Silent Sleep at Liverpool Calling 2015. Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

There are some bands that just seem to have a natural affinity with both the venue they are playing in and the day in which is being represented. For Silent Sleep the venue never seems to make a difference, for the sound of the remarkable and the giving always jostle for the attention and capturing of elegance no matter where they perform, whether at Leaf on Bold Street, the austere and imposing nature of the ancient court of Liverpool or indeed the iconic St Luke’s Church, steeped in history and arguably one of the most important buildings in the city; the sound is one in which the ceaseless chattering in the head takes a back seat and the gentle approach of collective beauty reigns supreme.

For a band that can make a dull and overcast evening seem like the first rays of summer as they take on the January blues inside Leaf, the slate gray skies that dominate the heavens above St. Luke’s is a challenge eagerly taken on and dismissed with the knowing look of a sheriff who has been able to take down a group of outlaws terrorising a small community without firing a single bullet. Such is the near majesty in Chris McIntosh’s persona and free spirit that the skies above seem to finally give way to the truth a July Day and the songs that sweep them aside.

The only problem with so much talent in a city the size of Liverpool is that it can be quite a while between visits to certain groups. It smacks of lack of tact, perhaps even it might be thought of indifference but that should never be the case and certainly not when it comes to Silent Sleep.

The opening song of the set might have been looked upon as a cry of love to the gathered audience, such was its charm. Stay The Night, Stay The Morning Too was quickly followed by the songs Colour Me In, It Breaks Me, How Could It Be Like This, I Wish It Could Be Different, Walk Me To The Sea and the outstanding and apt On The Steps of the Bombed Out Church.

Time is fleeting and to only catch certain bands every so often feels like a criminal waste of the luxury that the entity permits, yet with normal grace and playful rock spirit, time for the short while at Liverpool Calling 2015 was proved to be malign and less than imposing, for Silent Sleep had arrested it and put into its own padded cell whilst they played, Time standing no chance of breaking free until the silent Sleep was done.   

Ian D. Hall