K T Tunstall, Invisible Empire/Crescent Moon. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Invisible Empire/Crescent Moon marks a new line in the sand for K T Tunstall, perhaps the start of new beginning for the Scottish singer/musician as she comes to terms with life and what it offers.

The raw emotion that filters through every track on the album is one that will endear her to her legion of fans as every sinew, muscle and vessel is to put the test, given a reason to howl at the desert moon. Ms. Tunstall takes advantage of this feeling and produces a thoughtful and somewhat considered performance in the studio, whilst all the time seeking answers to some very age old and relevant questions that every human being asks at one point or another during their life time.

K T Tunstall, Invisible Empire/Crescent Moon. Album Review. full post

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

Black Sabbath, 13. Album Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

At one point, you can almost catch yourself thinking, and with the greatest of respect to the legend and dearly missed Ronni James Dio, why oh why did Black Sabbath ever fracture and tear themselves apart? The answer quickly springs to mind and you are left lamenting what could have been during that period but like all good tales of good and evil, of heroes and villains, the Black Sabbath story is not finished yet as their stunning new album 13 will attest.

Black Sabbath, 13. Album Review. full post

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

Simon Armitage, Walking Home. Book Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

There is always a worry when reading a book by a poet, by someone who you conceive to have weighty matters on their head to the point that the world only really makes sense when viewed through their eyes and through whichever form of the medium takes their fancy. Arguably poetry is the single purest expression of writing and when you consider the greats, the toil they spent making each word convey the deepest meaning can put you off writing anything as you know you can never capture the spirit of someone such as Ginsberg, Hughes, Stevens, McGough or even Simon Armitage.

Simon Armitage, Walking Home. Book Review. full post

(556 words, estimated 2:13 mins reading time)

Moody Blues, Gig Review. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

When the Moody Blues come to Liverpool, something magical seems to happen on stage that weaves its way through to the collective conscious of the audience and the spirit of the age. The  moment when the zeitgeist first took a firm grip on a group of lads from Birmingham, is seen once more as the three remaining members of one of the greatest bands to come from the second city give a towering performance that is both regal and befitting a crowd.

Moody Blues, Gig Review. Liverpool Philharmonic Hall. full post

(567 words, estimated 2:16 mins reading time)

The Words, Gig Review. The Shipping Forecast.

Liverpool Sound And Vision Rating * * *

Manchester’s The Words have been much hyped throughout their relatively short time together; however in The Shipping Forecast on a bright Liverpool evening it was not to be their night.

The band, which has just returned from recording in Austria, took to the stage late citing an unnamed “disaster” for their delay. As a result of this, their set was cut short and perhaps it was this unwanted confusion prior to the gig which would ultimately prove to be the decisive factor in a performance which just didn’t really get going.

The Words, Gig Review. The Shipping Forecast. full post

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

Dementia Senex, Heartworm. E.P. Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The problem can be sometimes that we by nature become too accustomed in the way we live, some comfortably others not so, that as individuals and as a body of people we shy away from taking risks for fear of being perhaps embarrassed or heaven forbid, being seen as unproductive in a world that has got so quick and busy. So much so, that put your feet up for an hour and listen to something out of a so called comfort zone could be classed as self-indulgent and not part of the new way of thinking.

Dementia Senex, Heartworm. E.P. Review. full post

(532 words, estimated 2:08 mins reading time)

Liverpool Sound And Vision: The Sunday Postscript, An Interview With Paul Dunbar Of The Midnight Ramble.

Paul Dunbar greets me with a friendly smile and an outstretched hand as he comes from out of one of the many doors that are part of the rabbit warren of the iconic Unity Theatre. Every band and musician I have come across in Liverpool has something special about them, from Buckle Tongue to Ian McNabb, from Jo Bywater to Stealing Sheep, Paul Dunbar and his band have something about them that makes you want to smile which fits in with the current and lasting view that the city of Liverpool is perhaps arguably the best city in terms of creativity within music to call home.

Liverpool Sound And Vision: The Sunday Postscript, An Interview With Paul Dunbar Of The Midnight Ramble. full post

(1726 words, estimated 6:54 mins reading time)

Danny Baker, Going To Sea In A Sieve: The Autobiography. Book Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

You cannot do justice to the life of radio personality, journalistic music legend Danny Baker in a few short lines, it is a near impossible task and one that even the man who was once asked by a Daily Express journalist if he lived with Elton John, is unable to do in just one autobiography.

Danny Baker, Going To Sea In A Sieve: The Autobiography. Book Review. full post

(432 words, estimated 1:44 mins reading time)

The Christians, Gig Review. The Atkinson, Southport.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

To undertake the task of performing two gigs in two very different venues in one day is perhaps something only Phil Collins would have thought of undertaking as part of raising awareness on the starving people in Ethiopia as part of Live Aid in 1985. However laudable, he did some help from all the organisers behind the event and the good fortune to have the luxury of Concorde to take him between London and Philadelphia.

The Christians, Gig Review. The Atkinson, Southport. full post

(497 words, estimated 1:59 mins reading time)

The Hummingbirds, Gig Review. The Atkinson, Southport.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

They are one of the great young bands and artists that call Liverpool their home. Alongside many others that in the last few years have made the city’s music addicts sit up and take notice of the new and tremendously exciting breed coming through, such as All We Are, Stealing Sheep, Path Unknown, Joe Symes and The Loving Kind, Only Child, Mono L.P.s, Matt Breen, Buckle Tongue, Rob Vincent and Carrianne Hayden, The Hummingbirds name has travelled far and wide, beyond the metaphorical city walls and out into the open world. People outside the city have once more discovered what makes Liverpool tick like no other in the U.K. and perhaps in the world.

The Hummingbirds, Gig Review. The Atkinson, Southport. full post

(452 words, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)