[Reader Reviews ][ Unsigned Reviews ][ Pre-1996 Reviews ][ 1996 Reviews ][ 1997 Reviews ][ 1998 Reviews ][ 1999 Reviews ][ 2000 Reviews ][ 2001 Reviews ][ 2002 Reviews ][ 2003 Reviews ][ 2004 Reviews ][ 2006 Reviews ][ 2007 Reviews ][ 2008 Reviews ]

Jaugernaut (a.d.) - Contra-Mantra
Tuesday, 20 September, 2005

More info: www.jaugernaut.com

Verdict (Rating): Pomptastic return (85%)

Jaugernaut date back to 1980. They released two albums back in the 80's (Jaugernaut & Take Em There), but eventually split in 1986. Then in 1999 one of the band members, Jim Johnston (who had joined in 1982), was contacted via email by someone interested in finding out if he was the Jim Johnston who had been a member of Jaugernaut. Jim discovered that was still interest in the band's albums. Jim re-released the second album with a few bonus tracks from his own recordings. Jim was then interested in getting the band back together to release a third Jaugernaut album, but his former band mates didn't share his enthusiasm.

So we have Jaugernaut (a.d.) which is effectively a Jim Johnston solo record, albeit one that continues the legacy from the first phase of the band. Jim's original idea was to release a 90 minute double album, but in the end he has split the release over two albums. Contra-Mantra is the first part of that double album.

Right at the start of "Anthem" there are some modern drum/synth soundx which trick the listener into thinking that this album is coming from somewhere completely different when all of a sudden the 80's AOR style synths swirl into action. This track is a mixture of Rush, Saga and Harlan Cage with possibly some neo-classical progressive rock in there as well. The electronic sounds again 'blip' an introduction to "The Damage Is Done" which has an AOR-Prog feel (Rush meets 90125-era Yes). "Better Living Thru Anarchy" continues the theme.

The centre piece and central track of the album is "The Hard Way" which weaves it's way around a Saga meets Styx backbone. The album's Pomp feel then gets put aside for the straight ahead (Foreigner/Aerosmith) bluesy rock of "Vanity" and the rockin' "A Different World". "All I See Is Gray" closes the album with a power ballad that reminded me of Brad Love.

I'm a sucker for anything to do with 80's music and Contra-Mantra is no exception. The surprising element I found about this album was the fact that despite the retro nature of the actual music it came across as feeling fresh. I haven't heard the first two albums, but I'm guessing that this one continues the series in fine fashion and now we've got the second half of that double album to look forward to.

Nil - Nil Novo Sub Sole
Monday, 19 September, 2005

Verdict (Rating): Charming New Age Symphonic Rock (87%)

More Info: www.unicornrecords.com , www.nilweb.com

This is the band's fourth album and sees the French symphonic progressive band add singer Roselyne Berthet as a full member and making full use of her voice. The other members are Samuel Maurin (bass), Benjamin Croizy (keyboards) and  Frank Niebel (drums).

Of all the Unicorn CD's submitted for review recently, this is the one that I thought I would have most problems relating to. In fact, the CD has 'charmed' it's way into my affections.

Opener "Le Gardien" has an eerie atmospheric start with the vocals wafting in as if upon a mist, before the synth swirls and the song takes on a King Crimson rhythmical quality. I also detected echos of Enya's pseudo-classical composition in here. In fact, this 20 minute track veers off in many directions that include elements of Pink Floyd and Led Zep. As a contrast "Linceul" is a short (4min!) ethereal ballad.

"Deregeneration" steers more of a traditional prog path ala Pink Floyd, but does add some good ethereal vocals to the mix later on. King Crimson are again a reference point for "198", but mixing in symphonic overtones

"Abandon" begins with some smoky  French jazz before transforming into a more traditional prog rock. "Derives" is a King Crimson style playout for the CD.

I think Unicorn are onto a winner here and I could imagine this eventually competing with Hamadryad as the label's best selling record.

Ring Of Myth - Weeds
Monday, 19 September, 2005

Verdict (Rating): Too left field for me (60%)

More Info: www.ringofmyth.com, www.unicornrecords.com

Ring of Myth are an American progressive rock trio consisting of Danny Flores on vocals/bass/guitars/keyboards, George Picado on guitars and Scott Rader on drums/percussion/keyboards and vocals. The band have previously released an album called "Unbound" on the Kinesis label in 1996. This new album sees a move to Unicorn Records and also the return of original drummer Scott Rader back into the band.

Doing some research for the review it seems like on "Unbound" the band's sound was a marriage of Yes, Rush and Genesis. I guess any progressive rock trio is going to be compared to Rush at some point in their career.

Listening to "Weeds" I can hear the Yes and Rush influences, but as the band say themselves this album represents a move towards "a more experimental, cacophonous, left field, anything-sort-of-goes mode". One of the reasons that Yes are always going to the reference point for the bands are vocals of Danny which bear a noticeable resemblance to Jon Anderson albeit without reaching the same heights as Jon. In their early days the band were called Catfish after the Jimi Hendrix song "Catfish Blues" and I can, at least I think I can, hear a Hendrix influence behind their more 'cacophonous' sound.

I seem to be getting really picky when it comes to vocals recently. Although I can't quite put my finger on why, I found Danny's vocals slightly annoying, maybe because I kept on thinking of them as a below par tribute to Yes vocalist Jon Anderson. Not really fair as I should be evaluating them on their own merits, but then who said life was fair…. In fact, I got the impression that the whole 'new experimental' approach being taken by the band was an attempt to stop the Yes comparisons which I'm sure followed their first album. In general, the discordant/cacophonous style didn't work for me and after listening to the album, I was left wishing the band has taken a more mainstream approach.

Talisma - Chromium
Wednesday, 14 September, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Disjointed listening experience (60%)

More Info: www.unicorndigital.com

This is Talisma's second recording for Unicorn Records. Talisma is a Canadian trio consisting of  Donald Fleurent (BASS/SYNTH GUITAR/KEYBOARDS), Martin Vanier (GUITARS/SYNTH GUITAR/12 STRING GUITAR), Mark DiClaudio (DRUMS).

This is an instrumental album that offers the listener a series of relatively short musical interludes. The closest comparison I can think of is King Crimson, with perhaps a touch of Al Di Meola for the quieter guitar based moments. The shortness of the tracks and the somewhat repetitive nature of some of them give the effect of a musical scrapbook of ideas waiting to be transformed into proper songs at a later date. Quite often just as you are 'getting into' a track it stops and the next one starts, making for a disjointed listening experience.

