One way home --- The Hooters --- 1987 (Columbia)
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Inspired by their hit single “Satellite”, I bought this album and thought the chances were that it would be a mixture of mostly mediocre songs, with perhaps one or two the calibre of “Satelite” mixed in. How wrong I was! This is a powerhouse of an album, and some of the tracks on it are so good that they leave the single, good though it is, in the dust. It's the Hooters' third album, and gets going with the aforementioned single, a great slice of commercial rock, with mandolin, harmonica, accordion and melodica giving it a very celtic feel. It's a stomping rocker, themed on the idea of Evangelist preachers who care for nothing but money, kind of the same idea explored by Genesis in “Jesus he knows me” on “We can't dance”, a decade later. ”Jump in the river and learn to swim/ God's gonna wash away all your sins/ And if you still can't see the light/ God's gonna buy you a sateliite.”

Lead vocalist Eric Bazilian has a raw, rough, raspy voice that reminds you of perhaps a younger Rod Stewart with hints of John Cougar Mellencamp, a voice that instantly grabs you from the moment he starts singing. “Karla with a K” deepens and expands the celtic influence, with a song the band wrote about an Irish street singer they met on their travels. It's not bad, but “Johnny B”, which follows it, is far better, with its powerful keyboard hooks and jangly guitar, not to mention its extremely catchy chorus. It is however “Graveyard waltz” which stands out as the best track on the album, its eerie story of dancing skeletons and witches underpinned by a swirling, bayou rhythm, and carried on the powerful keyboard work of Rob Hyman as he paints a lurid picture of straying into places where the living should not walk. ”We danced so close/ We were teenage ghosts/ Doing that graveyard waltz.” Spooky stuff!

After the splendour of “Graveyard waltz”, it's a bit of a comedown to hear “Fightin' on the same side”, which is rather ordinary, but then comes the title track, and we're back on, excuse the pun, track. A monster of a song, it's again carried by the punchy keyboards of Hyman, but joined more forcefully this time by Bazilian's guitar as a reggae beat carries it along. The only real ballad follows, and it's a corker. “Washington's Day” is a mandolin-introduced, piano-led song of wishing to be home with your loved one, and it goes along on a waltzy rhythm, just making you sway from side to side --- try it, you can't resist! ”When the wars that men wage are all through/ And their monuments all put on display/ Tell the hungry and stranded, the poor empty-handed/ We'll meet them on Washington's Day.”

The album winds up on a great little rocker, “Engine 999”, some glorious guitar and a fitting end to what has been a fairly consistently great album, something of a surprise considering I wasn't expecting that much, and had never heard of the Hooters up till then. If you like your rock tinged with a southern flavour and some interesting instrumentation, then you could do a lot worse than take a listen to “One way home”. Just don't go wandering off down any dark paths....

TRACKLISTING

1. Satellite
2. Karla with a K
3. Johnny B
4. Graveyard waltz
5. Fightin' on the same side
6. One way home
7. Washington's Day
8. Hard rockin' summer
9. Engine 999

The Stranger --- Billy Joel --- 1977 (Columbia)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ranger1977.jpg


One of Billy Joel's most successful and celebrated albums, “The Stranger” has it all. From its signature whistling introduction to the title track (which also ends the album) to classics like “Just the way you are” and “She's always a woman”, there's something just about everyone who listens to this album will recognise. It kicks off with “Movin' out (Anthony's song)”, a great little rocker and the tale of leaving smalltown America behind to search for the bright lights. Some great horn parts in this opener, but it's the title track, up next, where things really ratchet up a gear. Introduced, as mentioned, by a solitary whistling tune paralleling a soft piano melody, the tune soon gets going with an uptemop beat and the tale of how we all ”Have a face that we hide away forever/ And we take them out and show ourselves/ When everyone has gone.” It's a powerful song with a lot to say, some cool guitar licks and a funky jazz/rock beat, but the enduring image is of the opening and closing piano/whistle melody. This leads into the classic “Just the way you are”, which is one of three ballads on the album, and which surely needs no real coverage: everyone will have heard this at some time or another, if not Billy's version then the cover by Barry White. Beautiful, understated ballad with a lovely message, some really effective digital piano and soulful sax helping lift this into the annals of the true classics.




More important though is the next track, and longest on the album, the seven-minute-plus epic “Scenes from an Italian restauarant”, which starts off slowly, as two friends share a meal with ”A bottle of red/ A bottle of white/ All depends upon your appetite” and then begin reminiscing about the days of their youth, recalling two old friends, Brenda and Eddie, as the music turns boppy and upbeat, showcasing Joel's piano playing skill, as the song charts the meeting, ill-fated marriage (Everyone said they were crazy/ Brenda you know you're much too lazy/ And Eddie could never afford to live that kind of life!”) and eventual and inevitable breakup of the couple, as the song winds back on itself, returning to the original theme of the opening and fades out.




“Only the good die young” is good fun, poppy and I guess quite controversial for its time, with its talk of Catholic schoolgirls and its references to perhaps underage sex. Again the horn section are in fine form here. Next we have another of the mega-singles, and the second ballad, “She's only a woman”, played acoustically on piano with no other accompaniment. The album ends on “Everybody has a dream”, the third ballad, then the theme from “The Stanger” fades in to close out the album. A true masterclass on how to create a lasting monument to your talent, “The Stranger” is Billy Joel at his best, and if you haven't heard it up to now, here's your chance. I heartily recommend it.

TRACKLISTING
1. Movin' out (Anthony's song)
2. The Stranger
3. Just the way you ware
4. Scenes from an Italian restaurant
5. Vienna
6. Only the good die young
7. She's always a woman
8. Get it right the first time
9. Everybody has a dream/ The Stranger (reprise)



Suggested further listening: “52nd Street”, “Glass houses”, “The bridge” and of course “Piano Man: the very best of Billy Joel”

Out of the blue --- ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) --- 1977 (Jet)
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One of the first albums I ever owned, ELO's “Out of the blue” was a huge success when it was released, garnering five hit singles from the double album, the most famous of which of course is the chart-topping “Mr. Blue Sky”. The album was composed entirely by founder member and creative force Jeff Lynne, was their seventh studio release and marked the end of their proper progressive rock and orchestral leanings which had been evidenced on earlier albums like “El Dorado” and “Face the music”. The next album, another huge success, “Discovery”, took the band in a whole new direction, so in many ways “Out of the blue” marks the end of a particular period in the band's history, and a subtle sea change in their musical aspirations.

Odd, really, when you think about it. This was their most successful album to date, and yet two years later ELO would release “Discovery”, a total departure from the sort of music featured here --- while still retaining the classic ELO sound --- which would go on to spawn yet more hit singles! You would think the old adage “If it ain't broke don't fix it” would apply, and yet that's exactly what they did. They had a hugely successful album, hit singles aplenty, and then they went and changed their direction for the next album, and THAT ended up being mega-successful, too! Could these boys do no wrong?

But to concentrate on this album, which starts off with a fade-in to the first track, a fast, boppy and very commercial number, “Turn to stone” was the first single released from the album, and features the by-then famous multi-vocals that were the trademark of ELO. Halfway through the song there's a very snappy section of vocal which could almost --- almost! --- lay claim to being the first instance of rap on a rock record. “It's over” is a sparse, tense ballad, equating a love affair with the passage of summer --- feeding in almost instantly to the overall theme of side three of the album, the weather. It begins with the end section of “Mr. Blue Sky”, again from side three, and it runs into the next single, “Sweet talkin' woman”, introduced on a violin opening before it takes off as a poppy and commercial song, perhaps continuing to explore the theme of the previous song, as Lynne searches for the woman (the “sweet talkin' woman”) he lost in that song. “Across the border” is a song written very much with the intention of conveying the impression of a steam-train, again with violin intro and kicking into a Spanish/Mexican theme which pulls the song along at a decent pace, with a real sense of urgency (”I gottta get that southbound train tonight!”) and ends with a thunder of drums and keys that sounds just like a train rocketing past.

On the original album (yes, I know, here comes Grandad again!) this was the end of side one, and side two begins with the sounds of traffic merging with an orchestral tune-up as “Night in the city” gets underway. You can also just hear, if you're nerdy enough, the end strains of the opener, “Turn to stone” merging into the first few bars. It's followed by “Starlight”, a nice, breezy little tune with some really nice keyboard, and thence into “Jungle”, which is enjoyable nonsense, with its African beats and its silly story about animals that can talk.

The orchestration ramps up then for “Believe me now”, a very short (less than a minute and a half) piece, mostly taken up by dramatic, powerful and stately music, with Lynne singing the only lyric through a vocoder right at the end, and that segues directly into “Steppin' out”, another ballad which rides along on an electric piano line with violin, but is then orchestrated, with more vocoder work and a reprise at the end. And so side two of the album, and record one, comes to a close.

