Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Certain traits and particular talents are always handed down through the D.N.A. but it takes lots of hard work on behalf of the receiver of such good fortune to make their talent shine through and seem as effortless as breathing in fresh air.

For Kamila Thompson, the daughter of arguably one of the finest Folk/Rock music writers of the last 50 years, and James Walbourne, collectively known as The Rails, to perform for the Philharmonic Hall crowd ahead of Richard Thompson long anticipated night in Liverpool was one that was shrouded in a type of delicate cool and inspiring vocal delivery.

This was one of those nights in which the patrons of the Philharmonic Hall were certainly getting more than their money’s worth, this was a night in which every song from both the support act and the main event resonated round the large imposing hall but which also struck home the importance of truth in lyrical performance and the honour of a guitar taking each note beyond its supposed limit.

In The Rails, that honesty, installed arguably into both the husband and wife team by a master of lyrical certainty and expression, was in full flow as they took the Philharmonic crowd on a journey through their songs and into a realm of possibilities, it was a journey that nobody in the hall, judging by the abundant and plentiful applause, could resist.

Opening up the evening with I Wish, I Wish, The Rails set a course that was both straight and true for the hearts and minds of all attending; a course that thundered along and left little time to catch the breath, such was the power of the two guitars and the songs that were performed.

With other tracks such as Australia, The Trees They Do Grow High, the excellent Panic Attack Blues with its searing beginning, Fair Warning, Willow Tree and Habit all being performed with honour, this was a support act to which many in the audience took an immediate shine to and quite rightly so.

A duo that needs to be investigated further, that should be seen as able to hold with a type of enraptured glee an audience’s attention for longer than a support slot at the Philharmonic Hall possibly allows, The Rails are direct and to the point but they also carry some very precious cargo. A joy to listen to.

Ian D. Hall