Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Never confuse laidback with anything other than industrious and forthcoming; it might mean something else in a dictionary but in the hands of one of the most admired guitarists in North America, it just spells out a musician of strength, of drive and purpose wrapped in the skin of someone who cares deeply about the world and the handcart that it is going to Hell in.

Laidback but full of care, passionate and relaxed, unflappable in the face of overwhelming odds but recognised for the cerebral inside knowledge he brings to the stage, John Wesley is simply the most perfect supporting act to Marillion when they drive their own musical vehicle around the perimeter of the lakes and the heartlands of America and Canada.

Inside the Danforth Music Hall the expectation could be felt to take on a life of its own, the main part of the evening driving the hope upwards, like spiralling smoke from a Native American fire, the signals were strong, the eager sweat already making a mockery of the cold air fusing with Lake Ontario’s wet and clammy hand; expectation was real, the result, one of climatic energy all being let out from the frame of the cavalier and thoughtful musician.

John Wesley may have been support to Marillion but he can fill a room just as big as the Danforth Music Hall on his own, it is the air of thunderous activity he creates, the sparkle in the eye that contains a tear and anger flushed cheeks as he reflects on the state of everything. It is to feel illumination when in the presence of such people; it is the urge to join in the revolution, even if the cause will forever remain unspoken.

As John Wesley performed songs such as By The Light of a Sun, the outstanding 13 Days and Epic, the crowd inside the Hall were taken down several emotional driven paths, even those who had not seen him play before were heard in soft spoken tones to wonder at the music they had missed, a sign of regretful consideration that would blaze a fire in anyone’s heart.

Support act John Wesley may have been on paper but he created the spark that lit the evening’s fuse, Halloween is after all nothing but for treats.

Ian D. Hall