Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
No matter how inflamed the candle of desire rises, it cannot compete in strength to the virtue and the pull of the Lighthouse. The candle though remains undaunted by the size of the man-made structure at the edge of the cliffs and often nestled in amongst the crags and rocks, for what would anyone rather do when it comes to kissing a love tenderly for the first time, within the half glow of the candle, the flickering flame throwing of silhouettes that dance in time to the soul’s own beating heart, or be struck by the full glare of light as it warns of danger in icy, unforgiving seas.
To the Lighthouse once mused Virginia Woolf, the full sweeping arc of light casting shadows in times of dark war and the death of members of the Ramsey family, the narration lost in arranged thoughts and grand gestures in which little action truly unfolds. It is through to -ii- (pronounced Two eyes) that the ghostly and haunting melodies belong, in such a light cast by the six tracks, a guitar caught between the realms of innocence and intense feeling, and a voice that weaves itself between the waves and storms and creates a cushion of purity as the water tries to take the sturdy cliff down and which gives the Lighthouse its absolute purpose.
The listener may prefer the romance of kissing their loved one by the flickering flame of the candle’s wick, but the Lighthouse offers safety and intrigue in equal measure.
Two eyes are always required when performing the sensual and atmospheric and in -ii- the imagery is a compelling argument in keeping the eyes fully focused and imploring the other senses to join in and see the sweep of waves of relentless thought surround the vessel at sea, the soul of the ship never breached.
Both Helen and Benjamin strive to offer a sense of completion and energy across the songs Changing Places, Spine, Dust Bowl, A Thousand Lives, White Sharks and the E.P.’s title track, Lighthouse. It is an endeavour of passion, of haunting reflection, that sees them produce such a stirring symphony of sound.
-ii- fully open, completely aware, searching, probing the light cast by the lighthouse, a sense of new creativity explored in full; to the Lighthouse, for in that imposing building resides guarded mystery.
Ian D. Hall