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Level 42, Gig Review. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.

Mark King in action at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall. Photograph by Ian D. Hall

Originally published by Liverpool Live. October 17th 2012.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

For many of their fans, Level 42 are an institution, a band whose ingenious use of funk/pop/jazz made them a household name throughout the 1980’s. They are also one of only a few bands that can tour with aplomb without having a new album in tow and also get the sort of reception from a Liverpool crowd that involves a standing ovation from the very start of the gig.

Level 42, Gig Review. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall. full post

(441 words, 1 image, estimated 1:46 mins reading time)

Whisper To The Ghosts.

I find myself whispering to the ghosts each night,

The phantom figures, wandering uninvited in my head.

I try to placate these visions from the past

By asking quietly, “Why do you haunt me?”

And with rotting flesh, they stand still, not bothering to flee.

I whisper to the ghosts every day

From round each corner of forgotten stomping grounds.

They wave and cheer as they beg me to join them

But something in the way they sit and stare

Is enough to keep me out of their gruesome lair.

Whisper To The Ghosts. full post

(181 words, estimated 43 secs reading time)

Logan’s Providence.

The dog’s snarling kept waking him every time

Every time he closed his eyes. How he had escaped

Only someone else’s God knew.

And apart from one small incident, no harm done.

One dead prison guard, his fault for having eyes.

Providence had provided him with an escape,

Though hard fought: those devil dogs had almost caught him with

The breath that could strip paint from five yards

(Which was only slightly better than his own prison breath)

Had been beating down his neck till he found the station.

Logan’s Providence. full post

(199 words, estimated 48 secs reading time)

Robinson’s Crusade.

A shy oval face, overshadowed by large rimmed glasses

Making his searching eyes everyone’s attention.

Yet no-one seemed to care what was beneath the lens.

He stares at the girl to the side from the far corner

Of his eyes and the corner of the hard seat.

Almost excitedly he watches each turn of the page,

So delicately done by young nicotine stained fingers.

Once he imagined that she looked at him

But then he saw the flicker of her eyes look from the tramp

To the sign above the drivers head.

Robinson’s Crusade. full post

(189 words, estimated 45 secs reading time)

Karine Polwart, Gig Review. New Brighton Pavilion Theatre.

Photograph by Ian D. Hall

Originally published by Liverpool Live. October 15th 2012.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

Karine Polwart continues to amaze and beguile audiences whenever she steps out onto a stage, whether in her native Scotland or when she ventures across the border and comes down south to places such as Bristol and London.

One area where she needs no introduction is that of Merseyside. In the past she has performed in the now sadly missed Pacific Road Art Centre and in the incredible setting of the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, now she wowed all before her in the intimate and sanguine setting of the Floral Pavilion in New Brighton.

Karine Polwart, Gig Review. New Brighton Pavilion Theatre. full post

(479 words, 1 image, estimated 1:55 mins reading time)

Neal Schon, The Calling. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Over the last seven years, fans of Neal Schon’s electrifying guitar solos have had to contend themselves to an odd guest appearance with the legends Paul Rogers and Sammy Hagar and the resurgent power of his band, the American superheroes of Rock, Journey, if they have wanted to hear one of the greats in action. Now after a seven year absence, Neal Schon proves once again his standing in the pantheon of guitar heroes as he releases The Calling.

Neal Schon, The Calling. Album Review. full post

(389 words, 1 image, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)

Tinlin, Shade Of The Shadows. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Take the vocal harmony of Scottish Del Amitri when they are at their soulful best, combine elements of America’s Simon and Garfunkel and add the passion that certain songwriters can bring to their audience and the result you have is a superb album by Tinlin titled Shade Of The Shadows.

Tinlin are brothers Rolf and Alex Tinlin, with their vocal harmonies and soft gentle refrains, they make a proposition worth listening to with some wide eyed and overwhelming abandonment. The sound they combine alongside Stephanie Blood on cello on the songs In These Arms and Don’t Want To Sleep Alone, Jack Carrack on percussion and Eleanor Tinlin on cor anglais and oboe make this an album worth seeping yourself into.

Tinlin, Shade Of The Shadows. Album Review. full post

(341 words, 1 image, estimated 1:22 mins reading time)

Hoag’s Object, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool.

Photograph by Ian D. Hall

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

There is fission of excitement that sparkles wildly when a music lover read down a list of bands names that are due to play at a gig they attend that is almost unique in the world of music. From the early 70s when great progressive rock bands of the time thrilled audiences with names that seemed positively futuristic, it seems that a name can carry hope and an awful lot of symbolism.

Hoag’s Object, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool. full post

(367 words, 1 image, estimated 1:28 mins reading time)

Brothers ‘N’ Bandits, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool.

Photograph by Ian D. Hall

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

One of the signs of a band having something about them, the spark of creativity that will stand them in good stead in years to come, is being able to perform at the drop of a hat and surprise an audience by being an unlisted addition; it is how you conduct yourself as a group at the very beginning that sets the seal on how you will be seen later on in your career.

Brothers ‘N’ Bandits, Gig Review. o2 Academy, Liverpool. full post

(342 words, 1 image, estimated 1:22 mins reading time)

Stairway To Heaven, Express Lift Down To Hell.

I heard a rumour that St. Peter quit his day job

All because some atheist had opened his gob.

He walked past the pearly gates waving his hands in the air

Whilst Jesus blubbed and wept with despair.

God by his side, shook his head and chewed on his cigar

Mumbling, “With that attitude he won’t get far.”

Jesus shouted, “What do I do when someone arrives?

Is it as simple as taking stock of their mortal lives?”

Peter (no longer a saint, he had handed his title back.)

Stairway To Heaven, Express Lift Down To Hell. full post

(1040 words, estimated 4:10 mins reading time)