Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

There are a couple of reasons for which the small Birmingham enclave of Stechford will be forever have music strewn through its heart, the figure of Esoteric’s Bryan Beck will loom large in the doom metal arena and the heartbeat of many a tune to captivate Liverpool in recent years, the adorable performances of a true champion of Birmingham music and one who is the perfect addition to Jeff Lynne’s everlasting legacy, Luke Moore.

In the outstanding project Operation Lightfoot, the music that is placed before the listener is one of sublime cool, of an endeavour that demands attention. With the addition of Sophia Ben-Yousef on the single Chains plays right into the heart of what a song should do – to play itself into the memory and remind you instantly of when you first heard it, no matter the place or time when it next comes along, but also it should attach itself to a memory that has already been, the merging of music and remembrance combining to add colour to a life that can be extraordinary.

The links that bind us, the manacles that confine us and the handcuff of love to pleasure is to be felt as Sophia Ben-Yousef’s vocals haunt Chains, and yet without Operation Lightfoot’s endearing presence the mix would arguably be lost and vice-versa, a true winning combination, a meeting of souls that puts faith into a world where previously there had only been hope.

Operation Lightfoot works because of the thought that goes into every single part of the process, much like Jeff Lynne’s E.L.O., the heart of the song is but only the start, it requires depth, musical cunning and the willingness to put layer upon layer and remove the awkward when needed and in Chains that progression is heartfelt and buoyant, a piece of simple elegance and beauty that pre-occupies the mind and hangs round like a friendly spectre at the abundant feast.

There is nothing like hearing a song that makes you attach it to a distant memory, there is nothing like allowing a fading memory to be infused with new blood, Chains offers that and without hesitation or questioning.

Ian D. Hall