In terms of the alternative music scene, few parts of the UK can hold a claim to be as productive as Wales. From emo/post hardcore veterans Funeral For A Friend to current scene anthem generators in Holding Absence, Cymru has a fertile and bustling musical landscape. In 2014, a band formed that would capture hearts and minds like none had since the halcyon days of the early noughties and that band was Casey.
Channelling the full fronted emotional assault and post hardcore influences of their peers with a modern sheen, the band soon grew beyond their local scene and word out mouth made them into one of the most exciting and beloved bands of the ’10s in Britain. Their two albums, EPs and standalone tracks attracted a cult following upon release, and few bands have been mourned as hard as they were when they split in 2019.
How To Disappear is their first full length the band have released since their comeback. With a name possibly hinting at their hiatus and the nature of absence itself, it arrives with big expectations and a lot of weight attached to it, with their fans having endured a hard four years since they departed. Would the band still be able to tug on those heartstrings, to induce such intense catharsis and crucially, fit it all into a hard hitting scream along package?
One part of the band’s return that was incredibly welcome was the lineup remaining intact, with fans hoping that time apart to grow and live their lives would result in a mature approach to the record. Opener ‘Unique Lights’ sets the record off with Tom Weaver at his best. His vulnerable, candid lyrical style returning alongside a musical backdrop that brings to mind shoegaze and fellow Welshmen Holding Absence. Whilst it probably would be saved by being a minute shorter, it’s a clear sign the band are aiming high with their sound.
‘Sanctimonious’ looks back to their earlier records, showcasing the scream/singing Tom does so well and would fit perfectly as a track on your Myspace back in 2008, with its old school emo vocal lines and a driving, anthemic chorus that will have those in their thirties brushing away an imaginary fringe out of instinct. Liam and Toby on guitar combine brilliantly throughout this record, with delicate riffs and perfectly placed power chords hitting perfectly when it matters most.
The album’s early highlight is ‘For Katie’, an ode to a long dead relationship that hits as hard as ‘Misery’ by Creeper did the first time you heard it. The line of “I barely remember anything before my twenties” stings in a way that few others have. ‘Bite Through My Tongue’ is probably the most immediate song on the record alongside ‘Puncture Wounds To Heaven’ and both have slipped seamlessly into the band’s best tracks. The same can be said for recent single and massive tearjerker ‘Selah’.
Across the record there’s bits and sections that will remind you of bands like Touche Amore, Acres and Saosin alongside some shoegaze elements, but Casey have always been a band who sound like themselves; there may be influences worn on sleeves but the band’s identity is strong. In the latter half of the record things slow down a tad, with ‘Those That I’m Survived By’ being a modern emo power ballad of sorts, as is the penultimate track ‘Blush’, a song that swells and sways to a tear-stained crescendo. The latter half of the record perhaps isn’t as strong as the first but as far as comeback records go, this hits all of the marks required and more, providing the band with a stable foundation to build up their legacy even further.
Ultimately, with a band so beloved it was always going to be difficult for this record to viewed the same as those before the breakup. The cavalier youths have grown up, matured and no doubt view the world in a different way to their past selves. Yet, the passion remains, there will be few bands who are able to garner as visceral an emotional reaction as Casey can. Some tracks perhaps go on a little too long, but this is a stellar return effort for a band who hopefully will go on to burn even brighter than they did the first time round.