Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Every so often you might fall in love with a voice, not just a voice but an attitude that makes the worst storm at sea, tempest driving, fear inducing, awe inspiring, feel like a grain of sand casually flicked into the remains of a puddle slowly being eaten by the hot summer sun.
The attitude and voice of Colleen Rennison, the front woman of the exceptional Blues/Rock band No Sinner, makes that raging tempest feel like a minutes shower, for like some of the greats before her such as Janis Joplin, Tina Turner and Joanne Shaw Taylor, the attitude of a woman who can drive home a lyric amongst some great musicians plying their trade with a deftness of spirit is worth more than any storm, more inspiring and certainly more beautiful.
No Sinner take the sound of their album Boo Hoo Hoo, the sound of the contradiction, of the fine line between bar room brawl and the forgiveness of the night before and wash it down with a fair amount of vivacious and feisty respect. The gathering storm may seem like a long way off but as each song washes over the listener, as it pours over the ever soaking body and mind, the listener soon realises that they are in the heart of the storm, there is no escape from Ms. Rennison’s voice and the only logical response is to go with the flow and believe that Boo Hoo Hoo might just be one of the best things to come out of Canada since Mario Lemieux learned that skating and hockey were a potent mix.
Ms Rennison’s attitude is more than matched by her co-conspirators. The Canadian is joined by the very talented Ian Browne, Bradley Ferguson and Eric Campbell and on each track they play like the Devil has joined them in the studio and picked up a plectrum in joy.
On tracks such as the opening number and album title song, the superb Runnin’, That’d Be The Day, the gorgeous September Moon and the appropriate Devil On My Back, each member of the band play as if the aforementioned Devil isn’t just playing around with a plectrum and smiling happily and with a certain amount of contentment at what is happening in the studio, it sounds as the music Devil is in them, driving the tempest home and with great love for a set of music that make the soul sing.
A fantastic album in which to kick 2014 off in style.
Boo Hoo Hoo is released on January 20th 2014 via Provogue Records.
Ian D. Hall