Author Archives: admin

Hamlet, Theatre Review. R.S.C., Stratford-Upon-Avon.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * *

Cast: Paapa Essiedu, Clarence Smith, Cyril Nri, Natalie Simpson, Hiran Abeysekera, Doreene Blackstock, Eke Chukwu, James Cooney, Bethan Cullinane, Kevin N. Golding, Marcus Griffiths, Marieme Diouf, Romayne Andrews, Byron Mondahl, Tanya Moodie, Theo Ogundipe, Ewart James Walters, Temi Wilkey.

The king is dead, a usurper and a murderer sits on the throne and the man who would be king sits and procrastinates to the point of lethargy and inaction; hardly the calling card for one of the greatest plays in the English language to be treated, the single red rose that was visible at the local church in front of Shakespeare’s stone perhaps wilting under the pressure of the enormous task undertaken by the R.S.C. as Hamlet once more roared into Stratford-Upon-Avon.

Hamlet, Theatre Review. R.S.C., Stratford-Upon-Avon. full post

(487 words, estimated 1:57 mins reading time)

Cordelia’s Fool.

I am but the gracious Fool of a negligent king.

He only speaks when nobody can see me

or when nobody can feel the disdain

of his regal flapping tongue’s insanity

as it proves to be as afraid

of the dark as he.

 

I am but the foolish grace

in harlequin clothes

and hey nonny irrational repose

as I embrace your impudent soul,

as I cradle your elderly, dusty, ancient bones

and psychologically fractured mind.

 

I am but an honourable Fool

Cordelia’s Fool. full post

(125 words, estimated 30 secs reading time)

Mark Pountney, Gig Review. Liverpool Acoustic Festival 2016, Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

There should never be any doubt of the appeal of Mark Poutney for as long as he is able to perform, stand on a stage with head held high and the ever flowing grace that goes with such a smile of enjoyment, for in that performance comes across a musician who is spirited, giving and full of humble character; if the world ever finds itself without compassion in performance then Mark Pountney would surely endeavour to keep it breathing and ticking along until a new heart could be found for the tired old planet.

Mark Pountney, Gig Review. Liverpool Acoustic Festival 2016, Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(400 words, estimated 1:36 mins reading time)

The Buffalo Riot, Gig Review. Liverpool Acoustic Festival 2016, Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Riots can come in all shapes and sizes, they can be easily silenced and quelled, they can become so meaningful that revolutions are given birth from their humble beginnings and like all popular uprisings, nearly always stem from one particular cause or pursuit. In the case of the superb The Buffalo Riot, the root cause is simple, the sound is wholesome and harmonious even when for the purposes of an acoustic gig they slim down from their normal five piece to a slender and melody driven twosome.

The Buffalo Riot, Gig Review. Liverpool Acoustic Festival 2016, Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(408 words, estimated 1:38 mins reading time)

High Rise, Film Review. Picturehouse@F.A.C.T., Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast; Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans, Elisabeth Moss, Keeley Hawes, Dan Renton Skinner, Sienna Guillory, Enzo Cilenti, Peter Ferdinando, Reece Shearsmith, Augustus Prew, Stacy Martin, Leila Mimmack, Tony Way, Neil Maskell, Alexandra Weaver, Emilia Jones, Victoria Wicks, Bill Paterson, Dylan Edwards, Toby Williams, Eileen Davies, Maggie Cronin.

Brutal and dark, deeply disturbing and a tremendously excellent film, it seems strange then in that case that it has taken the best part of four decades to get J.G. Ballard’s High Rise to the screen but then it would not have had arguably the best actor for the role of the slowly mentally disintegrating Dr. Robert Laing in Tom Hiddleston.

High Rise, Film Review. Picturehouse@F.A.C.T., Liverpool. full post

(563 words, estimated 2:15 mins reading time)

Marguerite, Film Review. Picturehouse@F.A.C.T., Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7.5/10

Cast: Catherine Frot, André Marcon, Michael Fau, Christa Théret, Denis Mpunga, Sylvain Dieuaide, Aubert Fenoy, Sophia Leboutte, Théo Cholbi, Astrid Whettnall, Vincent Schmitt, Christian Pereira, Martine Pascal, Grégoire Strecker, Jean-Yves Tual, Boris Hybner, Pierre Peyrichout, Joël Bros, Lucie Strourackova, Petra Nesvacilová, Lubos Veselý, Damian Odess-Gillett, Jaroslav Smíd, Iva Paulusova, Jean-Marie Frin, Artemio Benki.

How we deal with the delusions of grandeur in others, even if they cannot see it for themselves is to witness sometimes just how cruel a species we can be, just how far we can allow the unheard ridicule to go; sometimes the effect of such treatments can be devastating.

Marguerite, Film Review. Picturehouse@F.A.C.T., Liverpool. full post

(442 words, estimated 1:46 mins reading time)

Welcome To The New Reich.

Welcome to the New Reich,

Welcome to the

British Reich,

you might not be able to see the dawn

of the new realm yet

through the glaze of square eyed

television or perhaps you

haven’t felt the terror

seeping in through the gutter,

Welcome to the New Reich.

 

Welcome to the New Reich,

suits you, suits them,

suits for all, boxes

for all, tick boxes, categories, the confidence trick,

just a small cut here, a nip there,

a tuck away for a rainy day,

Welcome To The New Reich. full post

(241 words, estimated 58 secs reading time)

Jump, Over The Top. Album Review.

Liverpool sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

To some the very thought of putting yourself beyond the self imposed or others jealous limitations is a way of keeping control on life, by inflicting their misery upon others it gives them satisfaction that the world will turn but nobody will do something extraordinary with their time on Earth. Every time an artist, an athlete or the adept produce something it tears a little hole in the dissenter’s heart, they just see it as being Over The Top.

Jump, Over The Top. Album Review. full post

(458 words, estimated 1:50 mins reading time)

Mike Jacoby, NorthEastSouthWest. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

All points on the compass eventually find a way home if you search long enough. All directions are possible in between if the search is pure and fruitful, it is how you enjoy the journey that truly is the main consideration.

Mike Jacoby, NorthEastSouthWest. Album Review. full post

(419 words, estimated 1:41 mins reading time)

The Man And His Book.

There was a certain element of surprise

when I found out you had been reading

C.S. Lewis in the time

between spare time

and after your morning walk,

no longer with lead in hand

after so many years of boundless joy.

The surprise was split both ways,

mine at you finally reading

a book I first devoured

in dark army ticking blanket

days and under the cover so the Witch

could not see me, yours,

that I knew exactly what you meant

when you said The Horse and his Boy,

The Man And His Book. full post

(154 words, estimated 37 secs reading time)