Side three is taken up by a full symphonic composition, lasting in total over eighteen minutes, and broken into four movements. It's called “Concerto for a rainy day”, and the four parts are linked by the central theme of weather, and how it affects people. Opening with simple tinkling piano, a weird vocoder part naming the concerto and then (as might be expected) the sound of rain, and crashing cymbals to denote thunder, the first movement is called “Standing in the rain”, and is sung with some urgency, as Lynne laments waiting out in the downpour: ”Standing in the rain/ Getting soaking wet/ I'm doing my best/ But what do I get?” The orchestra really comes into its own on this, and throughout the concerto, leading into the second part, “Big wheels”, a slower, more restrained effort, still backed by the sounds of rain falling, and again using the “Mr. Blue Sky” theme to introduce itself, with more vocoder speaking the words “Big wheels, keep turning...”

The mood of “Summer and lightning” brightens as the weather begins to clear, and though we can still hear rain as the third movement progresses, it is getting lighter, until finally it is gone altogether, and the final movement, and one of ELO's biggest ever hit singles, “Mr. Blue Sky” brings the concerto to a glorious finale with its upbeat, happy, joyous celebration of sun and the summer. It's probably a good bet that just about everyone knows the song, but what I didn't know for years was that at the very end, as the orchestra winds down and the finale is played out, the vocoder message right at the very end says “Please turn me over”, and not as I had believed for decades, “Mister Blue Sky why”, or any variation on that. It is in fact an instruction to flip over the record and hear side four. Clever, but the idea will have been completely lost on today's kids... turn what over??

There's little doubt that “Concerto for a rainy day” marks the highpoint of the album, and although it's not quite all downhill from there, the final side contains not too much of interest, besides the clever and evocative instrumental “The whale”, and the closer, another hit single, the quite brilliant “Wild West hero”, with its cowboy themes and horsey sound-effects.

For nerds like me in the late seventies, this was one of THE albums to have. It was double, so expensive. It had the concerto on it, so you could feel superior to the kids listening to the likes of the Sweet or even Thin Lizzy, and it had one hell of a cool gatefold sleeve. Even listening to it now, over thirty years later, “Out of the blue” has stood the test of time, and whereas many ELO records now sound somewhat dated, the technology and themes on this album, and the way it was produced and put together make it seem years ahead of its time.

It's such a pity they went disco after this...

TRACKLISTING

1. Turn to stone
2. It's over
3. Sweet talkin' woman
4. Across the border
5. Night in the city
6. Starlight
7. Jungle
8. Believe me now
9. Steppin' out
10. Concerto for a rainy day
i) Standing in the rain
ii) Big wheels
iii) Summer and lightning
iv) Mr. Blue Sky
11. Sweet is the night
12. The Whale
13. Birmingham blues
14. Wild West hero



Suggested further listening: “Face the music”, “El Dorado”, “Time”, “Secret messages”, “Discovery” “A new world record”

Babylon --- Ten --- 2000 (Frontiers)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...en-babylon.jpg

I like concept albums. I've featured one or two here over the last few months. But then again, it's always helpful to understand the concept, and though I love this album, I find it very hard to tie down the actual story, and my internet searches have not helped (Wikipedia, how could you?!), leaving me with a basic idea of the concept, but not the whole thing. Sadly, the songs on the album don't offer much help in contextualising the plot either; though some obviously refer to and in some cases move the plot along, others appear just to be random songs. Nevertheless, this (admittedly big) problem aside, I find “Babylon” to be one of the premier Ten albums I have listened to.

For those who don't know who Ten are, they're a hard-rock/melodic rock/AOR band formed in Manchester in the mid-nineties by vocalist and frontman Gary Hughes and guitarist Vinny Burns. I have featured Hughes' solo meisterwerk, “Once and future king”, a kind of rock opera based around the Arthurian legend, early on in my journal, so if you end up liking this album go back and check his double-album out. Ten are generally lesser-known, and though they pop up from time to time in mags like Classic Rock presents AOR, you won't generally see them on the front page of, say, NME (is that still going?) or even Rolling Stone. Being somewhat unknown does not, however, necessarily translate into mediocrity, and to my mind, Ten have the quality, the passion and the musical ability that should have made them by now household names. But so it goes.

“Babylon” is their fifth album, and is, as I say, a concept, which is of a tragic love story set in the future. How far, I don't know, but it must be at least a hundred years on, as either the Earth, or a colony called Babylon, is protected from outside forces by a shield called the Dome, and referred to in the opening song. The story concerns a worker at the huge Cryotech Industries research facility called Lex, and his love for a woman who ends up being murdered. (Disclaimer: I am largely shooting in the dark here, as like I said above, hard facts and information on the story are tough to get, and so I am extrapolating from what I have gleaned from the songs and the links on the album, and tried my best to piece together the story. I may have got it wrong, and if any other Ten fan reading this has more insight, do please let me know.)

The album is a mix of power rockers and some beautiful ballads, the latter of which are really Gary Hughes' forte. Throughout the album, the narrative is maintained and moved along by the device of radio announcements and recordings from the Cryotech labs. The album opens up with the announcer, who works for Meridian, presumably the state radio station, as he refers to it as ”Meridian: the Voice of Babylon”, wrapping up the news bulletin, and the opening track “The Stranger” powers right in. It's introduced on a squealing keyboard line, then the guitars punch in, and the song gets going. It seems to be setting the scene, as Hughes sings of looking for ”A better life, outside the tomb.” He also mentions “carbon copies”, possibly alluding to clones, which it seems may form a large part of the workforce at, or on, Babylon. The song is a good rocker, solid, very catchy and with some great guitar from both Burns and John Halliwell. Hughes' voice sings out loud and clear as he paints a picture of discontent, a feeling of being trapped, and a yearning for a better life.

It's quite a long song, over seven minutes, the longest on the album though in fairness there are few tracks on this under four minutes, and not that many under five. As “The Stranger” comes to an abrupt, guitar-shredding halt, we hear the voice of the Cryotech Industries' computer as someone (presumably the hero, Lex) logs in to his workstation. The computer however only recognises him as “327”, lending further weight to the possibility that there are many clones of Lex, and other people, working here. The next track is another hard rocker: “Barricade” continues where the previous track left off, the vocals higher in the mix this time, and a nice bass line carrying parts of the song. This would appear to be the point at which Lex/327 meets his lover, and it's mostly a love song, or possibly more precisely a lust song as he realises ”I've seen the lightning/ Now I'm waiting for the thunder/ For I'm imprisoned by the spell/ She has me under.” Great guitar work again here, in fact the keyboards take a real backseat to allow Vinny and John to battle it out ---- the smell of burning fretboards is everywhere!

Another sudden end to this song and we're into the first slow song, though not quite a ballad. “Give in this time” is mid-paced (yeah, I love using that phrase, don't I?) and a very commercial song, just screams out for airplay, which it never got. Ten really display their AOR credentials here, and raise the bar with the first proper ballad, “Love became the law”, a dark, moody piece carried on heavy keyboards courtesy of the legendary Don Airey. The drumwork of Greg Morgan should not be understated here, either, as it really adds to the atmosphere of what could have been a sweet, sugary ballad, but comes across as more a song of defiance and perhaps forlorn hope.

We're back rockin' then with “The heat”, with some great guitar solos and again a really catchy chorus. (Sidenote: calling your band Ten is not a good idea. When searching for information, particularly on lyrical content, the term is too common to yield proper results. I kept getting links to Ten by Pearl Jam, the Ten best songs, and so on. VERY hard to research, so forgive the dearth of information and the possibly totally incorrect conclusions and observations here, but I had little to go on. They don't even have an offical website, or if they do, it's lost in the Web...)

Back to the story though, and the Voice of Meridian informs us that a young woman who worked for Cryotech has been found dead, and police are treating the death as murder. Her name is Jen Jarrak, and I can only assume that she is Lex's lover. This is borne out by the inclusion of the next ballad, the first true one really, the stunning “Silent rain”, as Lex mourns the loss of his woman. It's a powerful song, with some great lines --- ”There was once a time/ When true love drew man and woman together” --- hinting that relationships are perhaps less based on love in this city/planet of the future, and ”We would prove we were more/ Than just antoher fairytale.” Great work on the piano here by Airey really gives the song proper heart, really tugs at the emotions.

“Timeless”, up next, is a huge slice of proto-rock, a snarling beast that I would think is meant to put into words and music the feelings of Lex as he faces life without Jen. ”All cried out and raw inside/ I lie awake at night and wonder why/ Someone tore the miracle from my life.” It's clear Lex is determined to get to the truth about Jen's killing, and the somewhat erratic keyboards and wild guitar on this track underline his perhaps fracturing state of mind. In this state he decides to go to work, and set a plan in motion that could be seen as insane, if indeed I am right in my assumption that he is trying to create a clone of Jen from the database at Cryotech.

