Lacey, hailing from Nottingham, are on a mission, it seems. Their set is packed with huge choruses and even bigger hooks – none more so than early highlight “Answers.”
Between songs, the band joke about being “monumental disappointments” to their parents, but there’s nothing underwhelming about the music. “Maybe I’m Alive” raises the bar, while a self-described angry song channels a ’90s alt-rock feel – think Feeder at their commercial peak – complete with arena-style handclaps that the crowd readily joins in on.
A brand new track, brilliantly titled “Nothing Makes You Feel Alive And I Wish That You Were Dead,” puts the “pop” in pop-rock, while “Slide” adds depth and grit. By the time they hit “Run Away” – briefly detouring into a snippet of Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” – it’s clear they’re having fun, but they never lose focus.
Closing with the massive “Dream In A Little Less Colour,” Lacey deliver a set dripping with ambition and polish. They might laugh and banter, but when it comes to their songs, Lacey mean business.
“I don’t give a fuck if it’s a Monday night,” grins Luke Healey, one half of Lakeview alongside Jesse Denaro. Judging by the chaos unfolding in front of them, no one else cares either. They open with “Hits Different” – and it does. You can see exactly why they were the first country band to play Wacken Open Air.
“All our lives we’ve been called losers, but we crossed the ocean and you packed this place,” Healey tells the crowd. They follow it with “LOSER” – and it feels like a statement of intent.
Lakeview are heavy as hell. The drums on “Dying Breed” could’ve been lifted from a 1986 Def Leppard record. “Wrong Side of the Track” becomes a full-blown singalong. “Where Your Mouth Is” sounds like Black Stone Cherry picking a fight in a dive bar. That breakdown? Nasty.
“See Me In A Suit” could’ve been a conventional country tune – but where’s the fun in that? Instead, it’s bigger than Nickelback, middle fingers raised high. But don’t lose sight of the fact that the harmonies are tight as hell, and the band behind them are basically a metal act in disguise. “Neon Nightmare” sees more jumping than a Hatebreed show, as if to underline the point.
“Rock Bottom” is a pure double-wide anthem. “By Now” slows things down, but not the intensity. Healey – who cut his teeth in metalcore band Those Who Suffer – and Denaro have found a formula, by accident or design. “What I Know Now” sounds absolutely massive, and “Drink With My Friends” belongs in a honky-tonk with chickenwire on the stage.
The only cover of the night is Hinder’s “Lips of an Angel” – they light the place up with phone torches and make it their own.
Healey puts his guitar down but gets his can up for “Good Day To Be A Beer” – it feels like the closer, but Lakeview aren’t the encore type. “Son Of A” finishes it off – greasier than three-day-old KFC and just as filthy, only with more secret sauce.
And the best? That’s saved for last. “Home Team” – a blue-collar, redneck anthem. The home team? We’re all rooting for them at this point.
Healey asked at one point who’s seen them before, who’s new. Standard patter, sure – but what isn’t cliché is the number of first-timers. Lakeview are going places. Want to see them in a venue this small again? Good luck.
Lakeview property prices are about to go up, as it were. But it won’t change them: they know where they came from – and it’s damn obvious where they’re heading.
