The Welsh community come together to Rock The Castle
Words: Chloe Michelle
Photos: Matt Sheppard Photography
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography
What do you get if you put together a huge line up full of Welsh bands and hosted it in Cardiff Castle?
Rock The Castle brought together the Welsh music community for 9 hours on Saturday 19th July. On the bill were, Kill The Lights, Dream State, Casey, Punk Rock Factory, The Blackout and Funeral For A Friend. This was such a powerful line-up but sadly missing more female representation. If this was to happen again next year, we’d love to see artists like Panic Shack, The Joy Formidable and Eadyth rock the stage. We’re looking at you Depot Live, Live Nation and Ticketmaster… hint hint.
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - Kill The Lights
Doors opened at 2pm and Kill The Lights started at off by 2:45pm. Kill The Lights are a supergroup made up of Welsh and American members. With the former singer and bassist of Bullet For My Valentine, the crowd had high expectations. We weren’t let down either. Despite an early start, Kill The Lights made sure to bring all of their energy for the crowd who were ready and raring to go after their lunch.
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - Dream State
Following on was Dream State, who supported Funeral For A Friend at the end of 2023 over in Utilita Arena, Cardiff. Now, they graced the stage in Cardiff Castle. Dream State are one band that have been doing significantly well despite losing almost all of their members a few years ago. New lead singer Jessie Powell can absolutely pull a crowd and that was proven massively here. There were queues of crowd surfers and multiple circle pits as they smashed out songs like Chin Up Princess and Taunt Me. Dream State are one to watch!
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - Casey
Casey soon graced the stage. One band we weren’t sure we’d ever see again after the lead singer had open heart surgery only a few months ago. They last played Chepstow Castle alongside Holding Absence. If you haven't heard Casey before it’s how I would describe ‘rock with a sprinkle of slam poetry.’ That should be enough to intrigue you!
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - Punk Rock Factory
Midway through the line up and next on stage was Punk Rock Factory. Coming stage to the recent Jet2 Holiday trend, they were a perfect gap filler for those who weren’t familiar with many other bands so far. They’re a novelty type of band who play your favourite Disney, Nickelodeon, Pop songs as Pop Punk covers, so you’ll be singing every song without fear of not knowing the lyrics. They’ve just announced some intimate shows in small Welsh venues before they go to Wembley shortly!
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - The Blackout
Next up we saw Welsh legends, The Blackout. One band that absolutely know how to get a Welsh crowd from calm to feral within seconds. Sean Smith was swinging his microphone around, taking over the crowd camera, interacting with the sign language team and stealing security’s high-vis jackets, and Gavin jumped into the crowd to make sure they all got a true feel of The Blackout. During I’m a Riot, You’re a F*cking Riot, Jessie from Dream State joined to show us how to truly scream at the top of your lungs. The Blackout will be back at Chepstow Castle next month.
Photo: Matt Sheppard Photography - Funeral For A Friend
To end off a long day, our headliners were Funeral For A Friend. With new frontman, Lucas Woodland, they played Hours in full for its 20th anniversary. The energy in that castle did not stop. We even had someone dressed as a mime in the crowd holding a giant inflatable phone when they played Streetcar. It was likely the first time many have seen Funeral For A Friend play since Lucas joined and what a treat we were given. He does a great job at filling in that gap and truly has all of the Welsh fans on side for him to stay permanently!