“Black hearted woman” is okay, but nothing special, and if he is trying to recreate Jen then I can't imagine why Lex refers to her in this way, unless Jen is NOT the lover, and was in fact instrumental in her murder? Hard to say, when there's no actual record of the plot to confirm or correct your suspicions. Doesn't spoil the enjoyment of the album, but I would like to know at some point if I've got it right or not. Anyhow, I would probably put this track as the weakest on the album. It IS good, just not as good as the others on the album, and I really don't see how it fits into the storyline.


We then hear the computer guiding Lex through what is obviously an illegal operation, to create a “holosuite disc” which he calls “Angel”, presumably the clone he is trying to create of his lover. We're then taken into the heaviest track on the album, where Greg Morgan really gets to hammer those drums, and Ten get as close to thrash metal as any AOR band I have ever heard! “Thunder in Heaven” is exactly that, heavy rock thunder, and it absolutely gallops along on smoking guitar and frenetic keyboard. It's a powerful track, and you feel fairly exhausted when it hammers to a close, but the best has been saved for last.

The next announcement tells us that two sons of the founder of Cryotech have been killed, and we can probably assume from this that Lex, having found out that Jen had been murdered by them, or on their orders, possibly for having an illicit love affair, killed them. The Voice of Meridian notes that “this brings the recent spate of killings at Cryotech to three.” But, prior to this, there had only been one murder, and one murder can't possibly be described as a spate. Hmm. As the album comes to an end, Lex enters the holosuite at Cryotech --- interestingly, the computer no longer calls him “327”, but Lex --- and is reunited, digitally, with his dead lover, leading to the heart-rending conclusion.

The album closes on without question one of the most beautiful, heartfelt, emotional and powerful ballads I have ever heard in my life. “Valentine” is carried on a mournful piano line, while Hughes outdoes himself on vocals, wringing every last drop of emotion out of the lyric: ”So let the world lament/ This precious time we spent/ Stars that came and went.../ Eternal requiem/ I'll never find the strength/ To love like this again.” The track could probably have gone through on piano and vocal only, but then the drums kick in and the guitars of Vinny Burns and John Halliwell provide a final, tortured solo that absolutely lifts this track to the realms of ballad heaven, and it closes as it began, on the lonely piano as Lex is left to his fate.

I just would love to know if I've interpreted the story correctly, but whether I have or not, this is one album that really deserves to have more people know about it, and listen to it. It still for me stands as one of Ten's best efforts, with some truly excellent tracks and great examples of a band who were at the top of their game, but just never got the break they deserved. Write them off as another AOR band if you will, call them overrated or whatever you like, but do me a favour first: click the link below and listen to this album. It may just surprise you.

TRACKLISTING

1. The Stranger
2. Barricade
3. Give in this time
4. Love became the law
5. The heat
6. Silent rain
7. Timeless
8. Black hearted woman
9. Thunder in Heaven
10. Valentine



Suggested further listening: “X” (also called “Self-titled”), “The name of the rose”, “Return to Evermore”, “The robe”, “Spellbound”, “The twilight chronicles”, “Far beyond the world”. I have not yet listened to their new one, “Stormwarning”, but I bet it's great. Oh, and dont' forget Gary Hughes' “Once and future king”...

Third stage --- Boston --- 1986 (MCA)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...hird_Stage.jpg

Although by current standards today, eight years between albums is not seen as a particularly long hiatus, people had more or less given up on Boston recording a third album, after their excellent self-titled debut in 1976 gave us the superclassic “More than a feeling”, with follow-up and, in my opinion, much weaker album “Don't look back” hard on its heels in 1978. The wait seemed so long that when “Third stage” was pre-announced in the musical press in 1986 the tagline was “Third Boston album to be released --- this is NOT a sick joke!”

Indeed it was not, but as I said in the beginning, we had all more or less accepted the fact that two albums were all we were ever going to see from this American hard rock band, who would forever be known for THAT song. And no-one was particularly surprised: some bands released one album, some two, and were never heard from again. In fact, quite often the mega-success of a massive hit single like “More than a feeling” can have a negative effect on a band, forcing them to pull out every stop to try to equal or surmount that one classic, a feat which often is beyond their power.

But then, in 1986 came the promised third album, and it was called, appropriately enough, “Third stage”. In keeping with previous albums, the cover art featured a spaceship, though unlike the first two it was not a “flying saucer” and did not have the word BOSTON emblazoned across it. On the cover, it looks to be coming into orbit preparatory to land on a planet which looks similar to Earth, though it does seem to be a waterworld.

After all the fuss, I was expecting to be totally blown away from the start (or that it would be total and utter dog poo!) but instead we're treated to a soft, tender ballad, which really belongs more near the end of such an album. “Amanda” begins on acoustic guitar, then the electric comes in, and the distinctive voice of the late, lamented Brad Delp is heard once again gracing our speakers. It's a lovely song, concerned with a “seize the day before it's too late” theme, as Delp sings ”I don't think I can hide/ What I'm feeling inside/ Another day/ Knowing I love you”. The traditional Boston guitar sound is there too, and suddenly we're (almost) back in 1976, but things get going properly with the next track, “We're ready”, with the tempo kicking up and Tom Scholz's trademarked Rockman doing its thing. In fact, is there ANYTHING this guy doesn't do in this band? Here, he plays guitar, bass, piano, organ, drums, percussion, and Norwegian nose flute! Yeah, just kidding about that last one: it's a [i]Danish{/i] nose flute... What do you mean, there's no such thing? Would I make something like that up? I see. I had no idea you felt that way. Well then, there's nothing left to say, really, is there...?

Scholz also writes or co-writes almost every track here, and to be fair, there's not a bad one on the album. Even the next one up, an instrumental of sorts, called “The Launch”, being as it is initially made up of the sound of rocket engines firing and a solitary organ played by you-know-who, comes across as a really vital addition to the overall theme of the album, that of arriving somewhere new. Apparently, Boston wanted to call this album “Arrival”, but ABBA beat them to it... The guitars crash in for the second part of the instrumental, backed up by marching drums, and the whole thing comes across as very film-soundtrack-y. It leads into “Cool the engines”, another fast track dealing with the imminent destruction of the planet: ”We keep getting' hotter/ Movin' way too fast/ If we don't slow this fire down/ We're not gonna last!” Scholz's guitar is in heavy evidence again, but it's really Delp's incredible vocal range that carries the most weight on this song, pleading for calm in a world gone mad.


This is followed by a sort of reprise of the opener. “My destination” is exactly the same melody and lyrical structure as “Amanda”, and a lot slower with a more urgent vocal. Next is another instrumental, “A new world”, which is really nothing more than a short (less than a minute) guitar prelude to the second ballad --- if you count “Amanda” and “My destination” as essentially the same song. Even at that, “To be a man” is a powerful song, with snarling guitar and steady drums, and doesn't really stay a ballad for long. There's a really nice piano line that carries the verses, then we're into a real rocker, “I think I like it” which recalls the likes of “Rock and roll band” and “Long time” from the debut, showing once and for all that Boston are at heart first and foremost a rock band.

The penultimate track is split into two, the first part titled “Cant'cha say?” and starting off on an acapella chorus before the guitars get going, its theme balladic but its execution very firnly rocker, and here again Brad Delp shines, showing why he is such a great loss to the music world, and how few if any could ever hope to match his vocal range and power. This guy made Coverdale sound like Stallone! Part 2 is called “Still in love”, and is basically a very short ballad-type bridge in the song, before it goes back into “Cant'cha say” for the conclusion, putting the perfect finishing touches on a really great track.

And we end as we began, on a lovely little ballad.This time it's called “Hollyann” and gives Scholz yet another chance to display his prowess on the guitar and the Rockman before the band bid us farewell on a flurry of guitar riffs.

After waiting eight years to see if Boston could come up with a) another album and b) one of the quality of the debut, I was somewhat surprised and delighted to be able to tick off not just a) but b) as well, and quite comforably too. “Third stage” is, perhaps paradoxically, the album Boston should have made after their self-titled debut. They left it a little late, but in 1986 Boston were able to kick us in the ribs and say “Hey! We're still here you know, and we're more than just THAT song!” How right they were, and it was definitely worth the wait!

