Reviews

Artist:Magic Arm
Venue:The Deaf Institute
Town:Manchester
Date:23/05/09
Website:www.myspace.com/magicarm

The title of Magic Arm's debut and the purpose of tonight's performance- Make Lists And Do Something is summed up by the attitude of this willful, sophisticated and fertile act. From dark, somber passages to almost groundbreaking, upbeat electro ballads. This music sounds clearly like the breakpoint in a seemingly imperative search of a new sound with convincingly inventive, and successful results.

As Marc Rigelsford takes to the stage with his taped up guitar and adjusts his loop box. The audience take their places in readiness for what inevitably proves to be a tense and indisputable induction to a band that is going places...

Song- Outdoor Games begins quietly, then steadily climbs, and without warning it falls dramatically then begins to peak again though this time, it clambers further towards the summit in the most celebratory and urgent fashion possible. Helped along by searing psychedelic guitar, multiple voices, solid drumming, organ and mouth organ, this song is epic in proportions and triumphant in it's musicality and seemingly emotional indifference.

That's not to say the songs do not express emotion, they do though they do it in such an objective way that it feels comfortable and non-intrusive. This clearly appeals to tonight's crowd, who appear to be having themselves a thoroughly good time.

Daft Punk Is Playing In My House slams into second gear and powers up to fourth quickly though not so fast that it could be missed by pop-culture's often malfunctioning radar.

People Need Order and Sound Of The Night delicately weave 60s inspired vocal harmonies within a contemporary twist of progressive fate that will neatly inspire and capture the imagination of tonight's newcomers and initiated alike...

A tense and convincing performance!

Jim Sutherland 2009

---