Sheeran strikes a chord

Confession: I've never been to a pop concert.

There's been plenty of waves and days out, but never a radio-friendly pop concert where a mosh pit would be frowned upon.

Ed Sheeran was the perfect way to lose my pop concert virginity.

Not that Sheeran is a pop star per se " his sound could be best described in"slashes"

He's a pop-slash-indi-slash-hip hop-slash-soft rocker.

Sheeran would comfortably be at home in the corner of your local pub for a Sunday acoustic session or busking on a street corner.

Or at one of two sold out Perth Arena shows.

Before his concert I was told how Sheeran creates his sound.

He uses looping and feedback to enhance his music and make up for the fact he is one man on stage.

This busker style sound explodes with beats and looping guitar riffs.

The only downside to this method is that slower songs like Drunk and The A Team became almost perky.

Sheeran's charisma often makes you forget he is alone up there.

It's hard to take your eyes off the charming character dancing on stage, with his foot taps and guitar smacks setting a rocking beat that reverberate through Perth Arena.

We also witnessed a display of freestyle rapping that turned into the unmistakable sounds of Superstitious by Stevie Wonder, In Da Club by 50 Cent and Fancy by Iggy Azalea - earning Sheeran his hip hop cred.

While the combination may sound strange, Sheeran managed to make it sound endearing.

For Bloodstream, the predominately young crowd had to be instructed to move their arms up and down in time with the beat - something that happens spontaneously at rock concerts.

I was disappointed to see a few of them " even when instructed by the man on stage to dance " unable to put their phones down.

I get this is the day and age in which we live, but if you have one of the great talents of the 21st century playing in front of you, stop watching him through a screen.

Despite the lack of exuberance from some crowd members, there was no hint of weariness from Sheeran.

Hits like Don't and Give Me Love sounded better live than their recorded versions.

Clapping and chanting from passionate crowd members, mixed with Sheeran's recorded beats, created an atmosphere that cannot be recreated no matter how good your sound system is.

Perth Arena and Sheeran's feedback are perfectly matched and the result is glorious.

Despite being a pop concert virgin I would most definitely go again.