TRACKLISTING

1. Amanda
2. We're ready
3. The Launch
4. Cool the engines
5. My destination
6. A new world
7. To be a man
8. I think I like it
9. Cant'cha say/Still in love
10. Hollyann



Suggested further listening: “Boston”, “Don't look back”, “Corporate America”

No more shall we part --- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds --- 2001 (Mute)
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I became a fan of Nick Cave after hearing his albums “The good son” and “Henry's dream” play in a second-hand record store and rushing up to the counter to enquire who they were playing. Buying the albums on the spot, I was soon seeking out the likes of “Let love in”, “Murder ballads” and “The boatman's call”, though I must admit that although I did buy his earlier albums, I only listened to (and pretty much hated) “The firstborn is dead”, leaving such supposed classics as “Kicking against the pricks”, “Your funeral, my trial” and “From her to eternity” for another time. But what I have heard of Cave to date (the preceding notwithstanding) I have loved.

So when “No more shall we part” was released in 2001 I of course went right out and got it. I had hoped, in part, that it would continue the musical style and themes of “The boatman's call”, his previous album from 1997, and indeed I was not disappointed. In contrast to the earlier albums mentioned, Cave's albums have recently come across as more gentle and --- dare I say it? --- mainstream, which he would probably hate to hear, but even then, there are some downright weird tracks on this one! Given that Cave had managed to kick the heroin habit I suppose it's probably quite amazing that he managed to produce any sort of output. That he produced something of this calibre is nothing short of a miracle, and a testament not only to the man's genius and skill, but to his fortitude and his refusal to be defeated by his addiction.

It starts off with “As I sat sadly by her side”, a piano-driven lament in very Cave style, his heavy drawl, somewhat reminiscent of Bryan Ferry at times, giving the impression of a deathwatch vigil. The piano features heavily on this album, played by Cave, usually accompanied by Warren Ellis's sad and expressive violin playing, which really adds an extra layer of atmosphere and sadness to the songs. Cave is acidly critical of society in this, and other albums, but it really comes out here, as he sings ”Watch the one falling in the street/ See him gesture to his neighbours/ See him trampled beneath their feet/ All outward motion connects to nothing/ For each is concerned with their immediate need/ Witness the man reaching up from the gutter/ See the other one stumbling on who cannot see"

The title track is next, on which Cave somehow manages to make the joyous occasion of a wedding the subject of despair and dismay. Piano again carries this track, mostly on the bass side as he sings ”All the hatchets have been buried now” The song is totally acoustic, with nothing but Cave's vocal and piano for much of it until later it's joined by Ellis's violin and some percussion. A very disquieting song, to be sure, and yet very beautiful in that way Cave has of making the macabre and bizarre attractive, and what we would normally think of as pleasant being slanted to present a dark side, like the reflection of a beautiful woman glimpsed in a distorting mirror.

The album continues in this mostly sad and in some ways depressing and depressed vein, with songs like “Hallelujah” allowing something of the lunatic side of Cave's character show through. The song is again slow, with Ellis's violins moaning in the background as Cave snarls ”My piano crouched in the corner of the room/ With all its teeth bared.” The song is the tale of an old man, tended by a nurse, who gets fed up living in isolation, and who goes out for a walk and meets a woman who reminds him of what life is about, but unable to make the huge step he returns home to his living tomb. Yeah, Cave's lyrics are like that. Get used to it. Great backing vocals here by Kate and Anna McGarigle as they sing ”The tears are welling in my eyes again/ I need twenty big buckets to catch them in/ Twenty pretty girls to carry them down/ Twenty deep holes to bury them in.” Awesome, as they say.

“Love letter” is just that: a beautiful, tender, gentle ballad, as Cave tries to write the letter that will win his girl back, after he ”Said something I did not mean to say/ It all came out the wrong way.” It's a heartbreaking song of desperation and hope, and one of my favourites on the album. “God is in the house” is a sharp dig at middle America, while “Oh my Lord” is just eerie, disturbing and seems to concern the slow loss of identity and the disintegration of sanity. It radiates sweat, fear, desperation, panic and dread as it gets more and more intense.

As mentioned, the album is full of ballads and generally played in a low-key, slow fashion, though there are some exceptions, like the above and “Fifteen feet of pure white snow”, which accurately reflects the fear of being cut off in a small village by a snowstorm, and how it affects people. The biggest shock on the album is “The sorrowful wife”, which begins as a typical Cave ballad, as he laments the day he married his woman, but halfway through it absolutely explodes into a screaming attack of guitars and drums, Cave growling, shouting and snarling.


But perhaps one of the most effective ballads, and another contender for track of the album, is “We came along this road”, a bittersweet stagger down memory lane without the rose-tinted glasses. It has perhaps the best ever opening line: ”I left by the back door/ With my wife's lover's smoking gun.” Class! Again, Warren Ellis's violins help transform this track into a real stunner.

The album ends as it began, on a slow ballad, tinged with not only sadness but also nearly incandescent rage, “Darker with the day” is a song of closure, or the search for it as Cave sings ”I remembered all my friends/ Who had died of exposure/ And I remembered all the ones/ Who had died from the lack of it.” This whole album is driven by piano and violin, with most times a minimum of percussion, and above it all Cave's powerful, often understated, gravelly voice, dispensing judgement, ridicule, advice and satire like a younger Tom Waits. This is definitely one of his better albums, and a good introduction to the man's music, if you're thinking of getting your feet wet.

Just be warned: this is a road that only leads one way, and once you get sucked in, your feet will be forever on the path...

TRACKLISTING

1. As I sat sadly by her side
2. No more shall we part
3. Hallelujah
4. Love letter
5. Fifteen feet of pure white snow
6. God is in the house
7. Oh my Lord
8. Sweetheart come
9. The sorrowful wife
10. We came along this road
11. Gates to the garden
12. Darker with the day



Suggested further listening: “Henry's dream”, “The good son”, “Murder ballads”, “The boatman's call”, “Let love in”

Trollheart's Handy Guide to Twentieth Century Music Technology

Since I'm a bit older (shaddup! No snickering!) than many of those who may be reading my posts, there are terms that I use which the younger generation may not recognise, as music was so much different back in my day. So, to clear things up and to avoid blanks looks I present here my alphabetised guide to the terms used back when I were a lad. No longer will you scratch your head when your uncle talks of turntables, or shrug when confronted with the term “C90”. Now you, too, can understand how things were, back before there was itunes, ipods, or anything else beginning with a lowercase I, and no internet! So come with me on a journey back to the past, to the heyday of vinyl, and the wonderful world of cassette tapes and record players.

Welcome to my world!

A

ALBUM:- More or less the same as today, an album was a record containing a certain amount of tracks (usually no more than 10 oe 12 altogether), with a hardcover sleeve, often gatefold, inside which resided the record, or album. Also see LP.

AMPLIFIER, or AMP:- An essential part of any audiophile's kit back in the seventies and eighties, the amp connected to the loudspeakers on your stereo, allowing the music played by the other parts of the system to be heard. If you had no amp, the only way to hear your music was through headphones (and I'm not talking earbuds here: we used to have to use big, heavy, ear-covering helmets back in my day, and sometimes they would have adjustable volume knobs on the actual headphones), assuming you had a “proper” stereo system, also called a “Separates” system. If you had a cheap all-in-one or MIDI system, the amp, such as it was, was built-in, but was vastly inferior.

ARM:- Part of the apparatus used to play the records on a record-player. The arm was mounted on a mechanical swivel, and when not in use clipped to the side of the record deck. When needed, it could be swung out over the record by simply lifting it gently and placing the stylus on the first track of the record. Almost always, when the record was finished, the arm would automatically return to its resting place, though on some albums it had been known to stick in the grooves at the end, and have to be lifted back manually. The arm was always placed down gently as the stylus could easily break if handled too roughly, also your record could suffer damage if proper care was not taken.

AUTOLEVEL:- When recording tracks, or a full album, onto cassette tape, it was usually preferable to set the recording level so that you got the best result. On some cheaper decks, however, the level was set to AUTO, and you were stuck with what you got. Then, as now, you got what you paid for, and if you were serious about your recording, you paid for a deck with adjustable recording level.

AUTO-REVERSE:- When this came out it was state of the art. While listening to your cassette tapes on your flashy new Walkman, you need not worry about turning the tape over when it got to the end of side one, as the system automatically snapped it over and began playing the second side. In reality, it did not physically turn the tape, which would have been impossible, but the motors engaged reverse heads on the deck which played the reverse of the tape. For those whose Walkmans did not have Auto-reverse, you had to either let the tape snap off on side one, or run it on to the end if the album did not fill the tape, open the cassette door, physically remove the tape and turn it over, close the door and press PLAY to hear the second side. What a palaver, eh?

