Wigans finest Starsailor are in the midst of celebrating 20 years of their 2nd album SILENCE IS EASY, which for me was one of those albums where I heard the title track and instantly knew i had to buy it.
It doesn’t have as many stand out tracks as their debut album, LOVE IS HERE, but it still sounds just as fresh today as it did 20 years ago and James Walsh’s voice sounded just as exquisite as he and the band played the full album live to a sold out Ritz.
The gig was predominantly about the music, not a lot of chit chat, although I do remember James mentioning that he wrote FOUR TO THE FLOOR when his daughter was born and now she’s at Manchester Uni….time really does fly.
The second part of the set was filled with back to back hits, TELL ME IT’S NOT OVER, ALCOHOLIC, POOR MISGUIDED FOOL, WHERE THE WILD THINGS GROW, LULLABY and TIE UP MY HANDS. The crowd were in fine voice and I’d nearly lost mine by the end. The encore began with their new single HEAVYWEIGHT and James acknowledged the presence of Richard Mcnamara (Embrace) and Nicole Hope Smith (EEVAH) on stage who have contributed greatly to the bands music.
The final song of the night was GOOD SOULS and having been to many Starsailor/James Walsh gigs I can honestly say this was by far the best I’ve ever been to, great music and atmosphere made for an unforgettable experience.
Words by Joanne Marsland
Photos by Philip Goddard
