Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Spectacle, in the wrong hands, is a towering achievement of manifestation over consistency and the application of truth; however, when utilised correctly, when moulded into shape by the edifying and unyielding, it becomes a persuasive argument in the fight against inertia and apathy.

To Dream Harder is to admit that what you desire is more than just merely the act of ownership, it is the acknowledgement that your destiny is guided by passion, it is not hidden away in a dark cupboard somewhere as if it the gift of want, more the belief that what you create will stand up in the face of detractors and be tangible evidence of your existence, of your imposed will on a chaotic Cosmos.

To greet the universe on its own terms and claim a draw is to have steel in your bones, to get a punch in and wind it, make it think before setting down a more stringent strategy of attack, is to show that you are human, a thinking machine that can see beyond the edge of daydreams and able to bring into existence the image of your own creation.

It is in this creation that Manchester’s Hello Cosmos seek to greet the world in their new album Dream Harder, and in the absorbing creative space they have designed, the kismet that becomes evident is one of immensity, of ambition, of seeking translation for the universe to understand the electro-punk beat that prevails, and that the fight declared is one creation will undoubtedly win.

For Ben Robinson, Angela Chan, Simon Robinson and Adrian Ingham, invention is paramount, and as tracks such as Tonight, Tonight, Tonight, Tonight, Raise The Dawn, The Cosmic Trigger, Run For President and Let Love Be The Island Upon Which We Stand, it is the influence of the swirling sphere and cosmic dust which gravity makes itself known and brings all the elements of each player together to generate a positively controlled and consciously delivered album.

Spectacle is meant to astonish and make you gasp, to go beyond that and make the world spin in your favour, granting the best view of the cosmos, is just purity in action; a feat of expression that should influence all to Dream Harder.

Ian D. Hall