— Samantha Coombes contributed with this report
As part of their UK and European tour, Welsh band The Blackout will be returning to Lincoln’s Engine Shed on November 1st.
“[We’re] excited. We’ve been off now for the majority of the summer. It’s not a place we like to be, we like to be on the road,” admitted Gavin Butler, singer in the band.
It’s been almost four years since they last played in Lincoln and they have come a long way since then, with their album “The Best In Town” released in 2009 and now “Hope” which debuted this year.
“We haven’t played there [Lincoln] for what seems like forever. It’s a place we haven’t been back to so when out booking agent said; do you want to go to Lincoln? We were like yeah definitely!” said Butler.
The Merthyr-Tydfil based rockers have supported many talented bands in the past, such as Lostprophets and You Me At Six. This is their second headline tour which will see We are The Ocean and Canterbury supporting them.
“It’s been awesome to play these massive venues with bands like Lostprophets,” Butler said. “It’s cool to do your own headline stuff. It’s just that the majority of people are there for you on these kind of shows, which still blows our minds when we play places like the Engine Shed.”
The Blackout will be performing songs from their fourth album “Hope”, which has received positive responses from fans, something Butler admitted he and the band found surprising. “It’s always difficult releasing new material ‘cause you always get the die-hard fans who say the old stuff was better. But with this album it was very well received and we were surprised how well really,” said Butler.
“There were a couple of songs on the album that were a different direction for us and we tried different things and a lot of people seemed to like what we did,” he explained. “My favourite’s probably “The Storm” because it’s one of those songs were we pushed ourselves in a different direction, pulling from influences we haven’t used before.”
Butler then added that he and the band are very pleased with the album saying; “We definitely think it’s the best we’ve ever done.”
So if you are indeed a ‘die-hard’ fan, an avid fan or even someone who has indeed been in a blackout and not heard of them before, Butler gives a good reason as to why you should come see them. “First of all thank you very much to everyone who’s coming and supporting us and if you haven’t heard us before, you should come, because we are amazing!”
Tickets are still available from the Engine Shed website and their Box Office priced at £15 plus booking fees.
The band will also be appearing at local bar SCY after the show to do a DJ set. The event is 18+ and entry fee will apply.