Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
What’s in a name…as the poets may enquire as they work behind the scenes with the patience of a saint and the nimble fingers of a competitive sewer, revelling in the admiration of the scene they have created but never displaying for public consumption the tied knots and criss-crossed stitches that bleed into each other on the rear; for in this the name is only partially revealed, and as the gaze of appreciation focuses on the symbol of designation and label on the front, it is in the fluidity of the unseen that the name takes hold, and for Kevin Buckley that stitched scene takes on greater resonance and positivity than ever.
What’s in a name? Art can be found in the reveal of the backbone title, for whilst our name may be given, it is what we call ourselves in which lays the promise, the temptation of the summer’s lazy day, the cold chill of a winter’s afternoon which urges us on think and dream, the autumn leaves which inspire the use of colour, and the Big Spring moment, all of which shape our name, and the invention of self that comes with such a term of endearment.
Kevin Buckley’s Big Spring, the new and wonderfully imposing album of intricate audio scenery, sees the musician move away from the name of Grace Basement in which he successfully released four studio albums with, and reclaim his own vision through the persuasion and power of his own name.
It is the sense of symbolism that is captured from the initial reclamation and in which the endearing reveal of a new beginning is purposely felt through tracks such as Sweeney’s Wheel, the excellent imagery and invocation of symbolism within the aural framework of Ryder’s Block and The Blackest Crow, Never Tire Of The Road, The Queen And The Cook, The Belles Of St. Louis, and Miss Bailey; for what is truly in a name except continuance, faith, and endeavour, and as the flourish of melody and fiddle appears this luminary debut recording, it is honesty and love that shines through – never failing, never tiring.
The multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer takes in the fusion of Traditional Irish, Bluegrass, and Swing with such optimistic precision that the album is one depth and abiding character, one of big sounds and jaw dropping finesse. The seasons come and go, and names may change, but in the days of warmth that the Big Spring supplies, what the listener is left cradling is the big picture, the endorsement of the pattern supplied by the artistic craftsperson as they show gladly both sides of the cloth that has been worked upon.
Kevin Buckley has revealed his soul, and it is one of immense enjoyment.
Kevin Buckley releases Big Spring on April 8th via Avonmore Records.
Ian D. Hall