Welcome to September – new term, back to school, and all that malarky. And if it’s lessons in how to listen to great acoustic music you’re looking for then Liverpool’s the place to be. So, pay attention at the back – we may very well be asking questions later…
SPOTLIGHT
In the Liverpool Acoustic Spotlight for September 2008 is Lizzie Nunnery. Lizzie is an extremely talented singer/songwriter with a unique style and captivating voice. Did we mention that she’s also an award-winning playwright? Head on over to the Spotlight page to hear all about her and listen to four of her best songs on the audio show.
DIARY
The Liverpool Acoustic Diary has reached a real milestone, ladies and gentlemen. September is the first month since the diary was started (back in April) when we’ve got at least one event happening every single day. But there’s still room for more and the diary continues to fill up with more weekly, monthly, and one-off events than ever before. If you’re a musician and you’d like to add your local acoustic gigs to the diary then drop us an email or use the contact page on the main website. However, make sure you give us all the details we need – we can’t put an event into the diary if we’ve got a start time but no finishing time!
Here are just some of the highlights for September:-
Monday 1st – Come Strut Your Stuff open floor poetry and acoustic music at Liverpool’s Egg Cafe. It starts at 8pm but if you want to perform you’ll need to be there closer to 7.30pm to get your name on the list (and claim a chair!). Hosted by Graham Holland and September’s guest co-host Dave Harley. Features Stan the Harper.
Tuesday 2nd – The launch of the new, weekly MochAcoustic night at the Mocha Lounge on Lord Nelson Street. Hosted by Guy Taunton, with help from Rachael Dunn. See the diary entry and news item for more info.
Friday 5th – This month’s Music@Mocha at the Mocha Lounge from 8pm to 12am features Stan (the Harper) Ambrose, Terese Bernabe, Richard Batty, The Trestles, Stuart Todd, plus resident DJ Simon Mack (Public Notice) playing a mix of Latin, Funk, Swing & Beats. This event is preceded between 6pm and 8pm by Amanda’s Couch, a social event for writers, poets and other creatives, with guest speaker Liverpool Acoustic’s own Graham Holland.
Saturday 6th – Acoustic Bliss is another brand new, weekly acoustic event. It’s run by Sue Cullen (Acoustic Dream) and takes place every Saturday at the Blackburne Arms Hotel on Catharine Street. The only exceptions to the weekly rule is when Acoustic Dream takes place (see 27th). Full details are in the diary entry.
Saturday 13th – Family Folk-up presents… @ St Brides Church, featuring The Mojave Collective (fresh from the launch of their new CD), Thomas-Joseph and Murphy, Mela Cody (very special acoustic-ish set), and The Random Family.
Friday 19th to Sunday 21st – Working Class Music Festival – this is the event that Liverpool’s Capital of Culture year has been crying out for. Organised by Liverpool’s own Alun Parry the event features a fantastic array of performers including Dick Goughan, The Men They Couldn’t Hang, Atilla The Stockbroker, Rob Johnson, Roy Bailey, Young Kof, Al Baker, and Leon Rosselson. All, some, or none of the performers may or may not be acoustic at any given point during their set! Full details and ticket information from www.workingclassmusic.org.uk
Sunday 21st – Hope Street Feast returns for another day packed full of music, food, dance, art and creativity in a vibrant celebration of culture and life. The full programme of events isn’t released until 7th September but there’s sure to be a fair few acoustic artists featuring in the fabulous family feast of fun. Check it out at www.hopestreetfestival.com
Monday 22nd – Kaya (Metroacoustic, Acoustica) launches her debut album Balloon In A Cactus Field. More details from www.myspace.com/kayaherstad closer to the time.
Saturday 27th – The Family Folk-up presents… at The Bluecoat – a one day folk festival with two stages showcasing 12 unsigned and independently labelled acts from Liverpool and the UK (including The Travelling Band, Denis Jones, The Sixteen Tonnes, The Random Family, John Fairhurst, Sparkwood & 21, Jeff Jepson, The Rachel Wright Band, Arthur Shelton Jones and Andy Hickie and The Merry Maidens) stalls, food and entertainment. Headlined by a very special performance from legends Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick, with support from Liverpool’s finest, John Smith.
Saturday 27th – This night sees the welcome return of Acoustic Dream. It’s an acoustic showcase and takes place every three months or so at The Zanzibar. It also raises money for the Walton Neurological Centre and raises awareness of dystonia, a neurological movement disorder. Full details on this event are to follow.
You can find out more information about any of the above by clicking on the name of the event in the Liverpool Acoustic Diary.
NEWS AND REVIEWS
Thank you to Christopher Stevens for submitting the review of the Satori & Song opening night in July. If you fancy yourself as a budding music journo then why not write something for the News and Reviews page? You get full credit for your work which appears online and is emailed to literally some(!) people who have subscribed via email.
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Graham (on behalf of the Liverpool Acoustic team)