Loading

Kirsty McGee - Contraband Album Launch

Venue: Sacred Trinity Church
Town: Salford
Date: 17th January 2013
Website: http://www.kirstymcgee.com

The launch for Kirsty McGee's excellent album "Contraband" was held tonight in the beautiful, historic setting of Sacred Heart Church in Salford on this snowy January night. But, wait ! Wasn't this album released last year and wasn't it shortlisted for Album of the Year in the 2012 Fatea Awards? Well, yes it was but Kirsty decided to leave the official launch until she played a hometown gig and that was tonight.

Before discussing the music, it's worth mentioning the venue . Sacred Trinity is the oldest church in the City of Salford .It was founded in 1635 and has a fascinating history ,including visits from John Wesley and Friedrich Engels .The latter mentions the Church and its surrounding ward in his work "The Conditions of the English Working Class". Today, as well as being an active church ,it is also regularly used as a music venue and a very atmospheric one it is too [albeit a little chilly in mid-January].

Opening the evening was the fine singer-songwriter -guitarist Emma Black ,whose latest album "Swimming In The Moon" has received very favourable reviews, including one from Fatea's own Neil King [in April 2012]. Having been introduced to the album by ace pedal steel/dobro player Alan Cook ,I would heartily agree with Neil's favourable comments. Emma writes songs that have a great deal of humanity and rather than set her diary to music as many singer-songwriters do, she sings of the human condition in songs such as "Florence" , which contrasts the death of a woman in poverty with the vast amount of money spent on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I'm sure that Engels would have approved! Tonight Emma performed the bluesy "Pauper's Grave" from the album ,which she dedicated to a guitarist who had died but had no money to be buried. Again ,this song has a connection to the history of Sacred Trinity ,as during the nineteenth century , it was used as a venue for selling the goods of the dead ,so that they could be buried in the churchyard. The centrepiece of Emma's set was the story of "Jack and Sally" , a haunting tale of domestic abuse which has a happy ending [for the abused wife] but not such a good outcome for the perpetrator who ends up crashing his car into a lake !

Emma is about to embark on a tour supporting Kirsty McGee . If you are going to see Kirsty , I would urge you to get there early so that you don't miss Emma's set .You will not be disappointed.

Next up was Johnny Powell, accompanied by an unannounced electric guitarist. Johnny is certainly an idiosyncratic performer who employs electronics effects and treated vocals to create a dreamlike, fuzzy, psychedelic folk sound which is strangely compelling if you let it wash over you. Johnny's set included the songs "Fat Little Finger With Nowhere To Point" , "Mum's The Word" ,"Playtime" and "Predictable Prayer" [ quite appropriate considering the nature of the venue].

And so to the headliner, Kirsty McGee who was launching her superb album "Contraband". Accompanied by two excellent musicians, Nick Blacka on double bass and Clive Mellor on harmonica and percussion [both of whom play on "Contraband" ] ,Kirsty played a selection from the album ,as well as some new songs ,together with an instrumental version of "Edelweiss" from "The Sound of Music" on a saw [ a Sandvik 22 inch ,for all you saw enthusiasts].

Kirsty is equally adept in several styles ,from gentle acoustic ballads to blues and gospel. The range of her considerable talents was amply demonstrated on songs from "Contraband" such as the wistful "Something Going On" [with a lovely harmonica solo from Clive ] ,the tender song of loss "I Burn For You" , the gorgeous folk-ballad "Sequins" and the cynical prayer "Solace" . Perhaps my favourite track on "Contraband " is "New Bird" and tonight's live performance by Kirsty was just superb. In total contrast was the bluesy ,toe-tapping "The Setting of the Sun" ,which featured fine contributions from Nick on double bass and Clive on harmonica.

Kirsty told us that she has been writing some new songs in a bluesy vein. These include "Pray" [about a dominatrix goddess ] , "Salt" [ "Ain't Enough Salt To Melt That Ice", which was quite appropriate considering the weather outside] and "Running With The Blues" [ "Keep on running ,keep the blues at bay"].

Tonight's show confirmed what Fatea readers will already know, that Kirsty McGee is a superb artist and fully deserving of her shortlisting for Album of the Year . May she go from strength to strength.

Peter Cowley