CAST – LIVE AT THE LIMELIGHT 9.10.2015

The band The La’s could’ve been arrived in Belfast when Cast arrived in town for a gig at The Limelight, transforming South Belfast into mid 90s Liverpool for one night only.

It had been a long time since Cast were last in Belfast, said singer John Power during a set where he sweated so much his navy shirt became and even darker shade of navy, if such a colour was possible.

It might have been the heat in The Limelight, but more likely, his dancing throughout, textbook bad guitarist dancing. Think George Michael in the video for Faith, and you get the idea.

The show was packed with hits. It’s easy to forget how many hits Cast had during their 90s heyday. Seven of their first ten singles went Top Ten, and all ten of those went Top Twenty. Six of those seven Top Ten hits were in succession.

That’s quite an impressive ratio for a band who weren’t a Pop band or even marketed as such.

All of those hits were on the setlist – Finetime, Sandstorm, I’m So Lonely, Flying, Guiding Star, Live The Dream and Walk Away.

Beat Mama, one of my own personal favorites, wasn’t on the setlist, but I can live with that.

The show ended with a drum solo by Keith O’Neill, finishing when the other band members had left the stage.

Except, it wasn’t quite over yet, as John Power came back onstage for the encore, performing an acoustic cover of Working Class Hero, on what would have been John Lennon’s 75th birthday, before performing Free Me and Alright.

It wasn’t all classics, as they performed a new song, Baby Blue Eyes, a song which Power said gave them the impetus to record an as yet untitled new album, due in March 2016.

When it is released, hopefully a return visit to Belfast will be on the agenda.

Photo Album