Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
It must come to us all eventually, no matter the job we fall into or the desire we pursue, at some point we must look upon the world, gaze into its eyes with passion or damnation and exclaim loudly, “This is the very best, this is mine and nothing will arguably ever beat this moment, it is my magnum opus and it is out of this world.”
This sentiment, this magnificent utterance to the world is surely to be observed by the fans of John Wesley, a man who would never dare because his humility and grace would never allow him to be so direct, to shout and rave to all corners when they talk of his brand new album A Way You’ll Never Be.
A Way You’ll Never Be, a way you will always hope to achieve, the glittering moment, the sense of perfection that rings out and sleeps soundly in the night, the afterwards of the storm, it is all contained and given absolute authority by John Wesley in this marvellous and beautifully produced album; a moment that lasts beyond the time frame imagined and yet one that in all the fury, all the ache of electric resonance and reasoning, is over far too soon.
To suggest, perhaps insist, that A Way You’ll Never Be is John Wesley’s finest moment might seem to strain at the man’s insurmountable contribution to the world of music, his own back catalogue is impressive, never mind the work he has done in other bands, for other artists such as Fish and Porcupine Tree but there it is, the proof, as they say, is in the listening and it is one that could only be surmised was whispered to him by the greatest of Muses as she lifted her head and smiled coyly from underneath the shaded Florida Sun.
It is in the moment that the listener exists, one beat, one cymbal crash and guitar moan to the next, yet in that moment, a thousand lives, dreams and tears can fall and John Wesley makes the very most of each tick between the tock. In songs such as the grand and fearsome By The Light of the Sun, through The Revolutionist, The Silence in Coffee, Epic and the superb closer of Pointless Endeavours, John Wesley thrills beyond belief his audience, the careful and attuned listener and becomes, in the best possible way, all consuming; it is a path that will never be the same again for the ever cool and nature’s nicest man.
A fantastic album of warmth, fury and sound, John Wesley is epic.
Ian D. Hall