Live review: Jack Carty and Maz O’Connor @ Music Room 16/05/18
Live review: Jack Carty and Maz O’Connor
Date: Wednesday 16th May 2018
Venue: Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Music Room
Reviewer: Alison Benson, Liverpool Acoustic
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The tag line for the tour calls Jack Carty and Maz O’Connor ‘two of the most engaging songwriters on the UK acoustic scene’. It’s a bold statement, but likely a true one, with their well-crafted songs charming the audience. Liverpool Philharmonic Music Room saw the first night of their tour, a well-chosen venue for such an event, with an intimate feel and an acoustic that flatters both performers.
It’s always a good thing to praise the city you’re visiting. Jack Carty did that well, by commenting the warmth of the Liverpool sunshine and the warmth of the Liverpool people and throughout his performance, his own human warmth shone through. Carty’s songs are well formed, of interesting topics, sometimes nostalgic and pensive… sometimes humorous.
Carty’s voice is beautifully resonant, with a wide vocal range, that he uses to carry the audience along an emotional journey from the heart-breaking My Replacement to the extremely romantic Wedding Song. He is an accomplished guitar player, and often fills the sound with a stomp box or harmonica, both of which he uses tastefully. Carty’s songs are lyrically interesting, telling stories that capture the imagination.
O’Connor’s set was a mix of old and new songs and a wonderful cover of Young Hearts Run Free. Her songs cover a wide range of topics, but many also capture the struggles of women through time. Her song Emma gives a voice to the voiceless women subjects of male artists; San Francisco tells of her great aunt who travelled from Ireland to San Francisco to become a nun and thus secure the financial security of her mother and siblings after her father’s death; Missippi Woman tells a creations story from a woman’s viewpoint. Her songs are creative, perceptive (Skin ‘I want to be thin but I want to be free’) and also challenging, all sung with her pure and clear voice, delivered confidently and with conviction.
The final set during which the two artists alternated songs was fun to watch and listen to and seeing the two together revealed the creative chemistry that had brought the pair together for the tour. The final song Look At Miss Ohio, the only song performed together, gave a snapshot of the harmonies they can create and so it was a fitting end to a concert of great singing, playing and songwriting.
They’re on tour for the next month – go and see them!!
Alison Benson
Review © 2018 Alison Benson, Liverpool Acoustic
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Jack Carty – jackcarty.com
Maz O’Connor – mazoconnor.com
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