Live review: Limerance EP launch @ Studio 2 20/09/17
Live review: Limerance EP launch
Support: Karen Turley, The Medicine Men DJs
Date: Wednesday 20th September 2017
Venue: Studio 2, Parr Street
Reviewer: Alison Benson
Studio 2 Parr Street itself fills a person with high expectation, its walls decorated with photos of artists who recorded there looking upon the evening with judgement or support. A well-chosen, intimate space for Limerance, whose performances draw an audience into their own world of two.
Karen Turley opened the evening with a selection of songs drawn from her own recently released EP Like we used to and other original compositions. Karen spoke about a road trip she took in the US, and with her warm and engaging voice and manner Karen the audience onto our own Americana road trip. Setting the tone of the evening beautifully, Karen shone in her own right and continued Studio 2’s work of keeping expectations high.
Limerance themselves took to the stage in their own unassuming way, Jenny with a mug of tea or something soothing. Looking only a little nervous and totally bowled over by the turnout (don’t they know how good they are?!) they kicked off with My Turn, a wistful song exploring the thoughts of a person lost at sea. Immediately evident in any of Limerance’s performances is the wonderful chemistry between Jenny and Callum, and while they perform so closely together sharing one mic, the audience feels included in the music and the joy so evident in the performance.
Songs from the EP In the first place were interspersed between the hour long set, and the second song Hell bound was next up. An interesting song about someone sure of their destination – ‘I am hell bound, have no doubt’ – a slightly melancholy tone, but with the beautiful brightness of Jenny and Callum’s voices, the song has a kind of reflective tongue in cheek nature.
Moving onto their single released in July, Shine On, is a love song with lines and verses sung in dialogue between the singers. The guitar capoed at a high fret works really well and I could hear audience members humming along to the catchy chorus.
The duo performed a variety of the songs, a change of pace heard in Marie with an effective use of 7th chords and the wonderful line ‘I would dance with you, Marie, but my hands are on fire’. Described by Callum as ‘vaguely political’ Not In My Name is a song to be proud of – alluding to any number of the wrongs in the world and appealing for peace and unity.
My Old Sky, also from the EP, a song about visiting childhood haunts, seeing them change, yet maintaining that connection to the past and how things used to be and then I’m on your side to finish the set….fortunately with room for an encore!
The encore saw a cover of I’ll Fly Away. One of only two covers throughout the evening (the other being Pokey LaFarge’s Bag of Bones) both of which were interpreted so they could almost have been Limerance originals. Along for the ride almost brought us full circle in a song that returns to the theme of being lost, with references to the sea, although in a different tone to the opener, with a sense of being found again.
The final song from the EP was the final song of the evening. Slow Down Babe; a sweet song, with a real Americana feel. The line ‘you’re not one to watch the world as it goes spinning by’ seemed to capture an element of Limerance themselves. Just over a year since their first performance together, they’ve released an EP of great songs, well produced, and performed perfectly live, chosen from a sizable repertoire of original compositions, clearly supported by a strong group of fans, Limerance have come so far and will surely continue to delight audiences live – and thanks to In the first place – in our homes, cars, the radio and onwards.
Alison Benson
Review © 2017 Alison Benson, Liverpool Acoustic
LIMERANCE
- Website – limerance.co.uk
- Facebook – facebook.com/LimeranceOfficial
- Twitter – @LimeranceMusic