B

BLANK TAPE:- In my time, for most of my youth, you had three ways of getting an album. You could buy it, hope to tape tracks off the radio if you were desperate, or, the favourite, borrow a mate's copy, tape it onto cassette tape and return the album to him or her. To do this, you needed to buy a blank tape, which was like a DVD-RW these days: you could record on it again and again, but after a while the strain of multiple recordings would begin to show and the quality of your music would deteriorate (see DROPOUTS). The good thing about blank tapes was that you could record a bit, take it out and play it on a Walkman or handheld tape deck, then later record more, and so on. Unlike DVDs, tapes did not have to be “finalised” before they could be used. You could also tape over previous recordings with initially no discernable loss of quality. Blank tapes in general were cheap, and we bought them in packs of five or ten at a time.

BLOWING DUST:- Not as you might think a euphemism: we actually had to do this. If a record had not been properly cleaned before playing --- with either a special antistatic cloth or, more usually in my case, the sleeve of my jumper! --- it could collect dust which would then transfer onto the stylus of the cartridge on the playing arm. So, as a precaution, every time we went to play a record we would gently lift the arm and blow on the stylus, thus removing any dust that might have adhered to the needle, and hopefully assuring a “clean” play. On rare occasions, particularly when there was more stubborn dust there that refused to be blown off, we would gently --- very gently! --- tap the stylus with the finger, though this was usually with a great deal of trepidation and only attempted if absolutely necessary, as styli were notoriously delicate, and could be expensive to replace.

C

C60/C90/C120:- Every blank cassette you bought had a specific recording time. Unlike DVDs today, one size did NOT fit all. The “C” obviously referred to the cassette, while the numbers were the amount of minutes of recording time available. So a C90 would have 90 minutes recording time, a C60 would have sixty, and so on. I think the longest recording time was 120 minutes, though my memory is not what it was... Recording time was split evenly per side, of course, so on the first, or “A” side of say a C90 you could record up to 45 minutes, and the same on the reverse. There was no sophisticated warning if you overran the tape: it simply shut off, and if you were in the middle of a song, tough. You'd have to get another tape, erase some other stuff off the tape or try “fading” the last track.

CARTRIDGE:- Another part of the arm, the cartridge was perhaps the most important as it held the stylus, or needle, in place. When you had to replace the needle you could do so, or if you had enough money you could replace the whole cartridge, which then came with a stylus attached. Although more expensive this way, it was often favoured as the art of replacing a stylus on its own was very tricky, and you needed watchmaker's hands to perform the operation: a stylus was about as long as a fingernail, and very thin and delicate.
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CASSETTE:- Usually called “tapes”, cassettes were a small box-shaped flat case in which resided two plastic spools. Strung between these spools was a coil of magnetic tape, and when loaded into a cassette recorder or player the spools would be turned clockwise, winding on the tape and either playing what was on the ribbon or recording onto it. Cassettes had a nasty habit of getting jammed or twisted around the spools of the player or recorder, which usually meant they were ruined: you could, with some patience, expertise and a lot of luck, extract the tangled tape from your recorder, but in most cases it was then useless, though the VERY lucky or industrious have been known to have been able to rewind the tape, by hand using a pencil or other narrow stick-like object inserted in one reel and turned, back to the beginning and thereby save the recording. Such instances were few and far between though: a tangled tape was usually destroyed. Even if you managed to save it, chances were that little warps would appear on the tape and cause fluctuations in the music (see, again, DROPOUTS), or more often, the next time you used the tape it would either tangle again or even break completely.
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Cassettes, though fragile and prone to failure, were for my generation the only way to get your music mobile. You would record your favourite albums, compilations, whatever onto the tape and take it with you to listen on the go. Your records could only be listened to at home. Cassettes were also great for making compilations, hence the origin of the word “mixtape”.

COWBOY HATS:- A euphemism this time, used to describe the annoying and unwanted effect of records warping. If records were stored incorrectly --- near heat, a strong magnetic source etc --- the vinyl of which they were constructed could bend and warp, so that when you put the record on the turntable it would undulate as it went around, looking like waves on the sea, or indeed, a cowboy hat. This phenomenon was also referred to as “waving goodbye”, as it normally meant the sad end of your album: there was no way to fix this. That notwithstanding, on a decent stereo it was possible to play a “Cowboy Hat”, but most people didn't risk it as the constant up-and-down motion could play havoc with your stylus, leading to breakage or replacement before time.

CRACK, POP, HISS:- No, not a breakfast cereal! Records were so intrinsically delicate that not cleaning one properly, or allowing it to become worn, or indeed playing it to death, could result in the needle catching imperfections in the vinyl, which would be relayed back to the listener as the above-named sounds. Sometimes this could be caused just by dust on either the record or the stylus, so stopping it and cleaning either could sort the problem, and there were procedures that could eliminate, partially or completely, this annoyance, though they did not always work. See SCRATCH, WEIGHTED ARM.

D

DIAMOND STYLUS:- The best, longest-lasting and of course most expensive stylus you could buy. The upside was that the abovementioned rarely if ever happened if you used a diamond stylus, and you seldom had to replace them.

DISCMAN:- An early stopgap between the Walkman and other hand-held tape recorders and the as-yet-decades-off ipod and other MP3 players, the Discman was essentially a small, portable CD player. It failed pretty miserably though, as the very smallest it could go was the size of a CD, and that's still pretty big, in terms of portability: much bigger than the Walkman. And CDs do not take well to being bounced around, so tended to skip and jump a lot. Not to mention that if you were going on a decent trip, you needed a good handful of CDs to get you by, and CD-Rs had not even been invented yet, so you only had a choice of albums!
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DROPOUTS:- After recording onto cassette tape, if you had a) left the tape near a strong magnetic field, eg TV or loudspeakers, b) recorded on the tape many times previously or c) just got a bad batch, your recordings could suffer from intermittent moments where the music would either become muffled, or stop altogether, usually for about half a second. Such instances were called dropouts, as they resulted in the music, well, dropping out of the recording. A tape with dropouts was unrecoverable, and the more you played it the likelihood was the more dropouts would show up, sometimes to the point of completely erasing, over time, the recording.

DUST-COVER:- Unless you bought it second-hand (and often, even then) every album sold came with a plastic sheet that covered the cardboard sleeve. As the name suggests, this was to protect the sleeve, but more importantly the album itself, from dust. Typically, a sleeve would have the opening to the right, where the record would be slotted in, and the dust-cover would fit on in such a way that the opening would be at the top, thereby effectively sealing in the record. Of course, in practice it was never air- or dust-tight, but for our purposes it did the job. Whenever you played an album, you always made sure to replace the dust-cover. Some record shops actually sold dust-covers individually or in packs, for those worried record-owners who had either lost their original, or had bought a second-hand album that had come without one.

DUBBING:- Back in my day, this had nothing to do with hip-hop, rappers or DeeJays. Dubbing was simply the term given to the process of recording from one cassette onto another, via a double or twin cassette deck.

E

EP:- Short for Extended Play, this usually referred to a short, four to six-track single released by a band in advance of their new album. It would usually contain the first single from the album, with other tracks yet to be released. It was, in effect, a “taster” for the album, though in some cases it BECAME the album, as the EP was never taken any further.

F

FADING:- This was a process whereby, as described in the section on CASSETTES above, you could, if you had a deck with controllable recording levels, gradually reduce the volume at the end of a track, either so as to make it fit on a tape that was almost out of space, or to fade out applause on a live track, or even fade down one track which automatically segued into another, which you would not be able to separate one from the other any other way.

G

GATEFOLD SLEEVE:- Usually, but not always, on a double or live album, the gatefold sleeve would fold out, unlike other sleeves which would be one piece of cardboard, and often would have an extended picture running across both sides, half of which could only be seen when the sleeve was folded in. On a double album, there would usually be slots at both left and right of the unfolded sleeve, in which each of the records would reside. Gatefold sleeves were usually lavishly decorated and had things like lyrics or liner notes, or sometimes photographs inside.
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GROOVES:- Tracks cut into the vinyl of a record, each one represented a song on the album. The needle would travel across these grooves as the record spun on the turntable. They were quite handy because you could identify each song by the groove, and so if you wanted to play say the third track in, but didn't want to hear the first or second, you could carefully place the needle down on the third groove. Hey, it was the best we had at the time, ok?

H

“HOME TAPING IS KILLING MUSIC --- AND IT'S ILLEGAL!” :- Believe it or not, they actually printed this on the back and inner sleeves of many albums, trying to dissuade people from copying records onto tape. Hah! Bet they wish that's all they had to worry about now! But back then, it was actually considered illegal to copy an album you didn't own onto a blank tape. Quite how they worked out who taped their OWN albums, for mobile listening, and who copied their mates' albums, is beyond me. Anyway, like everything else the record companies tried, this failed. It was completely ignored in the same way those FBI warnings on DVDs are laughed at. Pathetic really: the idea that having taped an album you would not at some point want to own the original. Back then, the quality of tape recordings was nothing like the digital descendants of today, and anyway, we usually wanted the cool sleeves, lyrics, liner notes, and more importantly, we wanted the album (if it was any good) in our collection. Tapes just didn't cut it, and as mentioned earlier, were quite prone to failure.
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I

INLAY:- The insert on a pre-recorded cassette tape of an album, essentially the sleeve, with the artwork and sometimes lyrics etc on it. Inlay cards were also used on blank tapes, where they could be reversed, written on and stuck back in so that you could see what was on the tape.

