Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
We rightly applaud the solo performer in their pursuit and dedication to portraying their truth on stage, the sweat and perspiration on the brow of solo artist of the crowd focusing all their attention on the weapon of choice, the guitar, the voice, any instrument in which the Good Days and melancholic wonders can combine in time to fill the void left by silence.
Do we do the same though for the big band, we cheer at the sound as it reverberates around the auditorium, we give grateful thanks for being entertained, but do we acknowledge the sheer scale of working together; for what is gained in watching a solo performer close up in a side street café, is lost in the magnitude of various instruments working together – the battle for memory and impact on the listener, whilst never losing track of the reason for coexisting as a unit, of being outrageously powerful.
Beats & Pieces Big Band have plenty to say about the Good Days, those moments in the sun where the relief of a light breeze only adds to the feeling of being blessed to live in such a time.
The orchestration of the tracks might allude to another period entirely, but it is to the genuine arousal of the contemporary that hits the listener directly in the soul as they tussle with the swell of emotions that come with the fast paced exhilaration, the kind that you find your heart pumping in time to when faced with a climb and drop on the rollercoaster- thrill after thrill, after thrill.
This is the simple drama of an orchestra, this is rock & roll, the & being prominent, being observed in every meaning, and as tracks such as Op, Elegy, (Blues For) Linu, and the book ends of Wait sizzle the eardrums, complete surrender to brilliance is assured.
The Big Band is timing in every way, it is muscle, temptation, but always stridently in unison, there is no ego, no damage to the feel of the album by one dominating factor, no name up front, just beautiful, imagined serenades of the rock tradition but with orchestration made pliable and dramatic. These are the Good Days; these are the fabulous days!
Beats & Pieces Big Band release Good Days on January 27th on Efpi Records.
Ian D. Hall