Never Enough Notes e-zine // reviews + interviews + music

Marcus Foster has certainly had a good year this year, with his first E.P. ‘Tumble Down’ released in April, followed by his first full album, ‘Nameless Path’, in September. Now the year has been neatly wrapped up with a UK and European tour.

Marcus came to Nottingham supported by Son of Eagle and Sam Beer. Now I must confess readers, Facebook told me that the doors opened at 7.30 pm. Unfortunately, the doors actually opened at 7.00 pm, so I missed Son of Eagle’s set. The second support act, singer-songwriter Sam Beer, provided a relaxed atmosphere with a softly-played acoustic guitar and laid-back tunes such as ‘Parked Cars’.

Now when Marcus took the stage and started playing his first song, ‘Shadows of the City’, he was all about the voice. It didn’t matter whether he played his acoustic or electric guitars; the power of his voice alone was his show-piece. His soulful singing became even more apparent the third song in, where he demonstrated wailing abilities that made him sound like a proper soul singer or an ancient bluesman. Foster added to this old-time blues feel by using a 1930s microphone on a couple of songs.

As well as playing blues and soulful numbers, Foster can also do a good ballad. ‘The Harbour’ was played and sung in almost medieval style. The final songs, ‘I Was Broken’ and ‘Tumble Down’ were exceptional, his guitar playing and soul-singing came together perfectly to round off the set.

After seeing Marcus Foster for the first time, I was truly bowled over by his soulful voice and interesting sounds that came from his mouth. However, as my friend pointed out, Foster could be even better if he had a band backing him, like on a lot of songs on ‘Nameless Path’. So Marcus, if you’re reading this by any chance, one word: BAND!

9/10