Text Box: Text Box: Text Box: MOA (Music-On-Air) Live Reviews, 21/12/06 The MOA Live Christmas Party is the culmination of the top unsigned musical acts in the country today and this special festive edition has a bill which features many of the bands making significant noises on the scene. China Soul (www.myspace.com/minorcelebration)  Firmly proving that the MOA Live events can maintain last-minute changes and still provide high-quality diverse musical entertainment was the opening act, China Soul. A young lady originally from Los Angeles but now living life in London, she brought a surprise and welcome mellowness to the evenings’ early proceedings. Armed with an acoustic guitar, a wispy yet melodious voice and some creative improvisation, the intimate crowd gathered round to get closer. Opening track ‘Looking for the Light’ epitomised these inventive talents, her distinctive sound supported by her own drum beat from the base of the guitar. In terms of musical style, the closest modern comparisons would be Norah Jones or Damien Rice for softly-spoken lyrical prowess. Her performance on stage came across as emotionally-strong, and the words in themselves, are laced with a strong blues-influence. Second track ‘Above it All’ was a particularly stellar performance from her and showcased a lot of the feelings in her lyrics. There’s also a real sense of longing and escapism epitomised- “Down the road/the sea is waving to the sand”. It’s quite easy to get lost in China Soul’s voice and the combination with the mellowness of the music being produced often helps to empathize the sense of escapism that she sings about. This is truly modern-day blues music and was a nice sprinkling of diversity onto the line-up. China Soul played a 6 song set including stand-out ‘Blue Lining’, emotionally raw, reminiscent and with again, some beautifully constructed lyrics- “Time is the root of all our problems”, also sung with great vocal range. Although the crowd may not have been expecting it, they were fully engrossed by her performance and gave the young American a well-deserved applause. Text Box: Links and affiliates Contact Me