One or two of the tracks, such as Chromium and Cumulus, did stand out as being more listenable, but overall this is a challenge for the listener to stay the course.

Julian Garner - Your Good Self
Wednesday, 14 September, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Prog meets adult pop  (65%)

More Info: http://www.renrag.co.uk/

Julian's solo recording career goes back to 1999 and "Wake The Lion". "Doublethink" followed in 2001 and a instrumental release called "Flowdown" in 2002. "Your Good Self" is his most recent release.

Describing Julian's music isn't something you can really do adequately in one or two sentences. For example, his list of influences includes XTC, Squeeze, It Bites, Joe Jackson, King Crimson, Radiohead, Rush, Sting and Yes. The result of these influences is a style that mixes English adult pop with prog.

In fact, the most obvious prog elements are tagged at the beginning and end of the album with 12 min and 8 min tracks. In the middle the English adult pop dominates. I have to admit enjoying the odd snippet of Squeeze or XTC on the radio, but I've never quite liked them enough to spend cold hard cash on their efforts. Julian's interpretation of the genre is one that almost, but not quite, works for me. It is mainly Julian's voice that I have problems with - it's 'reedy' (I don't know what it means either, it just seems like a good description) quality starts to bug me after a while. I'm reminded of Alan Whittaker where it took a collaboration with another singer (Sally Rivers) to bring out the best in his music. Putting the vocals to one side, the other elments such as songwrting, playing and lyrics all seem to he heading in the right direction and get a thumbs up from me.

Given my apathy towards the intelligent adult pop of XTC, Squeeze, Sting and Co, maybe I'm not the best person to be passing comment. It seems to me that there is potential here, but it isn't quite being realised. XTC or Squeeze fans may get more mileage out of this than I did.

Pedestrians Of Blue - The Second Monologue
Tuesday, 13 September, 2005

Verdict (Rating %): Another effective showcase for a promising act. (90%)

More Info: http://www.pedestriansofblue.com/

POB debut EP "Circles Of Butterflies" received a very positive review at Mood Swings back in 2002. I expected an album to follow. The project seemed to falter and it wasn't until 2004 when founder members Johannes Stole and guitar player Torfinn Sirnes, hooked up with bass player Rudolf Fredly and drummer/producer Harald Levang, that the ball seemed to start rolling again.

POB play a mixture of AOR, hard rock and prog. Think of bands like Styx, Kansas and Saga fused with Metallica and Dream Theater.

"The Garden" develops into a classy melodic hard rock tune that serves as a great introduction to the band. Given the length of time since the last EP, it is perhaps a bit surprising the find a reworked version of "Father & Son" from that EP turning up again here. A good track that has been effectively enhanced this time out. "World Of Thing" starts of with a doom laden intro worthy of Black Sabbath. As it progresses, the verses are more laid back and the chorus is a catchy mixture of Kansas and Styx.

Once again POB have created a very effective showcase for the band's talents. Their blend of AOR, hard rock and prog sounds fresh and modern. The band have a set of songs ready for their debut album. I hope this EP does the trick and persuades a record label to sign the band and release the debut.

In A Cage - In A Cage
Tuesday, 13 September, 2005

Verdict: Musical reflection on the 70's and 60's (68%)

More Info: http://www.gama-music.com/in%20a%20cage.html

On one of the websites (http://www.soundclick.com/pro/default.cfm?BandID=378727) featuring their sound samples In a Cage describe their music as power/pop rock with a 70's/80's flair. In fact, the album is a, at times eclectic, mixture of mostly 70's and some 80's music with a 60's influence mainly on the vocal harmonies. Whilst it might be tempting to describe this as progressive rock, pop-rock from a bygone era is perhaps more representative as the influences include City Boy, Queen, 10cc and Brian Protheroe, Beach Boys and The Beatles

"Fall On Your Knees" is a symphonic slightly discordant introduction to the album that comes across as mixture of The Enid, Queen and Alice Cooper. The vocals are very theatrical and it is easy to imagine a manic live performance of this track. In contrast "Closer To The Heart" is a dreamy ballad with some jangly guitars and 60's style vocals and "Silent Serenade" continues the theme albeit with more a mid-tempo 80's pop-rock feel and a touch of Beach Boys to the vocals.

"Man Or Machine" rocks it up a bit more sounding like Queensryche. "Rainbow Lake Of The North" is a 60's style free-love track that if you want a Rainbow connection think of Ritchie's recent liking for Medieval music. More straight forward is the chugging rhythm of 80's style rocker "The Game". Staying with the 80's "So It Goes" starts off with a piano led vocal to mutate into a 80's style pop-rock track.

"Perfect For Pleasure" is a slow 60's influenced track with the more of those Beach Boy's inspired vocals. There is a bit of funk on "The Hollow Servant" with an 80's synth rock background. Back to the 70's for the last couple of tracks - lightweight pop on "Bourne To Freedom" and glam pop-rock on "Dear World".

This a bit of an ambitious project as it attempts to gel together music from a number of different eras. The focus on 60's and 70's pop meant that the backbone of the album fell just outside my personal 'musical window' which is more 80's based. However the album represents an interesting take on the music from those decades.

Brunorock - Interaction
Friday, 19 August, 2005

More Info: www.brunorock.com

Verdict (Rating): Catchy & well executed melodic hard rock/pop (85%)

Brunorock is a solo project by ex Dark Sky and Nightpride singer Bruno Kraler. His previous solo album "X-Over" was reviewed at Mood Swings. His new album, "Interaction", had been released on MTM and is boosted by help from guests such as Fredrik Bergh (Street Talk) & Rachel Bolan (Skid Row).

Whilst an impressive guest line-up is not always guarantee of success, in this case, they seem to have help Bruno step up a level. This is an improvement on "X-Over".

There is more of straight ahead melodic hard rock sound to "Interaction" compared to "X-Over" which had distinct pop overtones. Having said all that, I'd pick Rick Springfield, who also mixed rock and pop, as a pretty good reference point.

The album is crammed full of catchy melodic hard rock tunes. The standard is good and consistent across the album. This makes picking out individual tracks for comment difficult, perhaps highlighting that the album needs a couple of really killer tracks to move it from the good to the great category. However, I'll pick out "Pray For Rain" which has got an "early Duran Duran do AOR" feel, the rockin' "Take The Trophy" and the catchy "Hard Working Day" as the pick of the bunch.

