By Jase Walker
Well the first third of the year has gone and disappeared already but if there’s one thing that endures, it’s the insatiable need for more live music shows. In the far reaches of the Netherlands, I’m in Nijmegen once again to roll up to Doornroosje to catch one of my favourite Welsh acts, Casey. An evening of emotionally heavy post-hardcore with the addition of fellow ÜK compatriots, Lastelle and from just over the border, Watch Me Rise making the trip over from Germany as openers for most of their European dates.
I’ve said it before but I’m quite pleased that some of my favourite acts that I’ve seen come up through the ranks in the ÜK have started appearing more often on the mainland. I’m not one to pass off chances like this, even if the travel can sometimes be a bit lengthy.
Watch Me Rise get their set off to a loud start, already channeling the energy that post-hardcore is well known for with super melodic riffs, punk energy and shrill screamed vocals that remind me a lot of the likes of The Refused and Funeral For A Friend.
These guys have already got heads bobbing around the room which is a pretty solid sign but the crowd doesn’t seem quite dense or awake enough yet for a pit to kick off but they clearly understand their role here and they’re giving it both barrels regardless. Visually they’ve got a lot of movement and look every bit as interesting as they sound.
They remark this is the first time they’ve played in the Netherlands so that might explain the lack of instant firecracker crowd response but by no means have they received a cold welcome. This is sort of how I’d expect an entire crowd of people who don’t know a band yet are clearly enjoying it to react. Their singer at times reminds me a bit of Rou of Enter Shikari, he’s got a similar unclean vocal style that’s a bit raw and raspy while weaving moments that feel closer to rattling off heavy poetry along with his singing. Genuinely a really fantastic set from these, will be keeping an eye out for these in future.
Lastelle begins their show with the room dimming while the stage is lit up in deep azure blue as a telephone sounding monologue plays over the speakers. Shimmering guitar and trumpet breaks the silence, Lastelle are now in session and sounding massive, I can feel a massive grin spreading across my face as their sound washes over me like a warm familiar blanket.
Lastelle offers a wonderful mix of heavy riffs and constant flow of melody over the top of it while the vocals clash between soaring cleans and aggressive growls. Gotta hand it to their drummer though, man’s got some incredible vocal power on his high notes.
The singer has wasted zero time jumping into the crowd no doubt to push the energy a bit higher, initially being almost serenaded by his own band with dreamy guitars and sax. The payoff is immediately returned with the centre of the crowd jumping in with him, that’s how you do showmanship! Whoever’s doing the sound for the bands tonight is doing a fantastic job too, a real solid sound balance that has a nice meaty low end that also lets the dreamy melodies ring out over the top.
Their singer definitely has a gift of the gab for between songs banter as well, the old BBC accent razzledazzle does a lot for getting crowds on side. I do have to admit that some of the more interesting moments of Lastelle’s set are not the heavier moments but the parts that seemingly veer off into post-rock, feeling like dabbling into the sort of melancholy atmosphere of Explosions In The Sky or Mogwai.
The crowd by this point is absolutely transfixed on Lastelle, just by looking around I can see there’s barely anyone nattering away at each other. Everyone is either swaying themselves away or enthusiastically flinging their heads around to the music, a whole audience lost in the moment of Lastelle’s captivating set. What an absolute pleasure it is to see them do their stuff again, and what an incredible success it’s been for them tonight.
Not the type of band for big walk on introductions, our headliners quickly take the stage, check their lines and get things going. It’s time for some real sadboi hours.
Right from the first moment, Casey sound bloody fantastic and I can see that expression of pained joy already beginning to paint people’s faces around me. Admittedly the crowd energy seems a little lackluster, the people close to the front after getting stuck into singing along but the vast majority of the crowd is somewhat stationary.
For what it’s worth each song finish is met with a loud chorus of clapping and cheering but I do admit this is probably one of the quieter crowds I’ve seen at a Casey show. Can’t fault the band themselves though, they’ve never been ones for throwing themselves around erratically but it’s pretty obvious they’re having a great time doing their thing and feeling the flow of it all. The band are clearly confident in how much feeling and energy their music carries considering how stripped back their stage production is, sporting a few lamps dotted either side of the drum kit and relying mostly on the venue light rig.
Ultimately this is one of the reasons I love seeing Casey so much though, absolutely zero pretense and a humble band indulging themselves in their own music while the audience happily tags along for the ride. I feel like very few bands can properly carry this sort of show and generally need a level of comfort and confidence in their material and Casey definitely has that in heaps.
As they move onto some of the older material, I can see some misty eyes appearing clustered around the front, the core of people who clearly hang off their every word are getting worked up now! As Casey stomps through their set, the crowd seems to warm up a bit more but ultimately I feel like the energy was a bit low compared to previous shows. The band seems steadfast in the feeling that they don’t really care much for that, the fact that people actually turned up in the first place to watch them and grab some merch is what actually matters.
It’s rare to see a band that embarks on European headliner tours from the ÜK without bringing along some sort of fancy production with them but I feel like their music’s meaningful nature is all the stronger for it.
A wonderfully humble and honest band that still triumphs on their shows far away from home, and as they say, in spite of so many challenges they are still a band called Casey. Absolutely cracking set, that’ll do for my Casey live fix for the foreseeable, don’t stay away too long and uh, play Haarlem or something next time, please…