INNER SLEEVE:- A simple but effective protection for an album, the inner sleeve was usually a blank paper envelope in which the album resided. It sometimes had a circle cut in the middle, through which you could see the record label, and was open only at the top. As the actual album sleeve loaded the record via the right-hand side slot, this effectively produced a pretty clever and safe way of ensuring that a) the album did not fall out and b) it was protected from dust. Some inner sleeves had artwork on them, some lyrics, particularly lavish gatefold ones, but the larger percentage were plain white. Many people (myself included) often hand-decorated their favourites. The inner sleeve was also a handy device to get the record out of the sleeve without having to put your mucky fingers all over it, as explained in PLAYING PROCEDURE, further on.

L

LEADER TAPE:- The first few seconds of a blank magnetic tape were unrecordable, so if you started your taping from the very beginning of the cassette, you would miss the first few seconds of the music. We usually got around this by winding on, with a finger or a pencil in the spindle, past the leader tape, as it was called, to the first recordable part of the cassette. The leader was usually a different colour to the rest of the tape, but even if it wasn't, a turn or two was usually enough to get past it.

LP:- Short for Long Player, another word we used for an album. Kind of self-explanatory, but used quite a lot back in my day.

M

MEGAMIX:- A phrase coined in the eighties for a compilation of tracks, usually but not always of the disco variety, mixed together in such a way that they segued, though often there was a certain amount of cheating involved, as instead of actually matching the BPM (Beats Per Minute) as professional Djs did (and I think still do?) they would overlay the track with clapping, which confused the listener as the track faded from one to the other, and it was hard to hear if they were actually seguing together properly. To my knowledge, the first commercial, or at least charting, megamix was called “Stars on 45”. Then everyone was at it!

METAL TAPE:- The very best cassette tape money could buy, about four times as expensive per tape as normal cassettes, but reputedly of almost never-failing quality. If you had an album that you had borrowed and wanted to keep forever, you shelled out on a Metal Tape to record it on. The Rolls-Royce of tapes, indeed.

(Here we again run into the problem of having a character limit per post, and so I have to split this guide up into two parts. Apologies. )

MINIDISC:- A great idea in theory, Minidisc was the forerunner to the ipod, which eventually done for it. Affording much greater recording options than cassette tape, or even the slowly-emerging CD-Rs, Minidiscs were probably worst let down by their own marketing. They were expensive to buy per disc, the players was also not cheap, the recorders even moreso, and to add to that, only a very small handful of albums were ever released to Minidisc. The sound was excellent though, and you could record --- apparently --- over 1000 times and still get the same high quality. They were also the first recording medium to offer the possibility of scrolling album, artiste and track data on an LCD screen. They were, so far as I know, the ONLY medium to allow you to move tracks, once recorded, around, so that your last track could be your first and so on, and to allow partial deleting of tracks without affecting the rest of the recording. They should have taken over the world, but like laserdiscs, they were overtaken by superior, or at least better marketed and affordable technology.
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N

NEEDLE:- see STYLUS

P

PICTURE DISC:- Back in the days when albums and singles were released on vinyl, certain promotional, limited or special editions would not just be black vinyl (or in some cases, coloured vinyl), but would contain a picture, usually of the album or single sleeve artwork, on the actual record, so that you could watch it going around as the disc spun. Completely pointless, but very nice!

PLAYING PROCEDURE:- This was the big one! Back in t'olden days, to listen to an album you had to go through various steps.
Step 1: Remove the plastic dust sheet from the album cover by pulling it downward, or pulling the sleeve upwards.
Step 2: Gently slide the inner sleeve out from the right hand side of the album sleeve, being careful in case you had hastily repacked the album and the aperture was in fact at the edge rather than the top! Step 3: Take the record gently between both hands, holding it only by the edges, basically cupping it with the sides of your hands, as if offering a prayer or perhaps holding a goldfish bowl.
Step 4: Place the record, still holding it only by the edges, gently on the turntable.
Step 5: Lift the arm of the record player and gently blow any dust or dirt off the stylus.
Step 6: Check the speed, and adjust if necessary.
Step 7: Lift the arm, which automatically started the turntable moving.
Step 8: Carefully lower the arm down onto the edge of the record, so that the needle met the first groove, or track of the record.
Step 9: Sit back and listen, till side one ended and it was time to flip the record over and repeat steps 3-8, after which repeat steps 1-3 in reverse.

Select playlist and hit play? Hah! In my day, listening to a record was a carefully balanced art coupled with a militarily-precise operation!

PRE-RECORDED TAPE:- Simply put, an album on tape. This was the official version, as opposed to one you taped off your mate's copy. So in those days you had only the option of buying the album on vinyl (record) or tape. Pre-recorded tapes tended not to be of the greatest quality, and in fact, unless you really needed the original, it was far preferable to tape the album onto a blank cassette, even if you owned the album and just wanted to hear it on your Walkman. The only good thing about them was that they were usually one or two pounds cheaper than the record.

R

RECORD:- A vinyl disc, almost always twelve inches in diameter for albums, and usually seven inches for singles. The odd EP could be ten inches across, though those were rather rare. Record was also often used as a general term for any release, ie “this is the new record from Dire Straits” etc.
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RECORDING LEVEL:- Most albums were recorded at different sound levels, some louder than others, some much quieter. If you wanted to get your tape recordings to sound correctly, you tended to use a tape deck with a recording level you could control, via a slider or knob. You would first do a “test record”, by having the tape deck in pause and record, then play the album, check the level, adjust as necessary, then return the needle to the start and release the pause. Yes, you would have to do this for each track off each album if you were doing a compilation, but then again, if you were just recording one full album the record level would remain the same throughout. You could also use the Recording Level to fade out (or even in) any track, by starting the level at 0 (to fade in) and slowly (but not TOO slowly: there was an art to it!) raising it by increments till it was at the level you desired, or doing the reverse for fading out --- very handy for those live albums where you wanted the middle track...


RECORD PLAYER:- Also known as a Turntable, this was the device on which we all spun our albums and singles. It usually consisted of a rectangular box, with a perspex or glass lid, under which was a round platter which spun mechanically and on which the records were placed, and a long arm which, when not in use, sat on a raised stand parallel to the turntable, and when in use would moveout and over the disc, touching its stylus to the vinyl which then reproduced the music. There was also a speed selector, and on some old, cheap or self-contained models, controls for volume, bass etc, though on decent systems these controls were on the amp.
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RPM:- Or Revolutions Per Minute. Albums and singles were played at different speeds, 33 rpm for the former and 45 rpm for the latter (which led to the archaic term for singles, as “forty-fives”). Some Eps played at 33 as well, and if you had a really old record player you could have hours of fun for all the family slowing down records to 16 rpm for thaaaatttt reeeeealllllyyyyy slllllowwwwww feeling, or speedthemuptocrazyhighpitchedsqueals at 78! But none of us did that. Well, not much anyway.

S

SCRATCH:- Record players were not the shock-proof beasts of today, and it only took one misstep or fall against it and the needle would skip across the disc, usually tearing a scratch across its surface, often across several tracks. A stylus carelessly dropped onto a record could have the same result. Scratches, as you might expect, were not good and resulted in the record skipping, or popping, hissing or crackling. Scratches could also cause a record to stick annoyingly, so you could have the following effect: “She loves you yeah... loves you yeah... loves you yeah...” You get the picture.

SIDE:- Every record, whether a single, album or EP, had two sides, and each was recorded on, with the albums usually split evenly, with say 5 tracks per side. The first side, the beginning of the album, was always named Side A, while its reverse was Side B. Oddly, even a double or triple album would have each record labelled Side A and B, no C, D,E or F. This is also where a phrase you may have heard, the “B-side”, comes from, as singles were released with the hit, or expected hit, on side A, and another track, sometimes not on the album, sometimes a live version, sometimes an extended version, on the B-side.

SINGLE:- Same as today really: a track released from an album in the hope it will get into the charts was called a single, released on a small, seven-inch vinyl or often an extended twelve-inch disc.