It the sort of album that I enjoy listening to when I want something catchy and not too demanding to listen to.

Sally Rivers & Alan Whittaker - Secret Life
Friday, 19 August, 2005

More info: http://www.broadjam.com/artists/artistindex.asp?artistID=9560

Verdict (Rating): Chill out music (75%)

Sally Rivers is an established session singer who has worked with The Rolling Stones, Frankie goes to Hollywood, Robert Palmer, New Order, Simply Red and Paul Simon. She is also a vocal coach. Alan Whittaker is a singer/songwriter whose influences include Crowded House, The Beatles, Peter Gabriel and Neil Finn. Two of his albums, Out Of This World and Top Of The World, have previously been reviewed at Mood Swings.

Alan's previous work has been laid back pop rock. This style is one explored again here. However, this time Sally's voice gives the material a lift and the overall effect is more pleasing. Sally has a soulful voice with a rock edge to it.

Title track and album opener, "Secret Life", is a positive start that is continued throughout the album. The best tracks along the way are "Cold" (showcases Sally's vocals well), "Nothing Changes" (builds into a sensitive ballad) , My Love (a simple ballad), Seven Days (a soulful mid-tempo track), Shallow Man (the album's best track), In Your Eyes and Don't Blame Me (good ballads) and Shades Of Green (closing instrumental).

I actually did most of my listening to this album prior to writing the review whilst on holiday in the south of France. It fitted in with the holiday atmosphere well.

Suns Of March - Bulletproof Heart EP
Friday, 19 August, 2005

More info:  http://www.sunsofmarch.com

Verdict (Rating): Successful fusion of Southern Rock and Alternative. (85%)

Suns of March are a bunch of 6 guys from Montgomery Alabama USA - Charles Smith (guitars & vocals), Eddie Wohlford (keyboards & vocals), Michael Wright (lead vocals, guitars & harmonica), Steve Stewart (drums), Tom Shrout (bass & vocals) and Zebulon Bowles (fiddles, mandolin & vocals).

Remember back in the 80's when 38 Special blended AOR and Southern Rock to create a successful fusion? Well, Suns of March are attempting something similar in the 00's by blending rock, southern rock, country and alternative. This EP is a taster for their album.

"Bulletproof Heart" blasts off the EP with an uptempo number that adds just enough alternative to the Southern Rock backbone to create a compelling start. "San Jose" displays more of a country flavour ala Steve Earle. "I Learned It From You" has good a singalong quality. "Sentimental Moonlight" shows that Suns of March can wimp it out with the best of them, sounding like a countrified version of GnR.

The purpose of any sampler is be an appetiser for the full album. This EP certainly does that. On the evidence presented here the album is well worth investigating.

Dimension X - So... This is Earth
Sunday, 31 July, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): 'Overly' complex Prog (70%)

More Info: www.unicornrecords.com , www.dimensionxproject.com

Dimension X have a somewhat long winded history, suffice to say that this is their first album in their current form. As you may have guessed from the link to their record label, Unicorn Records, Dimension X play progressive rock.

Dimension X remind me of mixure of Magellan and Dream Theater. Like Dream Theater they play complex music, but with less of a metal and more of a rock edge and mixing in some classical influences. With Dimension X I found the songs to be 'very busy' and all quite similair with little to distinguish between them. There is therefore little comment to make on individual tracks. In terms of the vocals, they are quite 'low' and I actually thought of the guy from electro-popsters Depeche Mode. The instruments, to these untrained ears, all appear to well played.

With Dimension X I found that there was so much going on in the tracks that, at times, they were tiring to listen to. A strange statement from a DT fan, but somehow I didn't quite 'connect' with Dimension X's music

 

Hamardryad - Safe In Conformity
Sunday, 31 July, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Mild mannered prog (70%)

More Info: www.hamadryadmusic.com

Back in 2001 I reviewed this band's debut album, "Conservation of Mass" and had a positive reaction to it. In fact, that album went on to be their record company's, Unicorn, best selling album to date.

It came a bit of a surprise then, when I listened to this through the first time and found myself to have, well, no reaction at all. The best way of describing this album is as "mild mannered prog".

A litle bit of research revealed that shortly after the debut album the lead singer, Jocelyn, left the band. Rather than rushing in to find a replacement singer, Jean-François, who already sang one song on the debut album, stepped in as singer. The band then proceeded to adapt their style to suit.

The result is a style that isn't a million miles away Peter Gabriel fronted Genesis. I found the first two-thirds of the album passing by in a pleasant, well executed manner, but nothing that really caught my attention. It is not until "One Voice" where the band rock out a little that I start to listen more intently. "Polaroid Vendetta" is a complex piece that also captures your attention. Closing epic "Omnipresent Umbra" is another fine display of musianship.

Overall I found the album to be too "mild mannered" for my tastes with the band only stepping up a gear towards the end.

Towersound - Towersound
Friday, 22 July, 2005

 

Verdict (& Rating): Surpising melodic heavy/power metal (80%)

More info: www.towersound.net

Towersound contains French brothers Jean-Christophe (vocal & songwriting), Laurent (guitar) and Flo (drummer). Their name is inspired by the old tower attached to their house. The band wrote and recorded this debut album in 2004.

The band describe themselves as a melodic power/heavy metal band. In fact, their style is a little hard to describe. The core of their sound is melodic heavy metal, but there is a lot more than just that - elements of progressive metal (the band started life playing progressive rock), hard rock, neo-classical metal and even baroque.

"Prelude to the Tale of" is a medieval style intro to the metal of "Towersound" which comes across as mixture of Accept and Manowar, albeit with more of a sense of melody. Tracks like "Devils of the Night" and "Hells on the Speedway" highlight just how well this band manage to execute this blend of heavy and power metal and still maintain a melodic content. The vocals thankfully aren't the high pitched squeals normally accompanying this type of music. The are in a lower register and somehow convey a sense of passion about the music.

The band's progressive influence shows through in the 12 min "Final March, Last War". This is a grandiose track with feels like it should be part of the soundtrack to a film about medieval battles. "Enchanted Alloy" is an instrumental that helps highlight that one of reasons the album works is the excellent playing (all the more surprising because only the drummer has any formal music training with the two other brothers being self-taught).

I have to say that my expectations for this album were fairly low. When it comes to this type heavy/power metal I find much of it uninspiring and repetitive. However, Towersound have created a sound and style of their own and breathed fresh life into the genre.

