. Tickets from £18 (o2shepherdsbushempire.co.uk)

Mumford & Sons @ The O2, December 11 & 18

Waistcoat-clad folk outfit Mumford & Sons stormed onto the indie scene with their debut Sigh No More three years ago, and this year saw their second offering Babel hit the high notes in the charts. Marcus Mumford (who’s also Mr Carey Mulligan) and Co hit Greenwich’s huge O2 Arena just in time for Christmas, so listen out for new tunes I Will Wait and Lover of the Light.

O2 Arena, Peninsula Square, Greenwich, SE10 0DX. Tickets from £32.50 (theo2.co.uk)

The Black Keys @ The O2, December 12 & 13

Blues-rock big hitters The Black Keys sold out their Alexandra Palace shows in February, so this is a great opportunity to catch them in the capital again if you missed them the first time around. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney released seventh album El Camino last December and have been touring the world ever since, so make sure you listen out for singles Lonely Boy and Gold on the Ceiling as well as old desert-blues tunes 10 A.M Automatic, Leavin’ Truck and 2010’s indie anthem Next Girl.

O2 Arena, Peninsula Square, Greenwich, SE10 0DX. Tickets from £30 (theo2.co.uk)

Florence and the Machine @ The O2, December 5 & 6

Big-lunged showstopper Florence Welch returns to London for a two-date extravanganza this month. The flame-haired singer-songwriter released second album Ceremonials this year, and to much critical acclaim — listen out for the flame-haired singer's new tunes Shake it Out and Only If For A Night at what will undoubtedly be two of their biggest shows to date.

O2 Arena, Peninsula Square, Greenwich, SE10 0DX. Tickets from £33 (theo2.co.uk )

Stealing Sheep @ Bush Hall, December 10

Liverpudlian female threesome Stealing Sheep are still operating under the musical radar, but their folky, pagan vibes were picked up by Mercury winners Alt J who invited them to support them on their recent tour. Listen out for the poppy beats of “Genevieve” and ethereal sound of “I Am The Rain”.

Bush Hall, 310 Uxbridge Road, W12 7LJ. Tickets from £8.50 (bushhallmusic.co.uk)

Ellie Goulding @ O2 Academy Brixton, December 12

Brit Awards winner Ellie Goulding has had a busy year recording her follow-up album Haylcon. With a song in the new Twilight film and Halycon hot off the press, the dreamy synthpop singer songerwriter has loads of brand new material for her whistle stop tour of the UK. Keep an ear out for new tunes like “Anything Could Happen” and new single “Figure 8”.