Stick In The Wheel: A Thousand Pokes. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

When we sing in the voices of the downtrodden, when we admit to ourselves that the songs we sing are not from an exalted high praising the so-called great and good, but ones that sit in the realm of the beggar’s folk dance, the vagabond and the hobo’s Mosh, and the parody of the discotheque frequented by the cash strapped and harbingers of the bouncing cheque, then we show the world just how to give A Thousand Pokes to the classless upper classes and the wannabe nouveau riche who see the world as a plaything without understanding the most basic of rules.

Stick In The Wheel: A Thousand Pokes. Album Review. full post

(450 words, 1 image, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)

Thorpe & Morrison: Grass & Granite. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Birmingham’s music scene has always been a vibrant beast, whether it was in the glorious heyday of bands such as The Moody Blues, Wizzard, E.L.O. through the 80s and 90s, and beyond revival which saw diversity lead through application and desire from bands such as Dexys Midnight Runners, Napalm Death, The Twang, and Ocean Colour Scene, prove with absolute conviction that there has always been a magnetic sense of groove and wit, coupled with wonderfully adhered to belief in light-hearted cynicism that has been the bedrock of expression in the former heartlands of the home of British Industry’s revolution.

Thorpe & Morrison: Grass & Granite. Album Review. full post

(456 words, 1 image, estimated 1:49 mins reading time)

ENMY. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

When the rock community in Europe think of the sound that typifies the genre in America, it could be argued that the city of Cincinnati does not feature highly on the list of places that would necessarily make the listener think of being a natural home to the expression of the soul and the beat.

ENMY. Album Review. full post

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

Apartment 7A. Film Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Julia Garner, Dianne Wiest, Kevin McNally, Jim Sturgess, Marli Siu, Rosy McEwen, Andrew Buchan, Anton Blake Horowitz, Raphael Sowole, Tina Gray, Patrick Lyster, Rachel Atkins, Andre Lillis, Hannah Morley, Nikkita Chadha, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Patricia Jones, Tina Chiang, James Swanton, Amy Leeson, Scott Hum.

One of the main issues with a prequel written years after the original was filmed is that it can, if not researched properly by the writers, deflect from the narrative that made what followed an act of cinematic glory.

Apartment 7A. Film Review. full post

(570 words, estimated 2:17 mins reading time)

Fleetwood Mac: Mirage Tour ’82. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

With no new music forthcoming from the legendary Fleetwood Mac, added with the fallout involving Lindsey Buckingham and the rest of the band, and the sadness that envelopes the fan as they remember the seismic talent lost in the form of Christine McVie’s passing, the only way possible to keep the interest of the public is in innovative releases, of plunging into the live recordings during their long and illustrious career; and as the sound of the expansive release of the Mirage Tour ’82 fills the air, so the machine, the love continues onwards.

Fleetwood Mac: Mirage Tour ’82. Album Review. full post

(414 words, 1 image, estimated 1:39 mins reading time)

Jon Boden And The Remnant Kings: Parlour Ballads. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Homes now are built with function and a mind to cramming as many people into a small space as possible. There is no room for gathering, the soiree, or occasion where an extended family or a large group of friends can seize the opportunity and pour themselves into position around a musical instrument and be entertained by the touch of music skilfully, or even just an amateur hour performed by the congregation themselves, is for the most part lost to another time, to another moment where Parlour Ballads were the rage and the indication of a good time guaranteed.

Jon Boden And The Remnant Kings: Parlour Ballads. Album Review. full post

(403 words, 1 image, estimated 1:37 mins reading time)

Central Intelligence. Audio Drama Series Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Kim Cattrall, Ed Harris, Johnny Flynn, Geoffrey Arend, Rob Benedict, Elena Delia, Kerry Shale, Matthew Marsh, Eric Meyers, Laurel Lefkow, Julee Cerda, Jennifer Armour, Philip Desmeules, Rufus Wright, Nathan Osgood, Dana Haqjoo, Akie Kotabe, Adam Sina, Bijan Daneshmand, Jamie Bogyo, Majid Mehdizadeh-Valoujerdy, Wayne Forester, Sarah Alles-Shahkarmi, Isabella Nefar, Walles Hamonde, Natasha Arancini, Hubert Hanowicwz, Will Hislop, Andi Jashy, Arita Sadiku.

Central Intelligence. Audio Drama Series Review. full post

(576 words, estimated 2:18 mins reading time)

Curtis Eller’s American Circus: Another Nice Mess. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

We all arguably had that one parent who would describe the tangled clutter in our bedrooms as either disgusting untidiness or as Another Nice Mess, one that can be quickly dealt with, cleaned and categorised with an air of breeziness in their voice; as if a serene sense of cool had been injected into them from a source unknown.

Curtis Eller’s American Circus: Another Nice Mess. Album Review. full post

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

Soul Asylum: Slowly But Shirley. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The delight of the pun is not missed, the upbeat tempo that spices up the air around the senses is enjoyed, and the craft that Soul Asylum place in detail as their new album, Slowly But Shirley, spins its own delicacy of allusion and frantic joy, is to admired, and with a gust of rapid musical precision the listener is thrown head first in to a groove of refuge and sanctuary that is a haven against a world possessed as it is in fury and madness.

Soul Asylum: Slowly But Shirley. Album Review. full post

(391 words, 1 image, estimated 1:34 mins reading time)

Fight The Fade: Isolationist. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

We can never truly explain the human psyche, not in complete assured conviction, but we can find ways to protect the sense of individuality we need to flourish as a species, to adhering to some policies that nurture the belief of community; it is a fine balancing act that could swing towards the authoritarian dogma or the isolationist policy that comes with the beleaguered and the damaged.

Fight The Fade: Isolationist. Album Review. full post

(346 words, 1 image, estimated 1:23 mins reading time)