Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
The amount of depth that is afforded to Emma Stevens, the wisdom in the music that gives a lift to the mood, even when the lyrics betray other sentiments that may in other hands bring the frame of mind down, makes Enchanted a beautiful beast of an album in which to appreciate the delicate bouquet of relished beaming roses.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Where would existence be without the likes of Marcus Malone popping up on a regular basis through the back drop of life’s sometimes audible eternal howl? It certainly wouldn’t be as interesting nor as musically rich or plush nor as precious in the way that Blues can be.
Marcus Malone lives the Blues, he plays with its concept and gives it an edge in which few dare to follow and is reminiscent of the luxuriant tones that was gifted the young David Coverdale, in short without Marcus Malone appearing somewhere on your playlist of the day, then the 24 hours that separates one midnight to the next may as well be a blur of undisguised bemusement.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
There are many reasons in which to find yourself as a listener immensely satisfied with exploring the music of Nordic tradition. Whether it is the music from Norway, Sweden, Finland, the exceptional talent of the island race of the Faroe Islands or even Iceland, there is so much beauty contained within the music that it can make a music lover hanker for less intrusive times, times when the narrative was the big sell and the music a picturesque addition, the soundscapes of the sea crashing into the rugged hardy rocks along the shores with a guitar being gently teased in the background.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 71/2/10
Human Life, so breakable, so unstable and at times the mental and physical can be held in uncertain terms, so much so to talk of the condition, to place the frailty out in the open can make people turn away through embarrassment, mainly as they struggle to understand why anyone would want to push the human thought that far, or because they feel threatened by someone reaching out to them. Whatever the reason, Michael Rattray captures the emotion of tender Humanity wonderfully in Human Life.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
The call for independent Scotland may be raging around the U.K. press during this period of 2014 but for one man calling the Isle of Lewis his home, independence has come very early as he prepares to release his new album Dalma. For Willie Campbell, once of Scottish Indie act Astrid and now enjoying life as part of The Open Day Rotation, the chance to show the Gaelic heart that beats gently but fiercely proud within him to an audience must be seen as a brave and valiant step.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
Perhaps male pop heart throbs are hard to find. The teenage crush of many a young girl can disappear in the blink of an eye, they dissolve into the background and what was once fashionable and alluring is unrecognisable, both visually and aurally, in the years ahead. Such is the life of a teenage heart throb.
Following on from Out of My Hands, Morton Harket shows with his latest album Brother, that some 80s pop stars have and will fare better than many of the almost non-descript popular male acts and so called Boy-bands of the current generation will be able to claim.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Jazz and swing can so easily mocked by some but at times providing the link between good music and an enjoyable time. It cannot be a coincidence that the increase in popularity over the last few years is more akin to the times we find ourselves in, the untold parallels that don’t get talked about in the hushed rooms of Westminster to those that afflicted Europe in the 1920s and 30s. Between Jazz and Blues the music certainly kept up the spirits of many of those under fire during that time and now The Basin Street Brawlers are putting up an excellent fight to keep the music flowing in the 21st Century with their new album, It’s Tight Like That.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
Jethro Tull or Ian Anderson? To be fair it makes no difference what name the man who bought Gerald Bostock into the world and gave prominence to the flute being front and centre of the stage of any gig or album. He could call himself after any inventor of 17th Century or 21st Century gardening implement or seed drill as long as he continues to make outstanding albums such as Homo Erraticus and given the man’s unerring and unwavering contribution to British music in the last 45 years, that doesn’t seem to be an issue that will ever come up in polite conversation.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
There is always a small part of you that worries that the second E.P. or album you hear performed by a band might see the glimmer of undisguised joy you felt first time round, die a little, become somehow tarnished and smeared with the dirty pain of blotted memories. It is a natural thought. Even when a band has been going many years that nagging doubt remains and in even in masters of the music experience such as Pink Floyd there is an argument for saying A Momentary Lapse of Reason falls into that category. For Liverpool band The Vibes, a couple of E.P.s down the line and they still sound bloody marvellous. Dust Trail proves that you perhaps shouldn’t give much thinking room for second E.P. nerves!
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
“If it ain’t got that swing then it don’t mean a thing…” If it’s not The Fresh Dixie Project, then whatever it could be is an obvious pale imitation of something so right that deep down you know you could be headed for booking up confession sessions a few months in advance. Failing that you will be listening to five young lads give such an imaginative display on the scale of seeing an exhibition of a man swagger and swerve temptation as he strides along Oxford Street with a thousand pounds in his pocket and defying expectation, passes into the hands of a local homeless woman.