Photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. February 26th 2011.
10cc, Gig Review. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.
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Blancmange, Blanc Burn. Album Review.
Originally published by L.S. Media. February 26th 2011.
With other bands from the 80’s pop scene making waves with talks of come backs and releasing new albums for their fans in what can be seen as a blaze of glory, there is one band that has quietly been going about its business and creating a new album that stirs the desire for the Synth Pop era that they were at the forefront of at the time.
Blancmange gained a reputation for their style of recording great, memorable songs and even covering tracks by Abba’s The Day Before You Came to great critical effect.
The Levellers, Gig Review. 02 Academy, Liverpool.
otograph by Ian D. Hall
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 4th 2011.
In the space of five days The Liverpool Academy plays host to three bands that symbolise the desire and want for change that permeates through the news in these austere times. With Liverpool’s own Amsterdam playing on the Saturday and then one of the finest bands to ever step foot on a stage, The Stranglers, on Tuesday, there couldn’t have been a better band to open up this three day mini spectacular than The Levellers.
Amsterdam, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 7th 2011.
Once Ian Prowse gets going there is very little that anyone can do to stop him, he has proved it time and time again with his band Amsterdam and before this as member of the now legendary Liverpool band Pele. In 1992, Pele released their debut album Fireworks. A generation has come and gone without hearing this album in full and it was fitting that Ian and Amsterdam gave one of the performances of their career.
The Wonderstuff, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool.
Photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 5th 2011.
The Wonderstuff have ploughed a trough so few bands have been able to emulate, let alone follow. With so few peers to have come from the area of formation, notably Pop Will Eat itself and to an extent Ned’s Atomic Dustbin, it is no wonder that Miles Hunt and the original members of the band carved a huge niche in the Midlands.
In 2010 the established new version of the band toured to critical success alongside Liverpool based Amsterdam, now it seems the band are hungry for more of the same.
Jump, Gig Review. Alexanders Bar, Chester.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 8th 2011.
To miss a band whilst they are touring the country can sometimes be unfortunate; to miss them for a couple of tours can be a seen as neglectful but to miss them when that group is the legendary Jump, it can be downright criminal.
The bands name might not roll of the tongue as memorable but if you ever saw them perform you would be a fan for life. Armed to the teeth with an arsenal of honest, intelligent and scathing songs the band have been playing live for the best part of two decades and have had the kudos of supporting some of the finest names in music including Fish, Marillion, The Blockheads and Midge Ure.
For a band with such pedigree behind them it is always refreshing to see them play in some of the smaller venues and in the intimacy of Alexanders in Chester they once more showed why their particular brand of rock has crossed the boundaries of the changing times and yet retained the dry, inherent wit that makes them such a good band to catch live.
Lead vocalist, John Dexter Jones , has always written deeply personal lyrics to the music created by his fellow members and in the opening track of the evenings small set was a favourite of a lot of Jump fans, the delightfully deep and sorrowful Bethesda from 2001’s On Impulse album
With new member Phil Mayhew on bass smiling his way through the set it was easily seen that the restorative power of adding a new member to the groups dynamic has enhanced the show. Phil played well alongside the established membership of guitarist Steve Hayes, keyboard player Mo, the very talented Andy Barker on drums and the youngest member of the group but none the less important, guitarist Steve “Ronnie” Rundle whose own playing just gets better and better as time goes by.
One of the great things about watching Jump live is watching the way Johns acts on stage, his actions to certain songs on such as tracks as A Man was Made and the brand new Kingston Corner Blues from the album The Beachcomber show his lyrics perfectly, with a raise of an eyebrow here and there he adds wonderful meaning to even the most innocent of lyrics.
The band ended a short but joyful set with the classic Free at Last, to which the appreciative crowd joined in with gusto.
Good to see this great British band touring the North West again and with any luck they will be back before their fans know it.
Ian D. Hall
Footloose, Theatre Review. Liverpool Empire Theatre.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 9th 2011.
Cast: Max Milner, Carys Gray, Steven Pinder, Karen Ascoe, Lorna Want, Jodie Jacobs, Keisha Amponsa Banson, Tanya Robb, Matt Willis, Daniel Smith, Adam C. Booth, Giovanni Spano, Michael Palmer.
Footloose! The very word brings up images of one of the great teen movies of the 1980’s. Reason in the face of oppression for which any teenager of the time would have identified with, a stunning soundtrack and a great cast made the film a smash in box offices both sides of the Atlantic.
The Stranglers, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool.
The Stranglers in Liverpool 2011. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 9th 2011.
If there’s one band that knows how to stir up passion for their no nonsense direct music then that band has to be The Stranglers. Even before the band came out on stage sections of the audience could be heard singing at full volume through a medley of some of the band’s greatest hits including the instrumental pieces of Waltz in Black to which the band came on stage to in the time honoured tradition.
R.E.M., Collapse Into Now. Album Review.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 9th 2011.
R.E.M have made many notable and groundbreaking albums over the years, so many in fact that their fan base have been spoilt by the richness and depth of the recordings, with many different styles and themes running through each individually tailored album there has been a lot to like and admire of the Georgia band.
Collapse into now is an album that should have followed suit and been amongst the very best that this once mighty band have produced. However with a few exceptions, notably on Oh My Heart and Every day is Yours to Win which sees the band at their melancholic, delightful best, the album seems cliché ridden, desperate to please and tired.
Jump, The Beachcomber. Album Review.
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 11th 2011.
The Beachcomber is the new studio album by British Rock Band Jump and as ever the guys never let their loyal fan base down with an album crammed with songs that are bound to become crowd pleasers when they play them live.
John Dexter Jones has been one of the best and underrated songwriters of the last twenty years, his personal and sometimes dramatic stories making their way onto albums with apparent ease and yet you know just by listening to songs such as Kingston Corner Blues which deals with the idea of people declaring their life stories on the phone in public and the incredible No One Spoke.