Monthly Archives: August 2012

Thomas Dolby, Gig Review. Stanley Theatre, University of Liverpool.

Photograph by Ian D. Hall

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 13th 2011.

LS. Media Rating ****

It may have been the best part of  two decades since Thomas Dolby had played a live set in the city, however the affection and adoration he still holds within his fan base has never diminished.  This was in evidence as he came out on stage  at the Stanley Theatre to a genuine rapturous applause that was full of warmth  and a desire to hear some of the best loved and quirky music to have been  committed for posterity.

Thomas Dolby, Gig Review. Stanley Theatre, University of Liverpool. full post

(485 words, 1 image, estimated 1:56 mins reading time)

Yes, Gig Review. Birmingham Symphony Hall.

Originally published by L.S.Media. November 15th 2011.

L.S.Media Rating ***

It was perhaps fitting that  Progressive Rock giants Yes came on stage to Benjamin Britten’s Young person’s Guide to the Orchestra, for the Symphony Hall in Birmingham is one of the most perfect places in the Midlands that blends itself with the music that Yes are universally loved and renowned for.

The subtle yet emotionally flowing guitar of Steve Howe, alongside stalwarts of the band Chris Squire on bass and the ideal drumming technique of Alan White mixed with the outrageously great keyboard playing of Geoff Downes is a combination of sound that everybody should hear at least once in their life. It’s no wonder that these four men fit together so well, the music they create is sometimes just astonishing.

Yes, Gig Review. Birmingham Symphony Hall. full post

(384 words, 1 image, estimated 1:32 mins reading time)

Mamas Gun, Gig Review. Eric’s, Liverpool.

Photgraph by Ian D. Hall.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 15th 2011.

L.S.Media Rating ****

Eric’s may have only been re-opened for a couple of months now but the acts they have had on  the  timeless stage and playing music that has reverberated in amongst the memories of the heady days of the 1970’s has been nothing short of scintillating and superb. Hot on the tails of the artists that have played there recently comes a band that would have gone down a storm at the old venue, such was the presence and musical ability of display of Mamas Gun.

Mamas Gun, Gig Review. Eric’s, Liverpool. full post

(351 words, 1 image, estimated 1:24 mins reading time)

The Best Of Pink Floyd: A Foot In The Door. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 16th 2011.

L.S. Media Rating *

Best of albums are subjective, sometimes boringly so. What one person says is the definitive list of a band’s finest moments of recording history, another will contest that songs A and B cannot be compared with tracks Y and Z and so the great musical merry ground goes round and it allows record companies to get the public to open their wallets once more in the name of having the one definitive list. This can be even more disturbing when the band already have a well presented and in some cases finer version available.

The Best Of Pink Floyd: A Foot In The Door. Album Review. full post

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

Jethro Tull, Aqualung. 40th Anniversary Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 16th 2011.

L.S Media Rating *****

There are concept albums and there are pieces of recorded music history that deserve celebrating in absolute and outstanding style. Aqualung by Jethro Tull is one such album that can be considered amongst the very finest Progressive Rock has to offer; now that it’s been re-released for its 40th anniversary, a new generation of fans will be able to hear the reason why is considered a genuine classic of our time.

Jethro Tull, Aqualung. 40th Anniversary Review. full post

(859 words, 1 image, estimated 3:26 mins reading time)

Fish, Gig Review. The Platform, Morecambe.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 20th 2011.

L.S. Media Rating *****

The songs may be stripped back, the venues obscure, however there is no doubting the fire and commitment that emanates from the Morecambe stage as Fish gave a performance of such unbridled passion mixed with a healthy dollop of raw emotion that shows that even after thirty years of performing for some of the most loyal fans in music, he still has that unique ability to charm and use effectively superb musical cynicism, that is much needed in a world that seems very, very wrong.

Fish, Gig Review. The Platform, Morecambe. full post

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

Red Hot Chili Peppers, Gig Review. L.G. Arena, Birmingham.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 22nd 2011.

L.S. Media Rating ****

Is there any band in the world like Red Hot Chili Peppers? Even individually, the four members of the band have had lives that have been so interesting, so demanding and so off the wall that reading Anthony Kiedis’ autobiography Scar Tissue is to wonder how they have survived life as well as the pressures of being in one of the top rated and musically phenomenal acts of the last 20 years.

Red Hot Chili Peppers, Gig Review. L.G. Arena, Birmingham. full post

(472 words, 1 image, estimated 1:53 mins reading time)

Calendar Girls, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 22nd 2011.

L.S Media Rating *****

Cast: Ruth Madoc, Jennifer Ellison, Lynda Bellingham, Jan Harvey, Rula Lenska, Debbie Chazen, Joe McGann, Bruno Langley, Jane Lambert, John Labasnowski, Camilla Dallerup.

It takes a play of some magnificence to come back to Liverpool two years running, then again, they don’t come much more magnificent than Tim Firth’s Calendar Girls.  Based on a true story of a Womens’ Institute that took on establishment ideals and went on to become a global phenomenon, Calendar Girls reaches out to the audience’s soul and melts even the stoniest of hearts in its powerful, heart-breaking and supremely funny story.

Calendar Girls, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(457 words, 1 image, estimated 1:50 mins reading time)

Kate Bush, 50 Words For Snow. Album Review.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 23rd 2011.

L.S. Media Rating ****

If there is an enigmatic enigma in music world then that title truly belongs to Kate Bush. It’s been years since the voice of Wuthering Heights, Cloudbusting and Running up that Hill released an album, now in the space of a mere few months, she produces and delivers a second one. This honest, charming and beautiful album, 50 Words for Snow is a bold and inspiring new direction for the woman whose voice broke a million hearts and has soared higher than any before or since.

Kate Bush, 50 Words For Snow. Album Review. full post

(405 words, 1 image, estimated 1:37 mins reading time)

Doctor Who, The Witch From The Well. Big Finish Audio Play 154, A Review.

Picture from Big Finish.

Originally published by L.S. Media. November 27th 2011.

Cast : Paul McGann, Julie Cox, Simon Rouse, Andrew Havill, Serena Evans, Lisa Kay, Alix Wilton Regan, Kevin Trainor

L.S.Media Rating ****

The Witch from the Well is the second of Paul McGann’s Doctor Who stories since he returned to the main canon of stories and away from a four year stint in his own series of audio plays. There has been talk in recent weeks of a new film being bandied around various forums and in some national newspapers and if the audio plays that Mr. McGann have been involved with since being lured to Big Finish and reprise his role as the eighth Doctor, if the man’s work is anything to go by and if the talk of a new movie comes to fruition then the producers could do a lot worse than give Paul McGann another shot as the time travelling detective.

Doctor Who, The Witch From The Well. Big Finish Audio Play 154, A Review. full post

(640 words, 1 image, estimated 2:34 mins reading time)