SKIP:- As in SCRATCH above, damage to a record could cause the stylus to miss a certain point in the groove and skip over it, so you would get something like “She lo- you, yeah, yeah, yeah!” Badly-maintained or damaged records could have a few skips in them. These, like scratches, were in some small measure treatable, via a WEIGHTED ARM.

STICK:- Again, as in SCRATCH above. This could really bring your enjoyment of an album to an end, as the only way to get past a stick on the record was to carefully lift the needle out of the groove and replace it beyond the offending portion. As this was all done by line-of-sight and luck (mostly luck), invariably you would get something like this: “She loves,loves,loves,loves,loves... with a love like that, you know it can't be bad!” Very frustrating, which is another reason why we all tried to maintain our records to the best of our abilities AND always always ALWAYS checked carefully for scratches or any other imperfections on any second-hand albums we bought. And we bought many.

SLEEVE:- Or Album Sleeve. The crowning glory of any record, its outer face which was usually a painting, picture, design or concept in normally bright colours and often a real work of art. What is today laughingly called “album art” is a tiny copy of what we who bought the albums got for our money. An album cover was often the first thing that attracted us to a record, and I honestly doubt that anyone ever had a record in their collection, by choice, that had no sleeve. The sleeve was usually made of waxed card, and had a nice silky feel to it.

STYLUS:- Or Needle, the business end of the playing arm of a record player. The stylus travelled along the grooves cut in a record, allowing the music to be heard. A clean, undamaged stylus was something you had to have if you wanted to play records. The stylus was carried in the cartridge, which in turn formed the furthermost part of the arm. Styli wore out over time, and could be replaced. They had to be treated with care, as even dust or hair caught on one could cause it to skip across a record, stick in it or even scratch it, or if not actually do damage, it could also muffle the sound of the record.
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T

TAPE:- See CASSETTE. Also the practice of recording, eg “I'm going to tape this new album”.

TAPE COUNTER:- A simple counter docked to the tape deck, which counted up (when playing or recording) or down (in reverse mode) a sequence of numbers from 0 to about 200 or so, depending on how long the tape you were using was. It did not, unfortunately, equate one point for one second, or anything, but you got to know how much to count up, how much of your tape was left or how far you needed to go back, based on the counter. Also very handy for dubbing.
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TAPE RECORDER:- Also called Tape Decks, Cassette Recorders and Cassette Decks, these were the apparatus which spun the tape cassettes and allowed them to be either played or recorded, or both. Tapes would be slotted in by pushing the twin spindles of the cassette onto pinions in the deck, or in more sophisticated models, by slotting the cassette into the well of the door that opened, and then closing it, which connected the spindles with the pinions. Most decks had the following controls: PLAY, PAUSE, REW (Rewind), FF (Fast Forward), RECORD, STOP. Most often a tape would snap off, the STOP button being automatically engaged, when the tape reached the end, either playing or recording, though on some models the Auto-reverse function could be applied, meaning that when the tape reached the end of one side it would automatically start playing the other side. Tape recorders began life initially as hand-held ones with self-contained motors and speakers (you might see them in some very old police programs, or look at “Life on Mars” for an example) --- reporters used to carry them around,usually with a big bulky microphone attached. Then they became part of stereo systems, and finally they were released into the wild, as much smaller versions of their original selves, generally though incorrectly called Walkmans.
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TRACK:- Single songs on albums were called tracks. This could also refer to the grooves cut into the vinyl, each of which was a track.

TURNTABLE:- Another name for the record player, but more properly describing the actual platter, round and usually made of metal, covered with a rubber mat upon which the record was placed, and which spun on a motor as the stylus moved across it.

TWELVE-INCH SINGLE:- As the name suggests, a disc which measured 12 inches across, however 12-inch singles, though the size of an album and usually played at 33rpm, usually contained extended versions of the single, as well as alternate versions, other B-sides etc. 12-inch singles were often Picture Discs or even Shaped Discs. Quite often, versions on the twelve-inch were not available anywhere else, not even on the album.

TWIN CASSETTE DECKS:- If you wanted to do proper dubbing, you had to have a twin cassette deck, also of course called twin tape deck. No prizes for guessing what this was: two cassette decks on the same unit, which allowed you to record one tape to another. Quite often on a twin deck only one of them would have a record facility, this being known as the dubbing deck, or deck B, while the playing deck was deck A. Again, to perform dubbing correctly, you really had to have recording level control. Also a feature on twin decks was AutoSync, which allowed you to either a) put your blank cassette in deck B, load in your original tape in deck A, select AutoSync and when tape A began playing tape B would automatically start recording, or b) listen to two tapes one after the other. When the one in deck A ran out, deck B would start up.

V

VINYL:- The plastic of which every record in the sixties, seventies and eighties was made, and which is to some extent still in production, and I believe may be coming back into vogue. Vinyl was relatively strong, as in, you could bend an album slightly and it would not crack, you could drop it and nine times out of ten it would not break. This was not, however, suggested practice. Vinyl was usually black, except in the case of picture/colour/shaped discs.

W

WALKMAN:- Specifically referring to the portable tape player created by Sony in the eighties, this term came to be applied to all small portable cassette players. For their time, they were revolutionary, about the size of an iphone (though much bulkier) and running typically on two AA batteries, with attached headphones. Some had radios, and some few had recording ability, though this was largely only for speech and the odd bootleg recording. Walkmans took our music and gave it legs. For the first time ever, we could listen to our music on the go. Of course, you had to have a few tapes with you if you were going a distance, but even then, one normal C90 tape would last you an hour and a half, which was not bad. Plus, unlike the unwieldy later Discmans, you could shove four or five tapes into your coat pocket or bag, and that gave you about seven hours listening time. You did have to change the tapes at intervals of course, but for us, this was the cat's pyjamas.
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WEIGHTED ARM:- Some turntables (the more expensive ones, natch) came with a small knob or screw that could be turned, which increased the weight the stylus put on the record. This quite often was successful in repairing small scratches or skips (or, more correctly, allowing the stylus to move over them without getting stuck or jumping. The imperfections usually remained, just were not a bother to the heavier stylus). Some enterprising, and poorer, people achieved the same effect, with varying degrees of success, by sellotaping a penny to the head of the arm.

And that's my guide to twentieth-century music technology! If you're from my era, hope that brought back some memories for you. If you're a lot younger, then I hope you now appreciate what a special thing it was for us oldies to buy, play and maintain our record and tape collections. You kids today, don't know you're born, with digital downloads, itunes, Apple this, Microsoft that, Youtube, wasn't like that in my day, blah blah blah... ;)

Apart from a few too many keyboard flourishes that make certain passages sound very dated I really liked this album.

Lacking in pretension and with solid playing this is an album I have already passed around a couple of people with positive feedback :)

That's great Jack, glad you liked it and are spreading the word. I can point you to the rest of their catalogue; if you enjoyed "Subsurface" you'll more than likely be into the rest of their albums.

Let me know if you need links.

TH

Fanatic --- Jadis --- 2003 (InsideOut)
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To be perfectly honest, I'm still somewhat uncertain as to how I ever heard of, much less got into this band. I think I read a review somewhere, and decided to give them a go, and man am I glad I did! For a relatively unknown band, Jadis sure tick all the boxes. This is their sixth studio album, and although I have listened to most of the rest of their output --- and it's very good indeed --- I still see this as their best album to date.

It starts off with what can only be called the sounds of the outdoors: insects, birds, wind and alongside it the solitary chords of an electric guitar, before “The great outside” gets going, with hooks that remind me of the more recent Yes songs, and great vocals by Gary Chandler, frontman for and creative force of the band, who also plays guitar. It's a long song, parts of it firmly stamping their own brand of neo-progressive rock on the track, but still with the power and energy of standard rock music. The song is generally led by guitar, with great drumming by Steve Christie, John Jowitt keeping the bass nice and steady. It's a good opener, but the following “Into temptation”, by contrast, fails to keep the excitement level up. A good solid rock song, but a little unremarkable, I fear.

Not to worry though, as normal service is soon resumed with “Each and every day”, a laid-back, almost acoustic ballad with some great vocal harmonies. As the album progresses you begin to realise that Jadis have their own distinctive sound that, when you hear it again, you just know at once that it's them. It's hard to explain, but I think it's down to the guitar playing. Somehow, whenever I listen to a playlist now, I can tell a Jadis song, from any album, as soon as it begins. If for some reason you're not sure, then once the singing begins you're left in no doubt, as Chandler's voice, like his guitar work, is unmistakable and inimitable.

“I never noticed” is the most immediately commercial song on the album, would have been a definite candidate for a single release (though I can't say if it ever was, as information on Jadis is notoriously scarce, even from their own website!), with its gentle percussion opening and melodic guitar which often puts me in mind of Marillion's Steve Rothery. We get to hear keyboardist Martin Orford properly for the first time here, as he tips a hat to Talking Heads' “Once in a lifetime”. Orford and Jowitt are both of course also members of prog rock giants IQ, but resist the urge that may be there to take over the band, or perhaps Chandler has such a tight control over it that they haven't the option, but either way it works very well, and the band comes together as a very cohesive whole, much more than the sum of their parts.

