Tag Archives: Liverpool

Shaw, Gig Review. Zanzibar, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The concept of moving away from a place where you may be settled, where the richness of your life is measured in local appreciation is perhaps an idea that some cannot face for the understandable fear of not capturing the soul of it again.

That feeling is universal, it breathes at the heart of humanity’s reason to find roots, to grow and yet if the chance is taken, if you move with belief then the appreciation for the artist grows and in Shaw, a young man for whom the south coast of England was his stomping ground, moving to Merseyside and offering his wonderful voice to Merseyside maybe seen as a huge stepping stone in his life.

Opbergdoos, Theatre Review. Lantern Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating: * * * *

Cast: Richard Weston.

Amongst the scattered cardboard boxes, half empty spirit bottles and dodgy looking white powder dusted liberally on a side table, is Atticus, sat upon a chair looking slightly the worse for wear in his stained white vest, dirty bare feet and marked jeans. A young man looking to escape from the outside world and who locks himself up in a room where he is surrounded by his memories, all stored around him neatly in the cardboard boxes.

Anne And Eva, Theatre Review. St. George’s Hall, Liverpool.

Cast: Justine Saville, John Gorman, Sam Teller, Sue Boardman, Isobel Balchin.

Some moments in history defy Humanity’s reason, they challenge us to rise above the savagery and disgrace placed upon our collective shoulders and become better, to come back to a place of sanity and rational thought; history repeats these lessons because it seems we constantly need to be reminded just how low we can quickly descend back into the mire, of how we can lurch and play into the hands of Fascism if we do not keep vigilant.

Michael Schenker’s Temple Of Rock, Gig Review. O2 Academy, Liverpool.

Doogie White from Michael Schenker's Temple Of Rock at the o2 Academy, Liverpool. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Doogie White from Michael Schenker’s Temple Of Rock at the o2 Academy, Liverpool. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

As the sweat of a many a Liverpool rock fan glistened in the neon lights of the Academy, as the thunder of the well timed clap echoed round the room and the hint of the monumental started to take place in the minds of those in attendance, the smile of a master beamed down across the floor of the venue and the guitar, slung low, howled with joy at the response; if 2016 has been a kick in the teeth for music so far, if the feeling of loss has been verging on the unbearable, then Michael Schenker’s Temple of Rock was the antidote for the evening and a more magnificent display of raw musical prestige could a crowd ask for in such mesmerising light.

Kaya Herstad Carney, Gig Review. Brink, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

One of the great successes of the last decade in the musical relationship between Liverpool, L.I.P.A. and the interestingly diverse culture of students that the city makes welcome every year is undoubtedly that that is the driving force of Science of the Lamps, Kaya Herstad Carney. One of the embodiments of Norwegian culture, of the tremendous ability to create atmospheric and delightful Nordic music which stands up to the heights of the story teller and the poetic nature of a people shrouded in the shadow of Northern Europe, Ms. Herstad Carney never sells herself or the audience short.

Maddie Stenberg, Gig Review. Brink, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7.5/10

One of the great pleasures of life is coming across the next wave of performers who you hope will go on to have success in the world. Like anybody, the young deserve to have dreams, others will go out of their way to knock them down, they will say it is for their own benefit and that old chestnut of a damning generation, “Get yourself a real job” ever hanging in the air over them like the sword of Damocles swaying just above their performing torso. It is a great honour to try and understand the next generation and their drive, their fears and their ways, by doing so you get to see and hear marvellous things.

SheBeat, Gig Review. Brink, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

There are some that do so much for the city, for the community that they are part of and yet never seem to get to get the recognition they fully deserve. They get mentioned in dispatches every so often, the grateful nod of satisfaction from those whose hearts they have touched and that is all, except to those whose opinions may matter more, those who truly appreciate all that person does and in Jodie Schofield and her alter ego musical persona of SheBeat, that person should be lauded for what she brings to the cultural diversity and experience of the city.

The Corrs, Gig Review. Echo Arena, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The closeness of the band often betrays just how well they are likely to be received on stage; the audience after all are no fools and their evening, their enjoyment stems from the harmony on stage or the desire that emanates from it and for that, and despite time away from the glare of a Liverpool crowd, The Corrs proved that they had lost none of their intrigue, polish or intimacy and that they could still hold a room, even a vast one, spellbound and breathless.

The Shires, Gig Review. Echo Arena, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Like most good things, The Shires seemed to come out of almost nowhere. The puff of wind that gently brought them into the lives of the Country fans, not just delicate and pleasurable, but one with a hard edge, the British crush well endowed on a pairing suited to capturing the ears of the listener with their dramatic songs but laid back and sweetly divined innocence.

The Big Short, Film Review. Picturehouse@F.A.C.T, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt, Marisa Tomei, Rafe Spall, Rudy Eisenzopf, Casey Groves, Maria Frangos, Hunter Burke, Bernard Hocke, Shaunna Rappold, Brandon Stacy, Aiden Flowers, Peter Epstein, Tracy Letts, David Zalkind, Adepero Oduye, Hamish Linklater, Karen Gillan.