Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Rock sometimes gets a bad press, the same can be said of Heavy Metal or any of its splintered but not divisive forms. There will always be those that somewhere along the line use the musical format as a whipping boy, that it is the ideal appearance in which to shove all of a nation’s ills upon. It happens all too frequently in some places in the United States of America and perhaps more disturbingly in some quarters in the land of ever diminishing free speech. The patience of the bully is seemingly absolute and should not be allowed to spread its words or actions.

For Liverpool band Matchstickmen, the latest single, For No Reason, is a heartening shot in the arm, the reassuring gesture of good faith in getting a message across in support of a charity is one to welcomed, especially one such as the Cybersmile Foundation.

The song is energetic, forthright and intelligent; it is the standing up to be counted in the face of overwhelming pressure and adding weight to encourage others not to suffer in silence, from physical or verbal bullying. Bullying in any shape or form is the act of the insecure and the brutal need for control from a coward, it should never be tolerated and for a band to lend their support to the cause is one in which should be applauded.

The lyrics sit perfectly with the idea and the sound created by Mark O’ Brien, Iain Forsyth and Peter Donnelly adds huge weight and the feeling of repercussion to Lewis Wright’s vocals. The feeling of battling resentment, of opening yourself up and forgiving those that know what they are doing but somehow cannot get past their own petty insecurities is one that pervades and haunts the single.

Whilst there will always be a charity single or a song that highlights the darkness that can reside in a soul that doesn’t get its own way, like the misbegotten handshake of the insincere, rarely do they come around joined at the groove and hip and for that For No Reason is a tremendous, enjoyable and more importantly, significant song in which to buy and spread the word upon.

Ian D. Hall