 

 

Sacred Heart
Friday, 22 July, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Promising traditional melodic hard rock (80%)

More Info: www.sacredheartband.com

Sacred Heart date back to 1994, but it wasn't until mid-2003 when they reformed that things really started coming together for them. In January 2004 they recorded a live EP called "At New Dawn" and then in August 2004 a 10 track studio CD called "Lay It On The Line". Also in 2004 they have been busy doing gigs.

Scared Heart have a sound that is unmistakeably British. Initially Magnum seemed like a good reference point, but whereas Magnum have a pomp edge, Sacred Heart are more of a straight ahead rock band.

Opening track "Lay In On The Line" is a great opener with a big chorus. "Rock n Roll Away" follows it up with a heavier punch. The track has a bit of NWOBHM feel including in the production department. The production on the album is basic, but doesn't really detract from the enjoyment as so much else is on the positive side to make it not an issue. It is funny how British bands like to sing about The States, still "N.Y.C." is a another good song. As is the crunchy "The Last Goodbye". "Always" and the final bonus track "Forever (acoustic)", show that the band can hack it in the ballads department.

"What It Takes", "In My Heart" and "It's Alight" are three more tracks which demonstrate the band's strongly melodic approach to their music. A heavier approach, reminiscent of "1987" era Whitesnake, is found on "Hand In Hand".

Overall a ' good old fashioned slice of melodic hard rock' which is a very promising start (or maybe I should say re-start) for the band.

Parallel Mind - Collossus Adea
Wednesday, 20 July, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Instrumental brain stimulation (80%)

More Info: www.parallelmind.com

Parallel Mind are an Amercan progressive rock band consisting of a drummer, keyboard player and bassist. They list bands like Yes, Rush and Planet X as their influences.

In fact, the band play complex instrumental pieces that are obvously heavily keyboard based. On the 7th July 2005 they played a CD release show featuring all the guest musicians on the album and included a full choir, cello, violin, guitar, Indian vocals, brass, etc. That lineup should give you some idea of what is on offer here.

With many progressive rock instrumental albums there is a tendency for many of the tracks to sound similar, despite the stops/starts, fast/slow & loud/soft sections within each track. However Parallel Mind manage to make each track have it's own character. This is all backed up by the virtuoso playing necessary for these complex compositions.

My usual track by track description doesn't really seem appropriate here. So I try to give you a better idea of the type of music Parallel Mind play. From my own record collection, the closest thing is probably Liquid Tension Experiment, but Parallel Mind have less of 'rock/metal' feel. Instead Parallel Mind combine jazz fusion with classical/symphonic, rock and New Age/World.

I have to say that isn't the sort of stuff I would normally listen too, but I received the album just before I had to do some studying for an exam and I found it an ideal accompanyment to a bit of brain work.

Little King - Virus Devine
Wednesday, 20 July, 2005

Verdict (& Rating): Modern prog with positive message (75%)

More Info: http://www.littlekingmusic.com

Little King were formed by Ryan Rosoff in El Paso, Texas in 1996. After one album, "Time Extension", the band went on hold until 2003 when work on this album started. This album continues Rosoff's tradition of conceptual writing. This time the album revolves around the story of how an anonymous man is moved to change the world after watching the new coverage of Columbine High School tragedy.

It took a while for me to figure out that opening track, "All I Need", reminded me of Fleetwood Macintosh, mainly due to the drum pattern. A gentle, yet complelling start to the album. If I tell you that Terry Brown mixed the album, then maybe it won't come as a surprise that several tracks, such as the next couple, "Narcissus & Echo" and "Peacemaker", display a similarity to Rush. The two gentler tracks, "Second Wind" and "Pase Del Norte", are the type which don't' do that much on their own but seem to fit in well with the over flow the album. Evident particularly on "Antibodies" and to a lesser extent on most of the other tracks, is an almost indie-vibe which I've seen described quite well elsewhere as Porcupine Tree-lite. Of course, a concept album has to have at least some progressive rock elements, and in this case the title track is the one that displays the most obvious ones. "Horsefeathers" closes the album with a bit of jangle guitar pop.

This is one of those albums where I find myself getting to the end thinking "that was quite good", despite not really getting that exited about individual tracks - a case of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts? My only criticism is that the 'whole' is pretty short in terms of duration.

Brad Love - Colours
Tuesday, 14 June, 2005

More info: http://www.bradlove.com

Verdict (& Rating): An interesting flashback (70%)

Former Aviary frontman Brad Love originally recorded this album was back in 1982 and was released on vinyl in 1983, albeit with no promotion from the record copy. This release sees the album remastered and available on CD for the first time.

For me this earlier material provides an insight into what preceded Through Another Door.

Checking back with my review of that album to remind myself with Brad's work, I notice I mentioned his classical piano background coming through in one of the tracks. The piano is a key feature of this album, as along with Brad's vocals, it dominates the record. Style wise I'm reminded mainly of Yes and Styx.

"To Be In Love", is an light and cheerful opener. The title track has an almost theatrical feel to it, as if it were from a West End musical. "Warrior" is a quirky track that is an effective vehicle for Brad's vocal dexterity, but is likely to appeal to only this rock fans with fondness of the more progressive elements. Likewise the regimented rhythms of "Midnight By The Sea". Sandwiched between them is a Styx style ballad called "When I'm With You" which Brad's vocals soar effortlessly. "Living Once Again" and "Let Go" come next. "My Boat" sees the piano getting sidelined by a synth to create an simple, yet effective ballad. "Hot Cinders" mixes Styx's Mr Roboto with Lena Lovich forming one the albums less accessible tracks. "Turning Of The Earth" is similar musically but with a more mainstream vocal.

Overall the album provide showcase for Brad's piano playing and vocal dexterity. For fans of Aviary and Brad's more recent solo album, this album provides an interesting flashback to his first solo recording.

 

Pete Lacey - Karma's Gonna Get You
Wednesday, 08 June, 2005

More info: spitfirewolfmusic@hotmail.com 

Verdict: 80's influenced AOR meets hard rock (68%)

Pete has been in few bands - Sanction, Cherokee and Sarajevo. Sarajevo were getting some attention by the likes of the BBC 1's Friday Rock Show when Seattle happened and the band were one of the victims of grunge. Pete resurfaced back in 2000 with his first solo album - "Can't Do Right For Doing Wrong". This was followed up in 2002 with "Eternal Pursuit". "Karma's Gonna Get You" is his third solo album, recorded principally by Pete in his home studio. Yes, he one of the those annoying people, at least to non-musos like myself who just wish they could play one instrument, who can record an album virtually single-handed.

