Category Archives: Live

Fleetwood Mac, Gig Review. Hydro, Glasgow.

Fleetwood Mac, The Hydro, Glasgow. June 2015. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

It starts with a gentle rhythmic beat, slow, incandescent and the thought of explosive wrath and crazed delight far from its mind and ends in the white heat of thunder, the objective having been met, the satisfaction of thousands of souls having been determined and the noise of a thousand hearts having been caught fluttering in the wind, now forever filled with content and tranquil fulfilment. To have witnessed Fleetwood Mac, the classic and commercially erudite line-up of Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, John McVie, Christine McVie and Mick Fleetwood, perform anywhere on this particular tour, is arguably to have sensed that five decade old greatness.

Fleetwood Mac, Gig Review. Hydro, Glasgow. full post

(546 words, 1 image, estimated 2:11 mins reading time)

Suzanne Vega, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Buildings retain their memories, or so the theory of some would have you believe, yet stretch the idea to a sporting venue or a music hall and somehow the presumption of ideas seeping into the walls and being held and aiding those following is not so daft.

Memory is after all what makes lyrics come alive, what makes a song tick with the resonance of a heartbeat and the story behind those combinations seem fruitful and soul affirming. For New York raised Suzanne Vega, memory is what makes her own stories come alive, that dip into a musician’s soul which captures elements of life and which gives meaning to others as they go through their own quiet path of life.

Suzanne Vega, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. full post

(445 words, estimated 1:47 mins reading time)

Ben Montague, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

It’s not the first time that Liverpool has given musical shelter to Ben Montague in his short but very obviously interesting and successful career so far but it will arguably go down as the performance in which he was more relaxed and at ease with himself and full of self deprecating humour than any other. It was a sight and aural sensation in which those who made their way to the Philharmonic Hall early enough ahead of Suzanne Vega’s first visit to Liverpool in eight years took very much to their hearts.

Ben Montague, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. full post

(444 words, estimated 1:47 mins reading time)

Elvis Costello, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.

Elvis Costello at the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool. June 2015. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

The standing ovation that lasted longer than any political leaders conference speech resonated past the doors and onto the surrounding pavements of Hope, Hardman and Leece Street and continued as Elvis Costello’s audience drained of strength but not of will and faith and heartened by resolution and revolution, made their way out of the Philharmonic Hall and began to reflect on what had transpired in the course of over two outstanding hours of music.

Elvis Costello, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. full post

(512 words, 1 image, estimated 2:03 mins reading time)

Steve Thompson And The Incidents, Gig Review. 02 Academy, Liverpool.

Steve Thompson at the 02 Academy in Liverpool. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

There are bands performing in Liverpool that to be brutally frank, you would climb off your sick bed to go and watch, or at least make sure the venue would let you take in a bed, a team of nurses and a glowering doctor, full of self-importance and unhappiness, as part of the ticket price. For Steve Thompson and the Incidents, sick bed or not, the chance to take in the sincerity and prized affection for the music on offer is perhaps enough to tempt even Lazarus out of retirement and have him storming the barricades, the arm pumped in appreciation and singing each well delivered line as though his very life depended upon it.

Steve Thompson And The Incidents, Gig Review. 02 Academy, Liverpool. full post

(459 words, 1 image, estimated 1:50 mins reading time)

Last Line Out, Gig Review. 02 Academy, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7.5/10

Summer evenings can be a time of quiet introspection surrounded by friends. Amongst the jokes, hilarity and loud musings between acquaintances, mates and lovers, the calm of summer’s heat can get in your head and considerations and plans are laid out in a row of certainty. You could do that, you could sit there as the sun finally burns itself out and the crispy smell of human bacon stirs into enough life to meander lazily home, or you could make your way to a gig given by Last Line Out and really enjoy the evening.

Last Line Out, Gig Review. 02 Academy, Liverpool. full post

(375 words, estimated 1:30 mins reading time)

The Illegal Eagles, Gig Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. (2015).

Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

For Liverpool fans of the Eagles, 2014 was a momentous year, a moment in which the band came back to the U.K. and gave arguably one of the greatest performances by the band in perhaps the whole of the career. It was possibly made all the more special for the fact that they had not played as a cohesive unit, least not on the rain battered shores that the River Mersey takes solace in, for some time and yet the music was as beautiful and hard hitting as it ever had been. The only disappointment that would have been felt was the feeling of numbness as the dying embers of the classic songs slowly drifted off into the ether and the realisation that these songs of nights out in the desert and where the symbol of American freedom might never be heard live again.

The Illegal Eagles, Gig Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. (2015). full post

(530 words, 1 image, estimated 2:07 mins reading time)

Holly Johnson, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.

Holly Johnson at the Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. June 2015. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

As part of the resurgent Liverpool sound of the 1980s, a sound that seemed a world away from the one that had been the household name in music appreciation by the previous generation up and down the country, Holly Johnson’s name is still revered by many in the city. Despite the feeling of apprehension, the touch of anxiety that emanated from both sides of the stage, what followed was quite possibly the sensation of a huge thrill being administered to the Philharmonic audience as the former Frankie Goes to Hollywood lead vocalist delivered a polished and impressionable set.

Holly Johnson, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. full post

(569 words, 1 image, estimated 2:17 mins reading time)

Paul McCartney, Gig Review. Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

The love you take is equal to the love you make” sang McCartney’s sampled voice, mixed with some beats by the support DJ. It brought to an end the pre-show photo montage, which was accompanied by some fairly entertaining remixes of classic tracks.

Eschewing standard practice of the star following the rest of the band, Paul McCartney shuffled onto the empty stage alone, holding his signature Hofner bass…to a massive roar of the crowd, naturally. This humble manner was evident throughout the show. His in-between song banter is stilted and almost bashful; the polar opposite to his arguably over-rehearsed, P.R. style interview technique. McCartney realises that in the live situation, he doesn’t have to indulge in long introductions or throw rock star shapes. Rather, his astounding back catalogue does the talking and is actually the real star of the show.

Paul McCartney, Gig Review. Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham. full post

(621 words, estimated 2:29 mins reading time)

Don McLean, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.

Don McLean at the Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool, May 2015. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Living legends, the serious list of those steeped in folklore and certain amounts of musical mythology, gets smaller and reduces in size every year. It is the way of things that for the generations past the heroes they grew up with, that they hummed alongside and perhaps even learned to play in some honorary fashion some of the gentle chords that turned them on to life, will all pass into the great gig in the sky and leave a huge musician sized hole in their wake.

Don McLean, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool. full post

(612 words, 1 image, estimated 2:27 mins reading time)