THE LISTENERS

The Listeners are an acoustic/electric duo consisiting of Emma Thorpe providing the main vocals and Robert Cook, who adds his rootsy rock guitar as well as adding baritonal vocals to the preceedings. With an ever growing following around Yorkshire the duo have produced a 5 track EP. The first track “Love, It Stays The Same” gives a very Americana/Wild West theme combining a strong story supported by a constant beat. “The Journey” and “Beyond Forgiveness” include quality percussion added to Emma’s strong but pure vocals. The track “Deadbeat” is definitely not a dead track with its upbeat tempo and classic guitar playing, while the EP finishes with the very melodic “Burn” this is a duo which is going places and definitely worth a listen.

For more information please visit;

www.myspace.com/thelisteners

IT - DEPARTURE

With an ever-expanding fan-base, music-industry and public acclaim on both sides of the atlantic, IT, pronounced, it not I.T. are a band who must be close to the breakthrough they deserve. Featuring Nick Jackson (Vocals/Guitar) with Craig West (Bass/Vocals) Andy Rowberry (Lead Guitar) Alex Inglis (Drums) Brian Holmes (keyboards) Rob Archibald (keyboards) Bryan Beleau (Lead Guitar) Ed Young (Drums), this is Prog-Rock with attitude, and many a message to get the listener thinking. While, I’ll let you discover for yourself, the reason why IT will probably not feature on George W Bush’s ipod, the track I refer to has a ‘Frankie Goes to Hollywood’ dark humorous feel within its message, while “Killing Me” could well become a stadium/arena tour anthem, should the band reach the levels which their style and class warrant. The genre may be a departure from your usual playlist, but, you will definitely not be disappointed with this innovative and finely tuned group.

For more information please check out the following websites;

www.myspace.com/spacehouse
www.myspace.com/sonicvista

TIME TO CATCH THE BIG FISH BAND

The first Sunday tea-time “live” music session at the Fenton, set a standard that will be difficult to maintain, as the Big Fish Band had the venue rocking constantly before finally finishing after a three encore response. Fans of the media-loved young pretenders, aka Duffy, Adele, Lily Allen and Little Boots, would be wise to check out Kendra, and see how an experienced performer can have the audience eating out of her hand and spellbound at the same time. To try and explain the incredible performance by Kendra and her band, would take a months study of the Penguin Thesaurus and yet you would still struggle to convey words to describe what an incredible musical performance was given. Great credit must also to go to the band members Gary, Jez and Steady, who could easily have been overshadowed by the powerful and charismatic lead-singer. While “live music” can be described as a ‘Mans World’ many, many male lead vocalists would die for a voice as powerful and as accurate as a laser-beam. Should there be a modern day equivalent of the movie “Breaking Glass” then there can be only one person who could get anywhere near Hazel O’Connor’s memorable performance. Having seen Kendra perform ad-hoc at the much-missed Melbourn at Bradford, and with the recent demise of the Duck and Drake in Leeds, this was a performance that brought a warm musical glow back to the dedicated followers of “live” music in West Yorkshire.

For more information please visit;

www.myspace.com/bigfishband2

ANGIE SHAW - THE OTHER SIDE OF BLUE

Harrogate-based singer-songwriter Angie Shaw’s debut album ‘The Other Side Of Blue’ is a tribute to a very talented artist. With an incredible sound, reminiscent of an early Kate Bush on “Sea of sky,” to the tracks such as “You were loving me” and “Stars” which give you the feel of a laid-back lounge/jazz venue, include a rockier track with "Brave new sky” and a richer vocal style throughout “Angel from the blue” and “Chapters,” before a haunting Celtic sound of “Waiting for the day” and a finish with the delicate “Boy,” and you have experienced the whole plethora of styles and emotions within a single album. An excellent CD, which very few artists could equal vocally, emotionally and with a deliverance that will surely place the name Angie Shaw on many music aficionados’ lips.

For more information please visit;

www.myspace.com/angieshawband

PETER PAUL PARKER - STEPPING UP

As the church bell chimes on the opening of this album you realise that this could be a special album, fifty-five minutes later you have definitely not been disappointed. However good an artist, an album usually has highlights, but the odd weaker track, this is not the case with London-Based Peter Paul Parker’s 16 track album “Stepping Up”. Peter’s strong vocals allow him to express emotions of varying degrees and take the listener to a rocky or acoustic plain with equal adeptness. An easy cop-out for a reviewer is to pronounce that it would be difficult to pick a favourite track as the whole play-list is of the highest quality, but this is exactly what Peter has achieved, and is a testament to his vast experiences starting with punk, moving to rock and now as an accomplished acoustic performer. With plans to set-up a band and a tour to promote this superb album, hopefully the tour will be throughout the UK to give music-lovers of Britain to catch this talented song-writer “live”.

For more information please visit;

www.myspace.com/peterpaulparkeronline
www.peterpaulpaker.com

SORA - HEARTWOOD

Once in a while, you experience something very special when listening to a new album, one such album is the latest offering from Calgary-based Sora, titled ‘Heartwood’. The name Sora stems from the native American word meaning ‘singing bird soaring,’ which is very apt for a unique talent. The words magical, captivating and enchanting can all be used with confidence, as Sora takes the listener to a place of pureness and emotional fulfilment. With a feel of Operatic and Celtic fused together, each track is as strong as the last or the next offering, with each forming a personal and mystical mental picture. I would also advise anyone who purchases this album, to read the lyrics of each track, and enjoy them in a poetic environment, such is the depth of the writing, add the subtle instrument-playing and Sora’s delivery, and this is without doubt one of the most emotive and exceptional albums I have had the pleasure to listen to.

For more details of this exceptional talent, please visit;

www.myspace.com/sorasinger