The album starts off with "Leaving Tonight" which is a catchy AOR meets hard rock track that reminds me of  "The Cage" era The Tygers Of Pan Tang. "Release My Heart" follows in a similar vein. "This Could Be Love" has it's roots in big Bon Jovi style power ballads, but doesn't quite suit Pete's Axl Rose style vocals, which like Axl's may not be universally popular. For me, it is a track by track thing, some work in the vocal department, other's don't. "Into The Fire" is more 80's AOR with features plenty of big harmonies on the chorus. "If You Can't Find Love" is a lilting track featuring a Spanish guitar influence. "Hard To Let Go" & the title track are mid-tempo AOR/hard rock tunes.  "Eternity Begins Tonight" is a slow meandering ballad. "Standing At The Door Of Our Last Chance" improves matters. The vocals on "Nowhere To Run" and a bonus track cover of Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" are instances which don't work for me, unfortuanately leaving me with a negative take away thought, and not doing the album justice.

So that is the music covered, now onto the most important fact about this album. All proceeds from this album are being donated by Pete to a charity called "On Track", which is part of the Elizabeth Fitzroy Support. "On Track" is a day service (essentially a skills centre) for adults with very severe learning disabilities and physical disabilities. They need funds to facilitate a move to new premises and to buy the equipment vital to developing their members.

The album is available from:

23 Nightingdale Close
Rowlands Castle
Hampshire
PO9 6EU
England

for £10 in the UK and £11.50 outside the UK, cheques made payable to P. Billington.

More information about the On Track & the Elizabeth Fitzroy Support at www.efitzroy.org.uk

Dig deep into those pockets!

A limited run of the disc will be supplied with a free copy of Pete's last CD "Eternal Pursuit".

Josh's Appletree - Atomic Fruit
Thursday, 26 May, 2005

More info: http://www.joshsappletree.com/

Verdict (Rating): Shades of Purple (73%)

Josh's Appletree are a bunch of Swedes (Jugge, John, PH, Hawkan & Lasse) who got together to jam, write a few songs and have fun in May 2003. After some positive feedback the band have taken things a step further and recorded this CD.

The blast of Hammond at the start of opener "Garish Gas" sends a very clear signal of where the band are coming from. In fact, the music has similarities to the style of music Hawkan played when he was a member of Mouth Of Clay. And who do you associate a Hammond with? Deep Purple! The band seem to really enjoy paying homage to Purple. A few other old fashioned rockers get thrown into the mix ocassionally - Whitesnake & Led Zep on "Tracks Of The Blues", Sabbath on "The Hard Road", Hendrix on "Plain n Foxy" and Rainbow on "Hangman" (touches of "Man on the Silver Mountain") - although even on these songs you're never in any real doubt who the real influence is.

Just before the halfway point the band seem to step up a gear with "Charismatic Woman" which features some nice organ tones, the early Whitesnake like "Rock n' Roll Star" (JA's version of Highway Star?) and the mixture of Purple and Bon Jovi's Dead Or Alive that is "Tomestone Rider". They then hit a high spot again on album closer "Devil's Machine" with some nice guitar/Hammond interaction.

The band have created a pretty decent classic 70's style rock album, which pays homage to Purple. There are a few other elements in the mix, but I would like to have heard JA creating more other their own sound.  However, bearing in mind that the band started out as a 'fun thing', then this is recreation instead of innovation.

Billy Sheehan - Cosmic Troubadour
Thursday, 14 April, 2005

More info: www.favorednations.com

Verdict (Rating): bass playing dexterity showcase (70%)

Famous bassists are a rare breed, often being left in the background whilst their lead guitar wielding take the spotlight. If I did ask you to name one, chances are Billy Sheehan would be the name you would come up with. His most famous role in perhaps as founder of Mr Big, but I certainly remember his work with David Lee Roth as being noteworthy. This is Billy's second solo album.

Opening track, "Toss It On The Flame", is a furious start with the bass rumbling away in the not quite in the background. The track has hints of  Deep Purple about it. The second track, "Back In The Day", again demonstrates a 'busy' style that is a trademark of much of the album, especially the tracks featuring vocals. Whilst I'm on the subject of vocals, I have to say that Billy does an OK job but keeps the vocals fairly low in the mix. I actually think that by pitching the pace of the tracks at such a frantic pace he may have made life more difficult for himself in the vocal department. Now that I've described one vocal track, I've pretty much described them all, as they all stick to the same formula. The rumbling bass is very much in evidence on the first instrumental - third tack "The Suspense Is Killing Me". Given the fact that this is so much better than the two previous tracks featuring vocals, the thought "why bother with the vocals" may well first make itself known. Then again by the time you listen to "Something She Said" with it's 60s/Beatles chorus you may have dismissed that thought.

"Dreams Of Discontent" is a spacey instrumental that is a welcome departure from the more frantic majority of numbers. "Taj" on the other hand is an instrumental that executes that frantic style well. The last 5 tracks on the album are instrumentals. "A Tower In The Sky" and "Long Walk Home" are both quirky funky numbers that work well and add welcome variation to the pace. These are followed by the very fast "Indisputable Truth #1" which is the only instrumental track that really doesn't make the grade for me. Although, it's existence is almost justified because it provide a suitable contrast to the gentle ballad "Hope". "A Million Tears Ago" completes the album in the familiar frantic manner.

This isn't an immediate album and it will take quite a few listen to get into the "groove" that is a common feature of many of the tracks. Whilst I did start to appreciate it, I actually found some of the instrumentals where Billy deviated from it to be my favorite tracks.

Adrian Legg - Inheritance
Wednesday, 13 April, 2005

More info: www.favorednation.com , www.adrianlegg.com

Verdict (& Rating): Acoustic wizardry (80%)

This came along with the Neal Schon & Billy Sheehan albums who bit both fit within the modus operandi of Mood Swings. However, other than recognizing the name as that of a guitarist, I was pretty unaware of Adrian's work. As you will notice from the 'more info' link above this is released on the Favored Nations record label which is owned by Steve Vai.  In fact, it is Adrian's second album for the label and his nineth overall.

A bit of research turned up that Joe Satriani describes Adrian as "simply  the best acoustic player I've ever heard" and that he was voted "Acoustic Guitarist of the Decade" by Guitarist magazine. All this convinced me that he was held in high esteem by his fellow guitarists, but not that his music would have any appeal to us mere mortal with zilch talent in the music department.

