Child-At-Mind are currently a 3 piece band hailing from the Greater Manchester town of Ashton. However this demo, recorded in September 2000, was recorded as a solo demo by singer/songwriter Sean Waring, before he put together his band of Dave Hewitt (lead guitar) and Rick Vizard (drummer). Having played a handful of gigs in the Manchester area, the singer has received immense praise from his solo slots, which have been liked to the acoustic folk-pop of Bob Dylan.

Opening track ‘Something’ starts of with a funky bass opening before the acoustic jangles in with Waring entering with the lines “I don’t know why you brought me today” in a way that can only be described as The Charlatans play Dylan. Not a bad thing really. The chorus is possibly the catchiest moment of this 3-track demo (“Something in your eyes / Something in your soul / Something in your voice / Something I need to know”). It’s then quite a shame that this track then comes to a close after only two verses and a chorus after 1:15. Still, to say the whole demo itself was recorded in the space of just 4 hours allowing only 2 takes at maximum for each part, there is possibly a hope that the song played live and backed by the new group will be considerably longer and all the more better for it.

The following two tracks ‘A River Flowing’ and ‘Hide Away’ are performed solely on an acoustic guitar. And they both work an absolute treat as the raw sound and touching voice add a deal of atmospheric whispers to the track, in particular to ‘A River Flowing’. What makes this song stand out so much is the lyrical content and sheer emotion in the vocals. If when you hear the chorus call “I can feel it roaring / I can see it coming / Like a north wind blowing,” you don’t have a shiver down your spine or move you in any way at all then a rabid dog ate your heart with a mouldy bone yesterday. Third, and final, track ‘Hide Away’ is probably the most folky song of the three and combines the emotion of “a River Flowing’ with the catchiness of ‘Something’. In a way the lyrics are pretty similar to the previous track, telling the story of trying to find a complete stranger who ran off after you took them home (“Gonna search until I can track you down / If I can find you I’m gonna hide away, shy away into my hide away”). The layers of vocals is what makes this track mostly stand out with a definite Gomez comparison being apparent with the husky voice over the top over the soft melancholy lead vocal.

A superb demo, which if based on the quality of the tracks I would consider giving 5 stars to. However, taking into account the time restriction of recording, the new band members and the sheer potential of this guy/band suggests that although what is here is quite amazing for a demo, it can and almost certainly will be bettered in the future, when hopefully (and if there’s any justice in the world) you’ll be able to hear it.

For further information, contact Sean Waring at: bobbysquirrel@yahoo.com