Harem Scarem - Believe

Tracks:

Believe
Die Off Hard
Hail, Hail
Staying Away
Baby With A Nail Gun
Morning Grey
Victim Of Fate
Rain
I Won't Be There
Karma Cleansing

Time: 41:31 m:s

Producers: Harry Hess & Pete Lesperance
Label: Warner Bros. Canada Ltd.
Year: 1997

First of all, a bit of background. Just over a year ago when I was first setting up my web site, Harem Scarem had just released 'Voice Of Reason'. All the reviews of that album kept mentioning the brilliance of the first two albums. So, instead of buying VOR, I bought the first two. The first album is impressive - a prime example of commercial rock. However, it was the second album, Mood Swings, which made a lasting impression. So much so, that I was inspired to use the title for my web site. I think the combination of melody & power is just about everything I could want from a hard rock album. My thirst for HS continued & I bought VOR soon afterwards. It was a major disappointment - HS heading off into Grunge territory.

Early reports talked of the band returning to a more 'Mood Swings' sound on this album. Later reports said that it was more a mixture of MS & VOR. My appetite suitably wetted by the prospect of more Mood Swings type material & doubt that it would ever get a UK release, was enough to get me on the phone to my favourite mail order record store placing my order for this Japanese import. So, was it worth the high price of a Japanese import?

First song, Believe, starts off proceedings in an uptempo fashion. It's similiar to Mood Swings material, but is a touch rawer sounding in places. During the choruses it's back to familiar ground with the high class vocals I expect (& take for granted).

Die Off Hard is the first single. This will sound familiar to Mood Swings owners, as it would easily fit on that album.

Next up is Hail Hail. This one starts off with some Billy Joel/Supertramp style keyboards. Veering into power pop, I can't make up my mind about this one. Early posts to the HS mailing list picked it out as a highlight.

Staying Away sees Darren taking on lead vocal duties. This is the type of melodic hard rock I want to hear HS perform. When a guy who is as good a singer as this normally does backing vocals it's easy to see why the vocal parts on HS albums are just so great. My favourite track on the album.

How could you write lyrics for a song called 'Baby With A Nail Gun'? The answer is that you don't. It's the chance for guitarist Pete to show us what he can do. Thankfully, this isn't the bore that most instrumentals are.

Morning Grey has a quirky rhythm. Too left of centre to get my approval. I'm told that Jellyfish are a reference point for this. Looks like I won't be rushing out to investigate Jellyfish. To me, it just sounds like yet another band jumping on the bandwagon and incorporating some Beatles influences.

Victim Of Fate is more of what I'm after. It fails to live up to the high standards set on Mood Swings, but it's one of the better offering here. There are hints of VOR at times.

Rain is an acoustic guitar driven ballad, which never really gets above average.

I Won't Be There harks back to the first album. Again it fails to command your full attention.

Last up it's 'Karma Cleaning'. This is the title track on the Canadian & US releases of the album. A continuation of the direction taken on VOR, it's therefore surprising that I think it's one of the better cuts.

This album is a combination of MS & VOR. As such, it doesn't work for me. I think VOR is the direction that HS would like to take. Maybe they see themselves as the Canadian answer to Oasis. There's definitely the potential for greater commercial success, compared to restricting themselves to the AOR/Hard Rock market. The problem is that they've established themselves as an AOR band and have a fan base in this genre. VOR didn't meet with the approval of most fans and didn't break them in pastures new either. This time they've attempted to keep the existing fans onboard. I know there's a trend towards shorter albums, but perhaps the brevity of this album hints at a period of indecision within the band.

This is about half of the type of HS album I'd like to hear. Based on the first two albums, especially when the second album was partly the reason for me naming my web site 'Mood Swings', I have high expectations for any HS release. As a result of these high expectations, this is a disappointment. I don't expect Mood Swings part II. In fact, I'd have more respect for the band if they had continued along the same lines as VOR, even though I wouldn't have like the result. On each of the previous albums, the band managed to virtually re-invent themselves. It had to end sometime. This album sees HS looking backwards, instead of forwards. I believe (err... groan), that it's possible for HS to combine all the styles from the first three albums into something that they can take into the future. Believe isn't that combination.

Rating: 7