Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
People pay thousands for therapy, some rattle on whilst the world pretends to take notice for a while, and then, when it is all over, they complain that nothing has changed, that somehow just talking to a pair of ears can ever find a way to lose the spectres and phantoms we carry round with us in our hearts. The point that could be argued, that whilst it is good to talk, it is far better to listen, sometimes even more enjoyable in some certain scenarios, to understand the restless spirit, to be thrilled with Living With Your Ghost.
Your ghost, whether the wandering spirit that sits beside you when the chips are down, or the one that is born out of a mistake you could never put right, the inappropriate word spoken at the wrong time, the offer of the handshake not returned with sincerity, your ghost is one that keeps you company on the nights when the wind cuts through your veins with a little more passion than usual, it is the comfort you return to when you know that life is treating you the best it can.
Kara Grainger’s personal ghost is perhaps unknown, only hinted at in whispers of love to those she trusts beyond measure, but like any artist the whisper is always accompanied by a story, a reflection on the days when the ghost ate alongside her, took control of the situation, or perhaps beguiled the senses by keeping motionless, no sense of conversation, an invisible Muse with nothing to say; it is in that moment that Living With Your Ghost becomes intolerable, the only escape is the forthright and manual exorcism that comes with writing, that comes with giving the ghost food for its counsel.
It is a mercy that we should create such an act, that Kara Grainger finds solace in her work and in this new album, the songs are not afraid to admonish, cajole, remonstrate and love, they are the staple of the country diet and they feed the ghost till it starts to fill out and make the shadow more than just a thought.
In songs such as Working My Way Back Home, Nowhere to be Found, Groove Train, Broken Record, Love Will Get You Through The Door and the excellent Favourite Sin, Kara Grainger perhaps plays with the notion that the ghost is not really there, that it is just an extension of our psyche, our memories bleeding though into the space between us and our regret, our hopes, our loves; if that is the case, then the ghost is not to be feared, instead it is the very basis being alive and being able to write, to sing, your issues into retreat.
Kara Grainger brings the ghost out into the sunshine, the result is that of feeling the warmth fill the void, a sentiment that many could look to and hold close, that it is not only the ghosts who deserve to live.
Ian D. Hall