Review by Fiona Davy of Colourless: A Collection of Poems
Arriving at Mappin’s Nursery and Aquarian I was really taken by the uniqueness of the venue, a blend of rock ‘n roll and pot plants, and an appropriately bold backdrop for Alison Paris and Chloe Hasson’s mellow, original, and quirky performance.
Colourless: A Collection of Poems was created by the duo, Blue Stockings (Hasson and Paris), putting the poems of Hasson’s grandfather, Gordon Hasson, to original music. The vibe is folk-pop and the addition of Gordon Hasson’s recorded memories between sets added a lovely sense of intimacy, as if we, the audience, were a part of the family.
Gordon Hasson’s poems are themed around the normality of daily life, about queuing, contemplating the sky and losing things. Deep and meaningfuls meet amusing reflections and quirky inspirations!
On a technical level, the duo is playing, singing, and running their own sound production, which made the performance a little clunky and unfortunately the less that perfect audio meant some of the lyrics were lost, but overall Colourless: A Collection of Poems is a well thought out, enjoyable performance. Hasson’s skills on both guitar and keyboard were exceptional and the duo’s voices blend beautifully.
The perfect way to wind down after a busy day, Colourless: A Collection of Poems has one more show on May 14.
