Nick Casey Brings Old-School Country Back Home to Rhode Island
Nick Casey Brings Old-School Country Back Home to Rhode Island Friday, Sept. 25, when the Rhode Island singer-songwriter and his band take over the outdoor Down Back stage at the Charlestown Rathskeller for three hours of country, roots and rock.
The 8 p.m. show puts a local artist with a decidedly old-school approach to country music into a setting built for exactly this kind of Friday night: a stage in the woods, drinks nearby and enough room for a full band to turn things up.
Casey isn’t trying to make country music sound like contemporary pop. His music reaches backward toward the storytelling, baritone voices and lived-in sound of artists such as Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson.
But that’s only part of the story.
The Rhode Island musician has spent more than a decade building from coffee shops and open mics into a career that has taken him and The Whole Damn Band far beyond New England.
From Rhode Island Coffee Shops to a Full Country Band
Casey began performing at 16, initially playing coffee shops, open mics and busking on local streets.
Music was already part of the family. His mother, Mary Ellen Casey, is a Rhode Island folk singer-songwriter, and Casey has said that Bruce Springsteen’s performance style was what first made him want to pick up a guitar himself.
Country became his direction.
Since 2013, Casey has performed throughout New England, developing a style centered on traditional country sounds and a low baritone that Providence Monthly once compared to Johnny Cash, with storytelling reminiscent of Haggard, Jennings and Nelson.
Eventually, those small performances grew into Nick Casey & The Whole Damn Band, and the group began traveling well beyond Rhode Island.
They’ve played national stages as far west as Kansas and Montana and have opened for country artists including HARDY, Joe Nichols, Kameron Marlowe and William Michael Morgan.
Friday’s Rathskeller date is billed as a full-band performance.
A Mohegan Sun Win Helped Push Things Forward
One of Casey’s significant regional breakthroughs came in 2018 when the band entered Mohegan Sun’s Locals Live competition.
The annual contest brings regional acts into the Wolf Den and puts performers from different genres against one another before a live audience.
Casey and his band won.
Two years later, they released their debut album, Ghosts Like Me, establishing a recorded version of the traditional-country direction Casey had been developing onstage.
He later stripped things back for the acoustic solo album When I’m Alone.
Recognition followed. Casey received six New England Music Awards nominations and was named Male Performer of the Year in 2023.
His more recent full-length album, All Over the American Land, brings the band back into the picture.
Country With Some Dirt Under Its Boots
The Rathskeller describes Casey’s show as a mixture of country, roots and rock, which is probably more useful than trying to squeeze his music into a narrower country category.
The foundation is traditional, but this isn’t a historical reenactment.
Casey’s shows mix originals with classic hits and newer favorites, and the full band gives the material considerably more weight than his acoustic performances.
That should suit Rathskeller Down Back, the tavern’s seasonal outdoor concert space tucked into the wooded property behind the restaurant.
It’s a deliberately informal place to see a band. There’s a stage, outdoor seating, lawn space, games and a large fire pit rather than rows of theater seats.
The Rathskeller encourages concertgoers to arrive early for dinner and drinks before heading out back for the show.
Three Hours Under the Stars
Casey and the band are scheduled from 8 to 11 p.m., making this a full Friday-night show rather than a short concert set.
Advance tickets are $10 plus Eventbrite fees. Admission increases to $15 at the door.
For Casey, it’s another stop in a career that has expanded considerably beyond the state where it started. But this particular night brings the whole operation back home: a Rhode Island country singer, his full band and an outdoor stage in the woods of South County.
More information is available at the Event Website link below.
To purchase tickets, click the Event Ticketing link below.
Details
Event: Nick Casey at the Charlestown Rathskeller 2026
Date: Friday, Sept. 25, 2026
Time: 8–11 p.m.
Venue: Charlestown Rathskeller / Rathskeller Down Back
Address: 489A Old Coach Road, Charlestown, RI 02813
Performance: Full-band show
Music: Country, Americana, roots and rock
Advance Tickets: $10 plus Eventbrite fees
Door Admission: $15
Food & Drinks: The Rathskeller encourages guests to arrive early for dinner and drinks; the kitchen is scheduled to remain open until 10 p.m.
Seating: Down Back uses festival-style seating rather than reserved seats
Setting: Outdoor seasonal concert venue
Featured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people, location, or activities shown.