Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
The Dovedale Social was quiet in comparison to previous weeks; however Basement Tapes were in no mood to let this dampen their evening.
The band came out firing on all cylinders with Hotel Room, a stripped down, three chord riot; the type that wouldn’t have been out of place in one of CBGB’s infamous Sunday matinees. Second track, What Happened, offered no let up in the frantic pace.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Barrie Rutter, Nicholas Shaw, Andrew Grose, Sara Poyzer, Kate Anthony, Catherine Kinsella, Richard Standing, Gilly Tompkins.
Not for nothing was Githa Sowerby compared to Henrik Ibsen, the father of theatre realism. Her play Rutherford & Son was a powerful statement in a world where the writing of a female playwright was not expected to be as bold, so groundbreaking in its fury at a world that put male pride and arrogance before the thought of the family. The absolute realism she bought to her characters, especially that of the bombastic and near tyrannical father John Rutherford, the anguish and near heart breaking life of his daughter Janet and that of the stranger to the house, the woman who makes the Faustian-like pact with her father-in-law when all else around her goes awry, the woman whose head for business sees her keep a roof over her head, the young Mary.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
Dlugokecki may be a word that looks as if it is designed to trip you up in a big way. Like those playground bullies of your schooldays that hung about near the lockers and stuck their foot out as you passed them and then laughed themselves into apoplexy as you fought to get back up with some semblance of dignity. Thankfully the band that bears the name are nothing of the sort, they are pleasant, self- effacing and with a front man who looks as if he the sweetest guy in the world. The name may be hard to pronounce but the music they play rolls of the tongue like Southampton legend Matt Le Tissier stroking a free kick home with an easy elegance.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
There is something stirring in the deep heart of Sweden. Alongside Norway, Denmark and Finland, the music that is coming out those Nordic lands is becoming more and more relevant to how Europe and especially the U.K. is thinking about Pop/Rock/Metal. Not only is it relevant, it is extremely good and stunning to hear and Stockholm’s Rooni shows this new energy to be gaining more and more ground.
Liverpool Sound of Vision Rating 9/10
It doesn’t take long to fall in love, the barest of fleeting glimpses or sounds on a radio can be enough for anybody to start a life-times affair with the most defining of bands. Whether it is the intoxicating thought that the music supplied by The 286, is industrious, soul grabbing, slips you a crafty but loving wink in between each affectionate and amorous note or that it brings back so many memories of the only band to have ever tried anything as daring and eclectic as anything that one of Birmingham’s most favourite bands, E.L.O., ever conceived.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Kathryn Beaumont, Joshua Hayes, Sally Hodgkiss, Adam Search.
From 18th century novels through to turn of the last century and the black and white kitchen sink dramas produced after the war and on to stereotyped and cliché ridden mass produced television, the idea of the north is one that can be hard to dispel, to make some of those that live in alleged splendour somewhere past the Watford Gap. Not all is grim up north and the harshness that is fostered upon the area is usually one that is made by those who are jealous of the rich tapestry of life that the northern half of England holds dear.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
As Norman Kelsey stands on the stage at The Cavern Club and takes in the audience’s reaction, it would be easy to forgive him if for the briefest of moments the broad smile he has had on his face all evening suddenly became as wide as the River Mersey. For Norman Kelsey, the man who made his way from the West Coast of America to perform in this year’s International Pop Overthrow, to say his set was stunning would be a huge understatement.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
The International Pop Overthrow wouldn’t be the same without the presence of California’s Adam Marsland being spotted and enjoyed at some point during the eight days. On and off the stage the man is a colossus and always gives a consummate performance worthy of some of the greats from the United States.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * *
Norway’s links with Liverpool are un-disguisable, even the favourite dish of the city, Scouse, originates from there and it is no wonder that all things Norwegian make their way to the city at some point or another. Some are taken to the people’s hearts straight away and some take getting used to.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
With over a 100 bands and groups making their way to Liverpool as part of the International Pop Overthrow, now its 11th year of coming to the city, you would expect some rather great acts to make their way to the forefront, gently guide you to some good tracks and times and leave you gasping hopefully for more. What you might not expect, especially in the city that gave pop music to the country if not Europe and beyond, was a for a group to make their way across from the sleepy city of Lincoln and give the type of performance that the bands that made Merseybeat would have said was the best way to thrill a crowd and then make that same audience wriggle with excitement at reliving those heady days.