Muse, Simulation Theory. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10

You should never blame a set of artists for wanting to change direction in how their work is viewed, everything must adapt, all must be like the waves, the tide and the shifting sands, secrets must reveal themselves, unknown coves must explored, and yet the audience must also understand that in the pursuit of change, of natural revolution, the distinction between the admiration of what lay before and the possible intrigue of what lays ahead can reveal a chasm, an almost unbridgeable divide -it is only a theory, but one that can cause problems down the line when the artist turns their head back to what went before.

Muse, Simulation Theory. Album Review. full post

(421 words, 1 image, estimated 1:41 mins reading time)

King Crimson, Gig Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

There is no greater recognition of the art than that which reflects on its greatness, whilst looking at it from a different angle, of gaining a new perspective.

In an age where music is being redefined by the artist to include remixes, and in some cases what can only be described as adulterations, to the original cause, it is perhaps an idea in which can be seen as beautifully engaging, or arguably bemoaned by others as art for arts’ sake, and one that brought a new dynamic, an innovative flavour to the Liverpool Empire stage, as King Crimson brought their talent to an audience, which for many would have been their first live undertaking.

King Crimson, Gig Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(464 words, estimated 1:51 mins reading time)

End Of Days. Radio Podcast Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

We only see the clarity of the defining moment, we have a vague sense of what may have happened before, the prelude to the final act, but the aftermath we find perhaps dull, the event has moved on and we, as human beings, only have the attention span in which to express our opinion in which makes sense to us.

End Of Days. Radio Podcast Review. full post

(585 words, estimated 2:20 mins reading time)

Widows. Film Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Viola Davis, Liam Neeson, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debecki, Carrie Coon, Cynthia Erivo, Colin Farrell, James Vincent Meredith, Brian Tyree Henry, Daniel Kaluuya, Robert Duvall, John Bernthal, Manuel Garcia-Ruflo, Coburn Goss, Ann Mitchell, Jacki Weaver, Garret Dillahunt, Jon Michael Hill.

A new generation, a new audience, one that gets transplanted out of 1980s Britain and into the heart of 21st Century Chicago politics and undercurrent of American crime, Widows might not have been one that its enormous fanbase might have ever thought needed updating but it is one that works, that makes the absolute use of the grime and seemingly untouchable attitude of modern politics and its strange bedfellow of corruption, criminality and violence.

Widows. Film Review. full post

(409 words, estimated 1:38 mins reading time)

Smallfoot. Film Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Channing Tatum, James Corden, Zendaya, Common, LeBron James, Danny DeVito, Gina Rodriguez, Yara Shahidi, Ely Henry, Jimmy Tatro, Patricia Heaton, Justin Roiland, Jack Quaid, Sarah Baker, Kenneth Holden Bashar, Peter Ettinger, Jonathan Kite, Jonathan Mangum, Joel McCrary, Vanessa Ragland, Clara Sera, Luke Smith, Jessica Tuck.

It is regarded as bad form to not enjoy and fall in love with an animated film, whether by the masters of the art in Disney or Pixar, or through to the dominant Japanese Studio Ghibli, or even timeless shorts created by the Warner Brothers, it is considered almost reverential to praise the genre from the highest peek when viewing a film in which thousands of hours of work have been painstakingly thought out and applied.

Smallfoot. Film Review. full post

(439 words, estimated 1:45 mins reading time)

Doctor Who: Demons Of The Punjab. Television Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole, Mandip Gill, Leena Dhingra, Amita Suman, Shane Zaza, Hamza Jeetooa, Shaheen Khan, Shobna Gulati, Ravin J Ganatra, Bhavnisha Parmar, Emma Fielding, Nathalie Curzner, Isobel Middleton, Barbara Fadden.

Everything we do leaves a footprint in history, it is not just the so-called interesting characters of our time, the thought of as important, each one of has the potential to change the future with a single action, a smile in the right place to a person who may be contemplating a darker path, a word out of place due to anger can set in motion a war, falling in love across man-made boundaries can lead to a death of our making; that footprint in the sands of time does not discriminate, we all have the ability to effect the way our footprint is seen.

Doctor Who: Demons Of The Punjab. Television Review. full post

(563 words, estimated 2:15 mins reading time)

Silence (On The Day After).

 

Silence

falls

suddenly

on the day after, although

I swear I can hear

the sound of birds again,

Silence

as the bombs and bullets

no longer scream

through the clearing air

of this long hand weaved

burial place for the living,

Silence

for the waters

of impatient tide

that rotted our feet

and sapped our strength

to do anything but survive,

Silence

on this day

never sounded so sweet,

on this day,

the day after

Silence (On The Day After). full post

(88 words, estimated 21 secs reading time)

Anthrax, Gig Review. Birmingham Arena, Birmingham.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

In another place, perhaps in one which the overhead skies are permanently blue, the sun shines down with the kindness of a first date in summer and with the sizzling aroma of food being cooked for the hungry but dedicated masses, then having three support acts, or more, is arguably one in which the audiences can really get their teeth into. Aside from the logistics of such an action when held indoors and with limited time available, the feeling is one in which a support act to the main event gets some recognition but doesn’t have enough time in which to truly either leave their mark on the memory of the assembled.

Anthrax, Gig Review. Birmingham Arena, Birmingham. full post

(500 words, estimated 2:00 mins reading time)

Lamb Of God, Gig Review. Birmingham Arena, Birmingham.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

There were always so many bands that were knocking on the door of the Metal scene as the genre exploded, groups that encompassed the complexity of style and the openness of lyrical exploration. Whilst Britain and America had the monopoly for a generation, if we were to look at the time afresh, would fans struggle of the concept of the big four, where would bands from the rest of Europe, South America and beyond fit into this seemingly timeless conglomerate, would it not encompass a far broader base of Metal as Metallica seemed to take the avenue down and leaving the Thrash behind.

Lamb Of God, Gig Review. Birmingham Arena, Birmingham. full post

(453 words, estimated 1:49 mins reading time)

Eden’s Curse, Testament-The Best Of Eden’s Curse. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

The journey into the realm of the best of album release is one that is fraught with subjective appraisal, a verified list of a committee which does its finest application to look upon a seasoned work and narrow it down to what they believe is a fitting tribute to the band’s broad range of appeal and one that might spark debate within the fanbase. Quite often these releases are a demonstration in name only of what someone else considers might sell, a capitalist utopia of supply and demand that appears to only satisfy one thing-someone else’s bank balance.

Eden’s Curse, Testament-The Best Of Eden’s Curse. Album Review. full post

(516 words, estimated 2:04 mins reading time)