As an overall description of the album, the music could be described as expertly crafted and played classical acoustic guitar music. However, Adrian throws in plenty of variations on the theme. For example, opening track "Nefertiti - What A Sweetie!" add a dash of Delta Blues and the excellent "More Fun In The Swamp" takes the dash of the blues and adds a Cajun tang. Elsewhere "Doublejigs" fuses English & Irish folk flavours.

If you're a guitarist, I fairly confident this is the type of music that will have to sitting down thinking "I wish I could do that!" as you admire Adrian's technical expertise. Rather unusually for something that has appeal on that level I find the album to be a joy to listen to and believe it or not the thought "I wish he would plug in and crank it up" never occurs during listening!

 

Neal Schon - I on U
Wednesday, 13 April, 2005

More info: http://www.favorednations.com/

Verdict (& Rating:): Instrumental gold (90%)

Neal Schon will be known to most Mood Swings readers as the lead guitarist in AOR Kings Journey as well as number of other projects such as Hardline, Bad English and more recently Soul Sirkus. In addition Neal Schon has also released a number of solo albums. His collaboration with Jan Hammer "Untold Passion" made into my own collection.

This time he has teamed up with keyboadist and songwriter Igor Len who is also co-producer. Adding a human touch to the drumming on the project is Omar Hakim.

One of my favorite instrumental guitar albums is "Staring at the Sun" by Neil Zaza (which incidently features Journey members Valory & Smith). What I liked about that album was the fact that the album was filled with instrumental 'songs' rather than pieces of music that had been crafted solely for the guitarist to shred over. Neal & Igor have taken a similar approach here with equally as good, if not possibly better results.

Opening track, "Blue Passion", does a rather good job of establishing Neal's credentials as a superb guitarist as he soars over the music. Some of the tracks could be described as AOR instrumentals, the title track and "Highland" being two examples. These remind me of the Neil Zaza album and also the couple of impressive instrumentals in the Journey boxed set. Tracks like "Loner's Dream" are a nod to his work with Jan Hammer. "It Will Happen" has an Eastern flavour that reminds of Marty Friedman's solo albums. An important element of the album is that it also includes the use if modern technology to craft some comtemporary tracks for Neal to add his signature guitar work to, such as the jazzy ambience of "Timeless Motion" and dreamy "Urban Angel".  Of course, Neal can't resist the urge to let loose a something a more uptempo in the form of "Burning Bridges"

Sometimes less in more and by showing some restraint Neal has created a very listenable instrumental album which is a perfect showcase for his guitar playing and proving that there is more to a good instrumental album than simply a shred-feast.

Indrazor - Cocoon To Butterfly
Tuesday, 12 April, 2005

More info: www.indrazor.fr.st  

Verdict (& Rating): Avant-garde progressive music (60%)

This French outfit started life in 1997 as Weeping Silence playing 'atmospheric Death Metal'. Since then they endured a few personnel changes, released a few demos and have taken a musical journey that now sees the band playing progressive rock. 'Cocoon To Butterfly" is the band first proper CD release with reworked version of songs from earlier demo releases. The current lineup consists of Antoine Cailliez on keyboards (also songwriter), Clement Cailliez on lead guitars, Sylvain Masure on rhythm guitars, Erwan Lombard on bass, Julien Debus on drums and Julien Tartar on sax, tambourine and backing vocals. The bands influences for this album range from Floyd, Frank Zappa, Bowie, King Crimson to Porcupine Tree to Depeche Mode to Tori Amos.

Opener "Medieval Life" is busy track. The closest I can think of as a comparison is King Crimson. This sets the tone for the majority of the tracks on the album. When I was listening to the album just after it arrived my wife walked in and her passing comment was that the vocalist sounded like a bit like Neil Hannon from pop band The Divine Comedy. I haven't been able to come up with a better comparison. On a couple of ocassions, "First Meeting" and "Darker Than Ever", the band goes for jazz-blues sound. They take this a step further on "Knocking On The Door" which is fully fledged bluesy barroom boogie. "On The Highway" features some 'fuzzy' guitar work that reminds me of Neil Young's electric style.In the midst of the busy song arrangements sits a medieval acoustic ballad called "Wild Winter".

Overall I found the album a bit too 'avande-garde' for my tastes. When I look over their influences such as Zappa, Bowie and Crimson, this maybe isn't too surprising as I find the output of those artists only ocassionally matching my tastes.

Sanity - Live at 22
Wednesday, 16 February, 2005

 

More Info: www.sanity.nl

Verdict: Solid Progressive Metal (70%)

Sanity are a Dutch progressive metal band that play "straightforward symphonic, melodic rock with a touch of metal". In common with their Demo release from 2003 this package features both video and audio components - in this case a DVD of video footage from a concert recorded in late 2004 and an audio CD of the soundtrack.

On the DVD side of things we get some straightforward footage of the band on stage during a concert. It gives the impression that it is more a group of people watching the video being shot rather than a camera recording a "proper gig". No matter, it provides the faces and actions behind the music.

After an atmospheric symphonic start to proceedings, the first proper track, "No One Sleeps Tonight", reveals the progressive metal style of the band which is part Dream Theater and part Queensryche with the keyboards edging more toward progressive rock than progressive metal. On top of this foundation the singer puts in an emotional performance as he swoops and soars. The closest comparison probably being David Bowie. The band maintain this style throughout with only a few tracks diverging from the formula. For example, "Lonely At The World", starts life as a slow ballad but develops into pomp-metal similar to either Magnum or Demon. For me the band seem to really hit their stride on the two final tracks "Together As One" and "Victims". In some of the other tracks the music feels 'constrained', yet on these tracks the band seem to play with more passion and, for example, the lead guitarist makes more of an impression.

Sanity, given the obvious constraints imposed by self recording and releasing a album, have created an effective showcase for their talents. The next step for the band now must surely be to ather together a set of songs of the quality of "Together As One" & "Victims" and release a full studio album.

The DropZines - Between Sheets and Walls
Monday, 14 February, 2005

 

More info: www.dropzines.com

Verdict: Cautious indie-pop (66%)

The DropZine are apparently "A COLLECTION OF CIRCA 1930'S PERIODICALS DEDICATED TO ESSAYS ON NATIONAL DEPRESSION AND MASS EXHAUSTION". The DropZines, the band, are a Pennsylvanian trio, who play Indie-Pop. They consist of singer/songwriter/guitarist Shawn Stabley, bassist Tony Romanell (although Michael Brenneman was the bassist on the album) and  the vocal harmonies & percussion of Jason Kline.

