Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9.5/10
There are some albums that come along, some in the form of debuts, some from bands or solo artists that have been going for years, into which just listening to the songs placed with care and attention is simply not enough, sometimes you have to go all the way in your resolve to try and understand them that in the end like any lover, you just want to kiss it till it gives up all its beautiful secrets.
To find such an album, even when they offer the five star review or the must have attached to them in labels so large they would be carrying extra weight in an airplane hold, is rare, to find it in one to whom you have seen flourish under the spotlight glare is an honour and in Nicola Hardman’s album Full Beans that honour is hard edged, punchy and worth its weight in gold.
Even with the act of spoilers that come from hearing the odd song as a precursor to the album running through your head, the sheer wealth of material draws you in, it plays with the mind and the soul to the point of exhaustion and that snog, the beauty of a first lustful kiss turns into something more precious, more sincere and offers faith in the spirit of the young.
Nicola Hardman has come a long way to get to this point and yet the songs on the album are effortless, seamless even and full of vigour, these are not just beans on show, these are the finest and tastiest beans you are likely to find yourself immersing yourself in.
Tracks such as What, Exactly Do We Have Here?, Happiness, the superbly sounding The Reaper and the adorable Little Fish all punch with the weight of experience afforded someone who has grabbed life by the extremes of the collar and pulled it into sharp focus; the attention to detail not just hard edged but played with the intensity of a female boxer being granted a match against her male counterpart.
If giving your all first time round, if not holding back and seeing the fruition of your desire counts for anything, then Nicola Hardman has already gone some distance into proving that her lyrical ability has no hurdles infront of her; this is a woman after all who knows how to rock.
Ian D. Hall