With the announcement last week that You Me At Six are calling it a day after 20 years, the band headed to the LCR at the University Of East Anglia in Norwich for a headline show that promised to be something special. And they did not come alone as fellow veterans of the alternative rock genre, Deaf Havana, are joining them alongside Call Me Amour.
You Me At Six – Deaf Havana – Call Me Amour
Nick Rayns LCR, Norwich – 10 February 2024
Words And Photography: Lawrence Potter
You Me At Six
You Me At Six begin their show at 8:15 pm. It always seems to throw me off a little at these early Norwich shows due to the afterparties starting around 10 pm. Nonetheless, the lights shut down, and Lionel Richie’s All Night Long starts playing on the speakers, which strangely fits surprisingly well.
The band, on their Celebrating 10 Years Of Cavalier Youth Plus More Tour, hit the stage one by one, and then they are straight into Room To Breathe.
You Me At Six are in the form of their careers tonight as not a single member misses a beat the whole evening. The entire show has a ‘big’ feel about it, including a special stage set-up. The band are going all out on these UK shows. As always, the sound at the Nick Rayns LCR in Norwich is right up there with the best in the country in my honest opinion.
It is a set that is worthy of a greatest hits album. It’s a 21-song set, spanning their 20-year journey as a band. It’s bittersweet in a way, though, as this time next year may be the last time we see the band perform together, at least in this formation.
As any fan will know, You Me At Six really stands out among their peers when it comes to diversity in their sound. The middle section of their set was more focused on their lighter material. During Take On The World, the lights on the stage are dimmed, and the whole of the LCR is lit by the crowd’s cell phones.
After a number of slower songs from the band’s songbook, including stripped-down versions of Stay With Me and Be Who You Are, Josh Franceschi informs the crowd that from this moment onwards, it’s going to be all heavy hitters. What better way to start this section than with Bite My Tongue, which leads into No Future? Yeah Right.
Right before the encores, we are informed it’s time for the crowd surfing part of the evening as the band go into Save It For The Bedroom and like a tidal wave, people come spilling over the barricade.
After a quick few minutes off the stage, we’ve got three more songs left before the night comes to a close. Deep Cuts is the first, which leads into Underdog and finally Beautiful Way to close the evening.
Although it’s the beginning of the end of You Me At Six, it’s been a hell of a ride watching these guys go from humble beginnings to the major success they have carved out for themselves as they evolved as a band.
If you’ve not been able to catch them on this tour, there will be a farewell one next year, and knowing this band, they will be pulling all the stops out for it.
Deaf Havana
Local heroes Deaf Havana took to the stage and started their portion of the evening off with Ashes, Ashes, which leads into arguably their biggest hit to date, Trigger.
Deaf Havana performances always deliver a truly mesmerising experience to the crowd. Vocalist James Veck-Gilodi had the people in a trance. The dimly lit stage, for the majority of their set, only added to the band’s mystique and allowed the focus on the music itself.
This is a band that has many dynamics. They have seemingly adapted over the years to different eras of music and have never been afraid to drastically change things up. Nothing ever sounds out of place or awkward within their sets.
This was a great outing from alt-rock long stayers, playing a bunch of crowd favourites such as Trigger and Sinner but also sprinkling in some of the lesser-known gems to the casual listeners.
It’s a busy month for the group, which is doing a fantastic job balancing its shows with You Me At Six as well as its headline show. This was my first time seeing Deaf Havana, and since this show, I have not stopped listening to them.
Call Me Amour
Having got there a little late, I found myself behind a seamlessly never-ending queue and unfortunately missed my spot to get some photographs of the opening act Call Me Amour.
The band put on the best show possible, showing so much passion and gratitude to be there, playing with two bands they had grown up listening to in their teens and now sharing the stage with.
Call Me Amour were a fantastic way to kick off the night, balancing dark electronica with elements of rock to create a huge sound that captivated the audience from start to finish.