Opener "Sad Tuesday" is typical of what is on offer here. Jangly and buzzing guitars are combined with 60s style vocal harmonies and song structures. Shawn has a 'forlorn' edge to his vocals which fits in with the general sense melancholy that prevades these surprisingly 'bouncy' songs. There a a lot of contradictions in what I've just written and the band do fuse a few different styles making them difficult to put a tag on. Anyway putting the detailed descriptive labelling to one side, "Sad Tuesday" is a pleasant sounding indie-pop track. The same can be said for virtually all of tracks on the album. The most interesting tracks for me were the ones where they play around little and deviate from that formula. "Wire" adds a more prominent bassline making it standout. "At The Party" slows things down and adopts a more rootsy style that kind of reminds me of The Jayhawks. "I'll Take You Downtowne" is like a mixture of The Cars and possibly chilled out Ramones.

So at the end of the album we're left with a somewhat brief & pleasant album. This is in keeping with what seems like a preference for 'slices of pop' rather than grandiose anthems. Maybe it is because I tend to listen more to rock music than pop music, but I found this a little too 'safe' to really grab my attention.

El Kapitan - Retroscape
Friday, 11 February, 2005

 

 

More info: www.elkapitan.nu

Verdict: Relaxation for rockers (84%)

El Kapitan consists of Kirk Bartholomew and Marc Soucy. This is the band's third release, although this the first time they have come to my attention. Their earlier releases combined post-industrial electro with metal and progressive rock ("Haywire") and delved into techno-house-meets-modern-rock("Danse Dun Backwurdz"). It seems like top of the band FAQ are questions about their name. So to set the record straight and to quell your curiousity it has nothing to do with Spanish and the band actually take their name from the famous mountain cliff site in Yosemite National Park.

The band describe their music on this album as "atmospheric rock instumentals for a new age". It is designed to fill a gap somewhere between New Age, Jazz and Ambient Electronica. The inspiration behind the project are the bands in the 60s and 70s who pioneered the rock instumental genre - Traffic, The Moody Blues, Pink Floyd, Cream, Santana, Jethro Tull, ELO, King Crimson.... They have emphaised the grander, less intrusive side of the music to create relaxing music as a "soundtrack for life for the rocker in us all". Yeah, these guys actually want you to listen to this album whilst doing something else (driving down the highway or reading a book) or just to chill out. Mmmmm...........it is not often I come across a band that want their music to be in the background.

On my MP3 player I had this on just after the Retroheads who were the subject of an earlier review. Sometimes I'd be listening and wonder where the vocals had disappeared to only to realise that the player had moved onto another album.

Of course, before your start any relaxation exercise you've got to get your breathing down to a slow rhytmical movement. What better way to do that than with a cover of Pink Floyd's "Breathe". By covering Floyd on the first track they set themselves a challenge - can they entertain the listener enough or will he simply replace El Kapitan by a Pink Floyd album? "Concord Shores" continues where "Breathe" left off - the same fluid guitar work, albeit with a more definite drum beat. With "Camerada" we move from the work of Dave Gilmour to that of Carlos Santana as the inspiration. It is usually this track where I realise that the transition on my MP3 player I discussed earlier has happened. Latin-flavoured jazz-rock with a neat little piano section stuck in the middle. The album's standout track.

"Mysteria" sees a move back to the more "spacey" guitar driven tracks and a hint of the masters of synth rock - Tangerine Dream. The oddly titled "Bowie In Traffic" moves things back a little further with more of 60s feel. In fact, this track also reappears, but with an acoustic treatment, as the final (bonus?) track on the album. Whilst the electric version here is OK, I prefer the acoustic version. After all this relaxing, you'll need something to stir your senses again and this comes in the form of title track, "Retroscape" which has a more urgent feel than the rest of the album as is powered along by overdriven guitar. Relaxation is the name of the game again on the melancholy "Trail Of Tears". Those of you old enough will remember a cop show called Miami Vice and perhaps the famous theme tune. "Marblehead Vice" plays homage to  the composer of the theme tune - Jan Hammer.

"Southwind" is a bit of a "hotch potch" of styles as the band seem to be playing tribute to Deep Purple, Jethro Tull and possibly a few others. "Imagine That?" returns to the style of "Mysteria" - a slow backbeat with fluid guitar work on top. As mentioned earlier the acoustic version of "Bowie In Traffic" closes the album.

This album sits nicely in the background when you're doing something else. Want a short break from whatever you're doing and it will work it's way to the foreground and catch your attention when maybe you'll be inspired with a new idea and you can get back to what you were doing before. Initially I found the concept behind this album a bit strange and expected to hear "muzac" that annoyed rather than relaxed. Instead I've found it "does what it says on the tin" - rock music you can relax to.

Charlie Read - Read Between The Lines
Friday, 11 February, 2005

More info: www.charlieread.com

Verdict: A varied and enjoyable guitar album (83%)

Charlie Read is a busy man. He teaches music to 60+ students and still finds time to work towards a baccalaureate degree (Organisational Leadership) and to work on and complete this CD which was recorded between May and October of 2004. The album is a real family affair with Charlie's sons contributing to the album.

Charlie took up playing guitar when his family relocated to Australia and he found himself with no friends and nothing to do. When he went back to the US he spent some time playing full time in the Ohio rock scene, before deciding to "get a real job" and becoming a photographer. A few years ago Charlie gave that up and returned to his first love and started teaching music

" Why I Oughta...." starts of the album in fine style demonstrating that this is going to be all about Charlie and his guitar. This is followed up by the Santana-ish "Circle's End" which has a commercial edge to it. My two favorite tracks on the album are "Splash Rag" which is next and "Then and Now" which is towards the end. Both of these tracks have a blues-rock feel to them that reminds of the late and great Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Of course any good instrumental album should take you through a few mood changes and "Kentucy Summer" give a dramatic change of pace with it's acoustic almost classical feel. Maybe it is just the title, but "In The Out Door" reminds of Led Zep a bit. It has retro feel to it and harks back to the 60s. That retro feel continues on "You're The One" which Charlie describes as "prom night at Surfer's Paradise".

The folk spiritual, " Wayfaring Stranger", is given an effective blues-rock treatment. "Odyssey" is a slower track and I haven't yet decided if it is contemplative or "just a bit of noddling around on the guitar". No such doubts about "Then and Now" which I mentioned earlier. "Trail of Tears" is a melancholy track, with a hint of Al Di Meola, which is an suitable prelude to "With God All Things Are Possible". This is a big bright track with a strong melody where the guitar seems to sing the title as a chorus. An excellent track (and message) with which to close the album.

