Category Archives: Music

C.A.L.I.E: Let Go. Single Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Let Go of the belief that Jazz is not cool.

Whilst the genre didn’t find itself struggling with its identity in much the way that Blues faced as the last century closed its doors on the pre-World War Two musical expressions, Jazz nevertheless did find its way obscured from digging down into a new generations conscious, as other modes of musical transportation took the eyes and ears off the focus of what can be arguably spoken of in positive terms, the true form of free form available to the listener.

C.A.L.I.E: Let Go. Single Review. full post

(382 words, estimated 1:32 mins reading time)

Genesis: B.B.C Broadcasts. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

An almost unrivalled collection, whether from these shores, or even on the other side of the pond that separates common listenership, the B.B.C.’s back catalogue of live recorded music is one to behold. Millions of hours of concert reels from every conceivable artist, and despite its faults, the indiscretions, the fall outs from flaws and blame, the criticism and inconvenient truths, the fact remains there is a repository of live music just waiting to be rereleased and given a fresh appraisal.

Genesis: B.B.C Broadcasts. Album Review. full post

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

Madness: The Liberty Of Norton Folgate. (2023 Album Re-issue). Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

One Step Beyond…for a group as universally beloved as Madness, whose record, so to speak, needs no explanation, just enough to know that in our lifetimes they appeared and blew people’s minds with their infectious music and consummate wit.

There has never really been a band such as Madness, and likely the fact is that there will never be again, and that in a way is good, because it means in the decades to come, those men of humour, insight, style, and songs that prick the conscious of the listener will be truly respected as one of the pioneers of their craft from the late 20th Century.

Madness: The Liberty Of Norton Folgate. (2023 Album Re-issue). Album Review. full post

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

Brian Bordello: Songs For Cilla To Sing. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Who truly remembers what they have kept under wraps, locked away in a dusty cupboard, in an attic that has lain unvisited, a damp and prone to pestilent basement, or the memory remaining dormant, of all they have ever wanted to show the world.

These thoughts, musings, reflections on times when a different kind of breed of star was all the rage in the pop charts, who appealed to a kind of instant hit maker, who were famous for who they knew rather than just being considered great for the talent discovered, are such that they play in the mind when revealed; when that dusty box gives up its long held secret, when the attic becomes a treasure trove of illumination, who knows if they Songs For Cilla To Sing, or for Brian to savour

Brian Bordello: Songs For Cilla To Sing. Album Review. full post

(396 words, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)

James Bauld: Where I Belong. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Home may be where the heart lays, but the soul is not content until it has the music in which fills every room, every emotion, only then does it allow the human machine with all its nooks, crannies, desires and wants to declare, this is Where I Belong.

It takes time to understand that self-declaration, and even then, we can be wrong, we can be found defending our position when the truth is we haven’t yet heard the right song or combination of tracks in which to truly feel at home.

James Bauld: Where I Belong. Album Review. full post

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

The Answer: Sundowners. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Taking time away from what you love is not an act of sabotage or surrender, it is chance to reacquaint yourself with the feeling before the beauty was initially gazed upon, as the sun rises and falls so we must find ways of seeing the new opportunity to explore as one of increasing our depth of knowledge, so that when we do return to that which gives is meaning, we have something fresh and different to talk about.

The Answer: Sundowners. Album Review. full post

(357 words, estimated 1:26 mins reading time)

An Upside Down Tree: Sunshine at the Café Ridard. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Where you eat and drink is as important as what you consume, what you munch down upon, what tickles your fancy, or even consoles you, whilst you are at the bar, whilst you dine in company, or alone.

The Café Terrace at Night invites Nighthawks drinking coffee, tasting wine, or open air fresco declaring the savagery of a culture best left in the dark surrounding the patrons and drunks of Gin Lane, these are the habits of the evening songbirds as they imbibe, tell tall tales to awaiting ears, and leave the morning to those who wish to talk with passion of change as they witness Sunshine at the Café Ridard come pouring through the clear windows.

An Upside Down Tree: Sunshine at the Café Ridard. Album Review. full post

(388 words, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)

Connor Selby. (Self-Titled) Album Review. Deluxe Edition.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

What makes a self-titled release at times have more impact than almost any other record and album, almost nowhere else in the field of art has such influence or impression of name, and in even an autobiography there is always a tag line a : or – separating the appellation from its subject; but in music the impact is clear, this is a statement beyond reproach, this is a declaration of effect and power. For Connor Selby, the deluxe edition of the album bearing is name is unabashed, inspiration, and stimulating authority…why would you not insist on having your name on the sleeve when something so incredible has your heart and soul deep within its very existence.

Connor Selby. (Self-Titled) Album Review. Deluxe Edition. full post

(395 words, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)

Flitcraft: House At The Centre Of The Universe. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

We may be the stars of our own film, the ones who write our own biography, but we must always ensure that we never believe for single minute that our souls are the focus of the galaxy, we can visit and enjoy the company of the House At The Centre Of The Universe, but we must understand that we are guests, never the owners.

Flitcraft: House At The Centre Of The Universe. Album Review. full post

(416 words, estimated 1:40 mins reading time)

Redlight King: In Our Blood. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

What flows through our veins is not just a physical aspect of life, but there is also the conscious, the drive, it is In Our Blood, it is the essence of all we wish to achieve and create; and whether we do it all under our own given name or reveal more of our nature by appointing the by-line to an alter-ego, in our blood it exists…every drop of pain, of pleasure, of melancholic wanderings, of the exuberance felt as inspiration strikes as you watch the dawn rise from the safety of The Gown And Gavel, as another goal is awarded to the Bulldogs in downtown Hamilton.

Redlight King: In Our Blood. Album Review. full post

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