Category Archives: Music

Ray Davies, See My Friends. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 9th 2010.

Ray Davies has been cited by a multitude of musicians as being one of the main inspirations in their life. He has seen the likes of The Jam, The Stranglers and Kirsty MacColl cover his songs to great critical acclaim and has been responsible for some of the great pop songs of the last five decades. His distinctive style has won over a legion of fans worldwide and his delivery and genuine love of music makes him stand out as one of the godfathers of several genres.

Ray Davies, See My Friends. Album Review. full post

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

The Who, Live at Leeds, 40th Anniversary Edition. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 22nd 2010.

There are some live albums that stand the test of time and capture the band or artist at their very best, one such album is The Who’s Live at Leeds. Originally recorded in the bands heyday of 1970, the album is a snap shot of one of the finest rock bands to come out of Britain, punchy, insightful to the point of brilliance, the album has constantly been adorned with being one of the defining moments of Rock history.

The Who, Live at Leeds, 40th Anniversary Edition. Album Review. full post

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

Kate Robbins, Soho Nights. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. January 10th 2011.

It feels good to get out of your usual listening once in a while and appreciate something that will grab your attention and have you humming along without you even realising it. Liverpool’s own Kate Robbins new album Soho Nights is one such album.

From the opening bar of the title song, you feel as though you have been taken back to the heady days of the 1940’s jazz clubs that gave so much pleasure when there was very little in supply. Kate’s voice is a mixture of laid back and with a subtle hint of the great Karen Carpenter unique vibrato sound that made her a star.

Kate Robbins, Soho Nights. Album Review. full post

(380 words, 1 image, estimated 1:31 mins reading time)

The Visitation, Magnum. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. January 17th 2011.

Sixteen studio albums down the road and the Magnum story keeps on going. Two years ago the band produced the stunning and critically acclaimed Into the Valley of the Moonking; they follow this up with the quite frankly incredible The Visitation.

Once more Tony Clarkin’s signature song writing style is very much in evidence as he deals with subjects close to his and the bands heart. There can be very few bands where the main song writer and the vocalist are so in tune with each other’s requirements that the songs they come up with are stirring and poignant at the same time.

The Visitation, Magnum. Album Review. full post

(373 words, 1 image, estimated 1:30 mins reading time)

The World Is Yours, Motorhead. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. January 17th 2011.

The very name of British heavy metal band Motorhead was once enough to strike fear into the hearts of fans worldwide, their overpowering guitar driven anthems, Lemmy’s persona and the very image they fully lived up to always meant they were a bit of a Marmite band, you either didn’t get them or you thought they were out of this world. There was no way you could be indifferent about the band.

The World Is Yours, Motorhead. Album Review. full post

(315 words, 1 image, estimated 1:16 mins reading time)

What if… Mr. Big. Album Review.

 Originally published by L.S. Media. January 25th 2011.

What if…is the first studio album in ten years by the L.A rock giants Mr. Big and if you are going to go away for that long and then do an album, it has to be a cracking one. Thankfully Eric Martin, Pat Torpey, Billy Sheehan and Paul Gilbert deliver an album high on octane and memories of past glories withheld at the studio door.

What if… Mr. Big. Album Review. full post

(394 words, 1 image, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)

Jailbreak, Thin Lizzy. Remastered Deluxe Edition. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. February 2nd 2011.

For those that lived through 1976, the time came to remembered for the heat wave that struck Britain culminating in drought conditions unseen for generations, it was also noted for the then Chancellor of the exchequer Dennis Healy applying to the I.M.F for a loan of 5.3 Billion Dollars to help bail out Britain and the death of the Peoples Republic of China leader Mao Zedong. In the world of rock music it was the coming of age of a band that had threatened to become one of the biggest recording acts of the decade.

Jailbreak, Thin Lizzy. Remastered Deluxe Edition. Album Review. full post

(518 words, 1 image, estimated 2:04 mins reading time)

Robin Beck, The Great Escape. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. February 16th 2011.

It has been the best part of 23 years since New York singer songwriter Robin Beck made any type of impact with her music in Britain. Although chiefly remembered for her only U.K. number one, the power ballad First Time, the quiet American has released albums which have done well in her native homeland and in other parts of Europe but not touched the consciousness of the record-buying public in this country.

Robin Beck, The Great Escape. Album Review. full post

(352 words, 1 image, estimated 1:24 mins reading time)

Bob Geldof, How To Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. February 23rd 2011.

Bob Geldof has for so long been associated with the ideals of political activism and one of the great modern philanthropists that for some people his days as a Punk/ Rock rebel and musician are long in the distant past. In certain quarters the songs that he created with the Boomtown Rats may seem like a relic to the man he no longer is, and it is has been such a long time since he recorded anything of note that those critics may have a point.

Bob Geldof, How To Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell. Album Review. full post

(430 words, 1 image, estimated 1:43 mins reading time)

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.

Blancmange, Blanc Burn. Album Review. full post

(308 words, 1 image, estimated 1:14 mins reading time)