Flashback to October 2021. My guys in Caskets had me out on the road with them to document them on Normandie’s Dark & Beautiful Secrets Tour alongside Thousand Below. Caskets were travelling down from Leeds and I went by train from Farnborough to meet them at load in at The Fleece.

The first port of call is getting our bearings. Saying hi to the other bands/crew members and introducing ourselves if we haven’t met yet. Where the green room is, where does merch go, access points I can get to get shots. The first night of the tour always has a lot more nerves than most of the other dates. Getting into the groove of being on the road and playing. For me the first night is learning what the band do at parts of the songs, will there be jumps, if there are parts where the crowd might wave torches or clap, Is there a part where the drum fills look amazing. This determines where I should be in the venue during the set. This was the first gig I was trying out my new modded fish eye lens. I enjoyed what I got from it. Let me know if you would like me to go into my gear more.

The lads played amazing. The crowd really looked like they enjoyed it and the room was packed front to back. It was so good to be at shows again, even just being able to see the live music again. And getting to see the new tracks from Lost Souls which I covered the writing and recording process. It was great!

After the show, we drove to stay the night at the College, Thanks to the guys for allowing us to crash there. You know it’s a cool place when you skateboard down a hallway in the middle of the night to go to the toilet.

Keep an eye out for the next blog on Day 2 Manchester! Enjoy the Day 1 video and photos below.

Charlie