Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
There is a reasonable and compelling argument to be made to compare the tantalising work of Me and Deboe with the greatest of all musical partnerships, the phenomenally outstanding Simon and Garfunkel. The comparison isn’t in the voices or the appearance, but where it matters most in the defining action of the duos appreciation towards their audience, the way they are received and the true mastership of both their lyrics and of the beat they generate.
The resonance, the biting lyrics, the splendour of the cool persona, all of this comes across with fury and passion in their live set, it is the foundation of a great night out and if every band or artist could bottle the emotionally drive, if the ordinary person on the street could harness the energy and beautiful violence of a guitar being slapped and pummelled with rough love, played with harmonious contentment, the world might just be shaken out of its apathy a little more often and be in tune with its more natural giving and selfless identity.
Supporting Paul Dunbar & The Black Winter Band is in itself a worthy appearance on the day and both Mercy Elise and Sarah Deboe took to the Leaf stage with genuine affection ringing in their ears and left it with the satisfied endorsement of an audience utterly taken in by the duo’s spark, the creative energy that comes off in the space between these two female performers.
It is hard to argue with the appeal of Me and Deboe, the lightness they bring into the world holds a darkness that is beguiling, if Simon and Garfunkel brought joy to the audience despite not getting on in their personal lives, the sheer scale of Me and Deboe’s live set, their untold joy in working together, knocks the American Folk duo off their pedestal. Whilst Simon and Garfunkel are the epitome of music performed in such a way, Me and Deboe capture the imagination with the strength of a team ascending Everest.
In the short but thrilling set, Me and Deboe tantalised the senses with the songs This Is Not The End, Culture Point, Here They Come, the sensational Forward, Mother Shipton and Ten Toes; it was a set that built up the expectation for the headline of the night but left the audience knowing that this dynamic pair truly are stars, they are the burning fire and they consume your heart with your absolute permission. A great return to Liverpool for Me and Deboe, one of the finest duos of all time.
Ian D. Hall