Artist – Geoghegan Jackson
EP – Flatlands Rising
Release date – 1st February 2019
Reviewer – Ian D Hall, Liverpool Sound and Vision
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
A new year should always bring with it the twin senses of optimism and hope, whether hand in hand and with angelic smiling faces, cool enough to disarm the concerns of all who approach it initially with caution or in hessian sacks to stop them fighting over who gets to pull the wool over the eyes of the population first; the latter seems to come round all too frequently, flattering to deceive and lulling you into the false sense of security before robbing you blind of faith and wonder. Then there is the former, the place where the view from Flatlands Rising is charming and honest, sincere and welcome; it is a position in which optimism and hope thrive and live carefree.
Following on the exquisite Parlour In The Sun, Geoghegan Jackson step past the birth of the New Year and deliver a beautiful new set of songs, ones that the listener cannot but ponder and explore with genuine heartfelt thanks, in their new EP Flatlands Rising.
Across the timeless sounding songs Fledgling, Shameful Sky, Flesh, Secret Shop and the EP’s title track Flatlands Rising, Susie Geoghegan and Helen Jackson create the inner peace sought after in their previous encounter and have again awoken the beast inside the soul. Instead though of letting it rage uncontrollably and without purpose, it sings the lullabies and songs with harmony and grace; sensual but also haunting, a steel glove hiding the concerns of a gentle hand stroking the furrowed brow.
It is the brow of the fretful times in which we should seek out and show compassion to, the disturbed psychosis in which we have seemingly lapsed as we are hit time and time again by outsiders claiming to have our best interests at heart but who on closer inspection want to level the rise of the view we can revel in, it is in this that Geoghegan Jackson have intriguingly placed their hand over our deep lines etched in our hearts and faces, and whilst not eliminating them, cool down the fever within so that we might climb out of the intense heat with determination.
A wonderful follow up to Parlour In The Sun, Flatlands Rising should be considered the springboard to a full and encompassing album.
Geoghegan Jackson launch Flatlands Rising on February 1st at 81 Renshaw Street as part of Liverpool Acoustic’s 10th birthday.
Ian D Hall
Review © 2018 Ian D Hall, Liverpool Sound and Vision
Originally published at liverpoolsoundandvision.co.uk
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Geoghegan Jackson
Facebook – facebook.com/geoghegan.jackson
Twitter – @ggheganjackson
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