The roar from the crowd inside Wembley was one that sent down chills to those of us gathered outside, desperate to part of something that we thought would never happen again; England in a semi-final of a major tournament, the opposition, the old enemy, as my Dad once glorified in shouting at the television whenever an international match came on television, his absurd way of shuffling forward in his chair and then standing erect with his head bowed as God Save The Queen, a man of the old school, good, forthright, obedient.
David Gray, White Ladder: The 20th Anniversary. Album Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
If necessity is the mother of invention, then inevitability must be the gentle kiss of love that she places upon your forehead and to which a few will wipe off in embarrassment, but which some will feel the reinforcement of their ideas and allow the comfort to inspire them on, to greater heights, to conquering the nagging fear that their belief had been gnawed away.
Peter Croft, Button Box Breakdown. Album Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Whatever your instrument, whatever your musical weapon of choice, it must be played with love, and by doing so the expertise and inspiration will inevitably follow.
The focus has seemingly always been on the guitar, easy to understand why as it does give a superhuman like effect when played dangerously cool or whimsically fashionable, however, other instruments do not lazily idle their time away, hoping that the guitar will have its day and slope off to the sun in blissful retirement; instead they find that special person to whom calls out with unheard ideas and gives them what they desire, an outlet to inspire and inflame the passions of all who will follow their every note.
The Sleep Eazys, Easy To Buy, Hard To Sell. Album Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
The instrumental album arguably finds itself in a unique position when it comes to the public’s attention and the enjoyment they feel when listening to music. Like all art it will always make you think, but unlike albums full of meaningful lyrics and the drawing of words into the realm of the well placed chord, the instrumental is left to fend for itself, it has to be big and bold just to have someone take notice, for people want the line and the hook so they can fall in love, and yet if the listener is so able, the lack of words speak volumes for the artist.
Becca Stevens, Wonderbloom. Album Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
What blooms should be encouraged to keep growing, to keep performing and illuminating the passions of others. For what blooms more than that which is regarded with sincerity and belief, and which throws the whispers of the malcontent and jealous into disarray.
One does not regard the unkept, the shadow like wraith, and possibly to their own undoing, for each has its own potential and story to tell in this life, but the ones that find a way to flourish and thrive and inspire beauty, texture, colour and the wisdom of the finite, then there are those whose presence stirs your mind and the Wonderbloom they employ as you are caught by the song they sing.
Euan Blackman, Think About You. Single Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
We all like to believe that somewhere out there is someone who at this moment in time is unearthing a memory of you that had long been placed in a dusty corner of the attic like mind, that they have blown off the cobwebs and swiped the decaying spider of the ages past and watched it scuttle off on the floorboards in a huff, and that have seen you, relished in your now missed company and have smiled, broadly, grinning at something you once said, some look that you gave gives them reason to chuckle.
The Curse Of La Llorona. Film Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
Cast: Linda Cardellini, Roman Christou, Jaynee-Lynne, Kinchen, Raymond Cruz, Marisol Ramirez, Patricia Velasquez, Sean Patrick Thomas, Tony Amendola, Irene Keng, Oliver Alexander, Aiden Lewandowski, Paul Rodriguez, John Marshall Jones, Ricardo Mamood-Vega, Jaydan Valdivia, Andrew Tinpo Lee.
The curse is such a staple of horror that, unless used wisely, loses its charm with little fanfare and only the slight chill of what might have been attached to the work in question.
The Outsider. Television Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Ben Mendelsohn, Cynthia Erivo, Jason Bateman, Bill Camp, Jeremy Pelley, Mare Winningham, Paddy Considine, Yul Vasquez, Julianne Nicholson, Marc Menchaca, Derek Cecil, Hettienne Park, Michael Esper, Steve Witting, Max Beesley, Martin Bats Bradford, Carlos Navarro, Franco Castan, Wes Watson.
In terms of his extraordinary output, Stephen King’s The Outsider has to rank, especially in the 21st Century, at the upper end of novels that connect with the human psyche and the unbalancing of fear to which he has immersed and soaked his name through with prolific ease.
Inside No. 9: The Stakeout. Television Review.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Cast: Reece Shearsmith, Steve Pemberton, Rebecca Callard, Malik Ibheis.
Even in the more cerebrally minded television programmes and across the writer’s who offer the viewer a healthy dose of the macabre and genius inspired, you sometimes know what is coming at you from the beginning, it is how they turn the screw during the transmission that makes the show stand out as something more than just a half hour trip down a certain lane, it becomes the embodiment of performance, of the ordinary bent out of shape.
Clannad, Gig Review. Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Award-winning band Clannad said farewell to Liverpool, and Liverpool said a reluctant sad farewell to Clannad.
It’s been 50 years since this exceptional Irish band from Donegal bounced onto the music scene with their eclectic mix of traditional Celtic music and new age ethereal vibes.
Legendary, influential and culturally important, the band was formed in 1970 by siblings Moya, Ciaran and Pol Brennan and their uncles Noel and Padraig Duggan. Unfortunately, Padraig passed away in 2016 and the band gave him a “shout out” at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall last night to the delight of a packed audience. For a short time, sister Enya had been part of the line-up but now ploughs her own path.