Casey McQuillen is riding the crest of an almighty wave right now. Numerous major support slots at major arenas throughout the UK and being critically acclaimed at every one. To hear her is to love her.
The first thing you notice about her isn’t her voice, which is undoubtedly spectacular; the biggest take away is her warmth and overall love of her “job” and the genuine love towards her fans.
Tonight she brings her own headline tour to Glasgow and the intimate setting of the lounge at the Classic Grand and, unlike her support slots, she brings her band with her.
The lounge of the venue is a great place to watch and listen to good music and the small ground level stage puts the audience at the same level as (and within touching distance of) the artist. An event doesn’t really get more intimate.
Kicking the night off is the fantastic young Scottish singer Carrie Mac… sitting behind her electric piano it’s easy to see she is very nervous but the nerves fade quickly and her talent is clear to see and hear.
Carrie tells the audience of her pitch to win the support slot and it goes something like this…
Carrie was in the audience at a recent Beverley Knight gig where Casey McQuillen played the support role.
In a social media post to Casey telling her how much she enjoyed her set, Carrie wrote that she’d love to support Casey on her solo tour.. the result of her half joking request came to pass (if you don’t ask…..)
Carrie already has a good social media presence including a fabulous self financed video and I’d recommend hitting up her socials and watching her video.
One to watch amongst the rising stars of the Scottish music scene.
A short interlude led into the main act of the evening as Casey took to the stage along with her band. As always she looked like a million dollars in sparkly boots and a red dress; the huge smile on her face shone brighter than the stage lighting.
Casey McQuillen is a force of nature; her mere presence lights up the room before she even starts to sing.
Her stage presence and the ability to tell a story between songs is as good as you will see anywhere in the music business.
The set tonight is headline length and contains her classics, some Country and a little bit of rock n roll. It gives the audience some tears and it gives us some giggles.
Her song “Skinny” is a modern classic; written about how she sees herself and how she thinks she wants be. The lyrics resonate with many in the audience and can translate to the traits or imperfections people have troubling them.
It was easy to see in the faces of some fans that the song could have been written about them and teary introspection loomed large in the room.
The songs weren’t all tear inducing or about relationship break up’s and Casey’s ability to move between the human emotions was a constant throughout the show and almost every song ending resulted in her punching the air in elation and the recognition of her headlining a UK tour!
As with all great gigs the last song was bitter sweet but the show will linger long in the memories of those lucky enough to be there…next time round is more than likely to be in a sizeable venue and the close up personal nature will have gone.
Another great thing about a Casey McQuillen show is the meet n greet at the end. She appears genuinely excited to meet the people who come to see her playing live… a lesson to be learned for some others performing at this level of the business.
This was a fantastic experience in a great little venue and if the opportunity to see her show comes your way please grab it with both hands… whether it be a headline show or a support slot.
As an aside… her band members, management and family unit were so accommodating. Her tour manager / sound engineer took the time to shake hands and personally greet the photographers – it’s a small gesture in the grand scheme of things but a massive thing to those who plough the furrows of live music photography.
Casey and team… thank you!
Review and Photographs by John Brown
