Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

We perhaps stand to attention when a stirring piece of music that symbolises our country plays out across parade ground filled with uniforms and young faces, some may find solace in the perpetual myth created by the hymn like state of music, the solemnity of each note created; or maybe we find ourselves at a gig of our choosing and applauding wildly when that anthemic blast of nostalgia washes over our minds and we cheer, we sing along, and take heart at the meaning and what it sparks in our hearts…

Or perhaps we find comfort in the Little Anthem, that otherwise passed over song which catches our attention from out of nowhere, which finds our souls willing to be enamoured by the subtly of art in its most unmistakable, and fearsome, delivery.

Una Quinn’s journey to her second album is one of detail and rich, teasing emotions, and one that continues the entrancing partnership between the Armagh native and the distinctive talent of Liverpool’s Neil Campbell, and as the progression of Little Anthem evolves, so the influence of endeavour pervades.

The album maybe five years in the making, but it loses nothing in its appetite for enlightenment; not only in the dynamic between the pairing, but in the use of a beautiful track by composer Martin Atherton, and the various additions from external musicianship which glorify and make evident the serious intent of each piece, each stirring and evocative nature held within.

Across songs such as Those Roads, Network, the Martin Atherton track of World To Come, Shamrock, Storm, and of course the album title track of Little Anthem, the album unleashes introspection of the soul as a textured voice, the flair of the expression and declaration that influences and guides with a sense of accountability to the power of music over the hearts and minds of the listeners.

Una Quinn has once more appeared undaunted in the thoughts and wishes of those captivated by her admirable and physically encouraging musical prowess; and with Neil Campbell once again by her side, the sense of union is affluent, it prospers with diligence and organised resolve to offer the fan a set of songs that glint in the summer’s glory.

The bombastic larger symbolism of national fervour cannot compete with the Little Anthem that comes from the heart.

Ian D. Hall