I'd read quite a bit about James Walsh and Starsailor, the next big thing out of England. The press was glowing. Their sound was likened to Tim Buckley, from whom they'd gotten their name. When I finally heard their debut CD "Love Is Here" I was expecting to be blown away, but I was surprised to find myself unimpressed. Leader James Walsh, although seriously cute, totally put me off with his whiny achingly sincere vocals. "Get Over It!!" I cried as his nasally voice wailed about lost love and torches carried far to long. Lyrically he showed all the maturity of his 21 years. Perhaps it was these low expectations that allowed him to impress me so much live.

Arriving alone and unannounced onto the stage, James Walsh went on to explain that their drummer had injured his hand, and that the show would be a bit different. With that short introduction he launched into Coming Down, which is pretty much acoustic anyway. Within four minutes, he had the audience in the palm of his hand. His little arsenal was nothing but a guitar, a harmonica and his amazingly romantic voice. Perhaps it was the relative distance from the material, but his sad sack epics were delivered with much more restraint then shown on record. He seemed to express his emotions through the generous use of his distortion peddle rather then his usually painful wails. The term fragile is often used to describe him, but he seemed anything but. In fact it was his confidence that made all the difference. He managed to be a commanding presence in a tough crowd, smiling and gracious all the while.

He was joined mid set by bass player James Stelfox and keyboardist Barry Westhead for lush versions of Lullaby, and Alcoholic. Jon Brookes, drummer for the Charlatans, joined them for the closing number which was a rousing version of Good Souls. It was these accompanied portions of the show that showed what potential Starsailor possess. Good Souls built with unhurried strength to a crashing crescendo that left the audience breathless and wanting more. As good as the solo portion of the show was, it was this final song which showcased what this band has to offer. It's still not one of my favorite CD's but I look forward to seeing what they have to follow it up.

Keri (Alientologist)
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