Mercury Midnight at the o2 Academy in Liverpool. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. August 11th 2010.
One of the surprises of the summer, in terms of new bands coming to Liverpool and doing well could be the sensational Mercury Midnight. Fronted by vocalist Claire Louise Sheridan, the band exudes a confidence that betrays their youth and the lack of time they have been together.
Originally published by L.S. Media. August 17th 2010.
Four years may not sound like a long time but in music terms it can be an absolute eternity, especially when you have been riding high for the best part of 30 years as one of Britain’s finest metal exports.
Iron Maiden have constantly lived up to their billing, (even forgiving a few turbulent years in the late 90’s when they were in danger of becoming an irreverence) no matter what, they knew what their fans wanted and even led the way in new musical ideas.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 4th 2010.
It seems that Muse can do no wrong. A sell out tour last year, the main headliners at the 40th anniversary of Glastonbury and now a three night extravaganza in England which kicked off in Manchester at the fabled home of Lancashire County Cricket Club.
For those arriving for the four o’ clock opening, the sight that would have beheld them would have had them gasping at the enormity of the stage, something very rarely undertaken outside of a Genesis or Pink Floyd gig. From outside the ground it looked as though the LCCC had started work on yet another media centre or a pavilion to match the best grounds in the world. It certainly left the crowd in no doubt why the three gigs were a week apart.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 8th 2010.
Cast: Warren Donnelly, Dean Sullivan, Bernadette Foley, Eithne Browne, Kate McEvoy, Kris Mochrie, Marc Hughes, Emma Nowell.
Sequels can either be hit or miss, whether on stage or at the cinema the hard task of the writer is to make the next part of the story just as enjoyable as the previous one. Sometimes this doesn’t work; there is too much affection for the characters in the first story that any derivation from the plot is never forgiven.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 9th 2010.
The name Barry Briercliffe might not be one that immediately roles of the tongue outside of his native city of Liverpool but that could all change with his stunning new work.
On the 27th August Barry launched his new E.P; this set of four songs goes under the album title of The Alive and contains the tracks Hold On, Alive, Time Is Standing Still and The Real You. All these tracks will demand the complete attention of the listener as it offers an insight into one of the bright young things of the Liverpool scene, alongside Stephen Langstaff and adopted Scouser Richard O’ Flynn.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 11th 2010.
One of the last times The Christians came to Liverpool was to perform at the Liverpool Academy and even though the band went down well that night, there seemed to be something missing from the overall experience that audiences expect from one of Liverpool’s finest and most respected bands.
Anything that was sadly remiss on that balmy summer’s night in 2009 was put right by having the band in a setting which suited their style and laid back harmonic approach such as the Philharmonic.
It may be hard to believe but there was a time when Progressive Rock was considered past its sell by date, the emergence of punk in the seventies had done its best to dismantle it but it was the era of the nineties music scene which seemed to finally kill off the behemoth. Thankfully you can never keep a good seven minute song down for too long and the genre was soon flourishing once more with the likes of Touchstone and The Reasoning.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 14th 2010.
Marseille are finally back and kicking in the best way possible. After a couple of years touring and ironing out any frustrations they may have felt along the way, the band have at last released their fourth studio album and the first one since 1984’s Touch The Night.
Craftily calling their new album Unfinished Business is a reminder to all the fans of the band that when the group dismantled there was indeed something left unsaid. Indeed within certain rock circles it has always been a game of what if and how far could they have gone within the ranks of others that came under the banner of NWOBHM.
Photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. September 17th 2010.
Back in the late sixties the musicians that made up the Moody Blues could never have dreamed that their combined efforts would produce some of the most loved songs of the latter half of the twentieth century.
It has been a while since they last played Liverpool and despite the early autumn chill that was in the air, it seemed as though there were still plenty of fans throughout the area who would come and see them play. With no room inside to park a mellotron, the scene was set within the Philharmonic Hall for a night of music that would never have been thought about when the band produced one of the defining moments of musical history, the inspired Days of Future Passed.
Cast: Kieran Cunningham, Pauline Daniels, Stephen Fletcher, Mark Moraghan, Georgina White, Sophie Fraser, Chris Mason, Abby Mavers, Jack Rigby. Mia Molloy.
We have all been on one, no matter of our age. The school day out is one of those times that if pushed we will remember detail for detail, whether it was a day trip to the local seaside to let off steam or an exercise in futility where the teachers tried to show that they could be down with the kids and be their friends for one day.