With an instrumental album there is always a danger that the music is going to become a bit monochrome, but Charlie avoids this by utilizing a variety of style and keeping the tracks lengths sensible.

Retroheads - Retrospective
Friday, 04 February, 2005

More info: www.retroheads.com , www.unicornrecords.com

Verdict: 70s prog revamped (86%)

The Retroheads,  consisting of the follow people:

, was started by Tore in Norway in 2003. The band consists of musicians of various musical backgrounds ranging from pop and rock to jazz and world music.Their objective is to play music with total creative freedom.

The name of the band really gives away where they are coming from. These retroheads take us back to the 70's when Progressive Rock was at it's height, with bands like Pink Floyd, Yes and Genesis in their heyday. The band recreate all those vintage keyboard sounds such as Mellotron, Hammond B3 and MiniMoog, but they do it using the latest technology. That approach also summarises the overall impression from the album - the past revisted, but with an up to date perspective. The album has a vibrant feel to it which goes against the expectations for such a project.

Right from opening track, "Earthsong", the band seem able to gel together to create some  fresh classic progressive rock. The tracks combine elements from lots of musical genres without ever diverting the band from their central prog rock theme. "Judgment Day" eventually develops into a funky fusion feast with the rhythm section getting somewhere close to reggae. Another factor which contributes to album's success is the dual vocals of Tore and Kirstin-Ann. Kristin-Ann's vocals parts on "Dreams" add the necessary heavenly quality. In terms of the influences coming through, well I heard quite a few - Pink Floyd, Camel, Genesis, Gentle Giant, Yes - and experts in this musical genre could doubtless come up several more. There is enough variety here to keep you listening all the way through.

When describing the album, it is important to say that those keyboards mentioned at the start of the review are an important part of the bands overall sound and combine with some excellent guitar work to create an effectve reminder of how good 70s prog can still sound. It is clear the band have a real passion for this genre.

 

Kaos Moon - The Circle Of Madness
Tuesday, 01 February, 2005

More info: www.unicornrecords.com

Verdict: Successful return (75%)

Despite the fact that this is only their second album, Kaos Moon have a long history. The band was started by Bernard Ouellette & Michel Caron as Moon Project, before changing it's name to Kaos Moon way back in 1985 with addition of more band members. The band went their separate ways in 1987 as the result of tensions among the musicians and their manager. In 1993 the band was reformed with some new members and the first album, "After The Storm", was released. As a result of a meeting with Michel Street-Pere of Unicorn Record in 2002, the band (now consisting of bassist Norman Lachapelle, guitarists Sylvain Provost & Alain Bertrand and old Kaos Moon members Alain Pothier & Benolt Chaput. With Magella Cormier and Bernard Ouellette on drums, with Bernard also handling vocals) was reformed to record this 2004 release.

Opening track, "Electric Light Avenue", initially has a slightly Eastern feel to it before maturing to the an more typical Kaos Moon sound. The Kaos Moon sound being a mixture of The Enid, Marillion, Pink Floyd, Yes, Saga and Kansas. By the time I've come up with that description, track 3 (Crawl) arrives with funky baseline and general demeanour more in tune with Spock's Beard or Transatlantic. "The Waves" & "The Wall of Silence" both mix Marillion and Kansas. By the time "SOAB" arrives I'm in the mood for hitting the next button as it doesn't really add anything new or interesting to the listening experience. George W kicks off "Presidency". Mmmmm......maybe we hear enough of him elsewhere without having him invade my album collection! In common with many other tracks the keyboards have a sound reminiscent of  "The Enid". The title track, which seems to have a lighter atmosphere that the rest of the album, finishes the album off with a catchy prog song!

The good overall sound and production result in an enjoyable listening experience.

Uncle Sid - Rock In The Universe
Friday, 28 January, 2005

More Info: www.unclesid.com

Verdict: Generic hard rock (62%)

Canadians Uncle Sid formed back in 1993. Their debut performance was along with Uriah Heep. They've also played live along with bands such as April Wine, BOC and Nazareth. The current lineup consists of Wolf on vocals, Henry Soto on guitar, Steve Everett on bass and Dale Salive on drums. This is tha band's full album release.

The band's sound harks back to 70s or 80s classic rock, as you'll discover from opening track, Break'n Free onwards. Keeping faithfully to this theme, some of the track titles and lyrics display the simplistic tendancies that are typical of this era. For example, the Aerosmityh meets ACDC/Rose Tattoo "Dance For Me" doesn't display much in the way of political correctness.

Anyway enough of the historical analysis, what about the music on the rest of the album? Well, right from those opening tracks the band crunch their way though a set of it has to be said fairly standard hard rock meets metal tracks as though Van Halen & Motley Crue were still the kings of the airwaves. Pick of the bunch for me was "I'm The One" which has a more melodic edge to it. Instrumentally the band do a good job with the materal provided and the vocals are powerful and generally good, perhaps being strained a little to hard in places. The songs just don't let and show themselves in the best light.

 

JEBO - Demo 04
Friday, 28 January, 2005

More Info: www.jebomusic.co.uk

Verdict: Classy progressive pop (80%)

JEBO was intially created as studio endeveour by Rob Allen (guitars) and Jeff France (drums), who both played in K-Passa. The band then moved into the live arena with the recruitment of Lawrie Jones (bass), Phil Dudd (keyboards) and James Hollingsworth (vocals).

This short EP is a taster for a CD which is being recorded with Johnny Burns (Genesis etc). This neatly leads us into dicsussing the music because Peter Gabriel is one possible comparison for James' voice.

Initially I wanted to describe the band as a progressive rock outfit. They have a distinctly "English" feel to their music that reminds me of Marillion or Genesis. And yet, this is only part of the story. There is another side to their music that could almost be described as ecletic pop. Scanning their website before writing this review I noted that one other reviewer mentioned Radiohead and even Pearl Jam.

"Nowhere Left To Hide" is a rich track that makes use of the musicians progressive pasts and yet delves into the melancholy associated with modern heros like Radiohead. "Sinking Without You" is a piano based track that is like a mixture of Marillion and Deacon Blue.

"7th Day" is a live track that proves the band have no problems reproducing the studio sound in a live situtation. In fact, the quality of the recording, combined with the clear tone of James's voice, make this a very pleasant listening experience.

Mood Swings - Nigel Wilson - All Rights Reserved