The song ends on a nice spacey keyboard run which takes it into the title track, a really nice instrumental on which Orford finally gets to give those fingers a good workout. It's a real showcase for the keys man from IQ, joined by Chandler, pulling off his best Gilmour impression as the song takes us into “Yourself alone”, a slow rocker with a really nice melody and some great piano work from Martin Orford. Best track on the album goes to the waltzy ballad “What kind of reason”, with its gentle acoustic guitar opening with keyboard backing, Chandler's clear, powerful voice rising above the music like the sun over the ocean. It's a long song too, over eight minutes, easily the longest on the album, even beating out the opening three, each of which racks up over six minutes. A real centrepiece for the album, and a proper showcase for the talents of Jadis.

This isn't a perfect album, by any means: closers “Who can we be sure of” and “The flame is burning out” fail to reach the heights achieved by other, better tracks mentioned above, but even when Jadis are below par they are better than many bigger bands. But then, when they're good, they're just incredible!

Ignore this album at the risk of your immortal musical soul...!

TRACKLISTING

1. The great outside
2. Into temptation
3. Each and every day
4. I never noticed
5. Fanatic
6. Yourself alone
7. Take these words
8. What kind of reason
9. Who can we be sure of?
10. The flame is burning out

Suggested further listening: “Photoplay”, “Somersault”, “More than meets the eye”, “Across the water”, “Understand”, “Medium rare”

Marauder --- Blackfoot --- 1981 (Atco)
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Hey, maybe all these years I was wrong! I was told/assumed that these guys were all Indians --- excuse me, Native Americans! --- but their writeup on Wiki doesn't mention any such heritage. Perhaps they weren't, and maybe I just got suckered in by the name Blackfoot, which is obviously the name of a real Indian tribe, but if they aren't, then they certainly seemed to play up to that image, with songs like “Rattlesnake rock'n'roller” and “Indian world”, not to mention their debut album being called (ahem!) “No reservations”!

Well, whether or which, nothing takes away from the fact that these guys ROCKED with a capital R (and the rest of the letters capitalised too!) --- you'll find no AOR-fodder here, few songs about love and loss, and nary a ballad to be found. “Marauder”, their fifth album, can only be described as a powerhouse. It's southern rock verging on full-on heavy metal --- move over Lynyrd Skynyrd! Kicking you right in the gut from the off, “Good morning” rattles in like a runaway steam train, the churning guitar of Charlie Hagrett backing the powerful, gravelly, almost Lemmy-like vocals of Rickey Medlocke, sticksman Jakson “Thunderfoot” Spires, pounding away so hard you can almost smell the sweat (eeewww!). Spires also co-writes every song on this album with Medlocke. Now admittedly they're not going to win any prizes for original lyrics, but hey, that's not what Blackfoot are about. Let other delve deeply into the human psych, put the world to rights or give their opinions on this and that: these boys are here for one reason and one reason only: to rock!

And how they do! Slowing down a little for “Payin' for it”, the second track comes across as the very best of Sammy Hagar, with great bass from Mister Greg T. Walker (heavy, as he says himself in the liner notes, on the “Mister”!), and some vocal harmonies that stray just over the border into AOR territory, before they're roped and pulled back into the dry, dusty plains and Hagret gives his guitar a fine work out to show this band is all about rock, and to Blackfoot there is only one type, or one type that matters anyway: Southern!

“Diary of a workingman” is a great little acoustic ballad, a real song for the ordinary guy. ”Been a poor man all his life/ And just when everything was going right/ Some stranger takes his woman away/ Don't know if he'll see another day.” It's the second-longest song on the album, just beaten out by seconds by the closer, and one of only two that are over five minutes long. Blackfoot are not about rock epics, no sir! But they can turn it on when they feel the need to, and here they fashion a truly great southern ballad which smoulders and smokes with indignation and rage at the injustices of the world. Yeah, I know I said earlier they don't write songs about putting the world to rights, but this is an intensely personal song. It's about one man (okay, indicative of ALL workingmen, and women), but doesn't seek to change the world, just point out how ****ty it can be for those who aren't lucky enough to be born into privilege. Witness the end lines: ”With a tear in his eye/ And a gun in his hand/ So ends the diary/ Of a workingman.” Says it all.

After this brief introspective pause they're off and running again, rockin' hard with “Too hard to handle” before we're into “Fly away”, the shortest and most commercial song on the album and indeed their only hit single. Maybe if they had written more songs of this calibre they might have been a lot more successful, but then I feel that chart success was never really on Blackfoot's radar. All they wanted to do was get out there and rock. If people bought their records, great, if not, then **** them. A real no-nonsense, no-frills band in very much the mould of the late, legendary Rory Gallagher.

In addition to the guitars, bass and drums on the album, Blackfoot also draft in some other musicians to play the likes of trumpet, harmonica, banjo and horns, most notably Medlocke's grandfather Shorty, who gives it a blast on banjo, racking off a truly astonishing solo as well as speaking the intro to “Rattlesnake rock'n'roller”, which he also co-wrote with his grandson and Spires. It's a great boogie rocker/blues/country jamboree hybrid, with some truly inspired gee-tar and some honky-tony pianner from Mister Greg T. Walker, not to mention some mean horns! Yee-haaaww!

That would have been a good enough closer, but then we get the five-minute-plus “Searchin'”, which, cliché as it may seem, gives “Free bird” one hell of a run for its money. A slow-burning start on guitar and keyboard yields to Rickey Medlock's impassioned vocal, then the drums kick in as he sings ”They tell me that a man must crawl/ Before he can walk/ Yeah they told me/ You gotta cry before you can talk.” Some more great vocal harmonies, before the inevitable guitar solo as the song charges to its end on a perfect southern-rock arrangement. A great way to end the album, rockin' all the way.

If you like deep lyrics, thoughtful messages and complicated, four-part songs, look elsewhere. If you like lots of ballads, AOR tracks and synthesisers, jest ride on by. But if you like the smell of cordite and horse****, the taste of neat whiskey and the feel of the hot desert wind in your face as you ride, the aroma of motor oil and the acrid smell of burning fretboard, then come on in, partner, for you have found your long-lost brothers.

TRACKLISTING

1. Good morning
2. Payin' for it
3. Diary of a workingman
4. Too hard to handle
5. Fly away
6. Dry county
7. Fire of the dragon
8. Rattlesnake rock'n'roller
9. Searchin'



Suggested further listening: “Tomcattin'”, “Strikes” and the live album “Highway song”

Escapology --- Robbie Williams --- 2002 (EMI)
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This was the last Robbie Williams album I listened to. It's not that I went off him, it's just that a release like “Rudebox” made me pause before just rushing out and buying his next album, and after that I was pretty much inundated with so much downloaded content that the idea of getting his next few albums, although flirted with and not by any means disposed of, is still more or less on the back burner. I really enjoyed “I've been expecting you”, thought “Life through a lens” was ok and quite enjoyed “Sing when you're winning” (but ignored the swing album, as I don't like that sort of music particularly), and ended up here.

So, is it any good? Yes it is. It's very good. Not that surprisingly, being the album that was intended to break him commercially in the US, it's polished, slick and very commercial, but still retains the arists's quirky sense of humour, and a lot of his own heart and soul, on songs like “Nan's song” and “Hot fudge”. The album opens with him exclaiming, in very Divine Comedy manner, “Cows!”, rather fittingly, as the title of the opener is “How peculiar!”, and sets his stall out from the start as he sings ”I am all of the above..” It's more bluesy rock than pop, a gap Williams straddles quite well, given his already established popularity and image as a pop star. It's a heavy start to the album, perhaps not what his longtime fans would have expected, and the follow-up, the first single, “Feel”, would be more to their taste.

A piano-driven semi-ballad, it's well known as it was in the charts and on the radio seems for ever, and it's a really good song, a look into the heart of the artist as he looks for meaning in his sometimes superficial life. ”I don't wanna die/ But I ain't keen on livin' either...” The album is if nothing else good value for money, with fourteen tracks, few of which come in at under four minutes, with one of them running over seven. Perhaps surprisingly, there are really no bad tracks on this album, and some really good ones. I wouldn't class it as better than, or even as good as “Expecting”, but it comes darn close.

“Monsoon” is a great autobiographical song, almost Oasis-like (which I know he'll hate, as he has a real problem with the Gallagher brothers, but hey, he's hardly likely to read my little review, is he?) with some truly great guitar work, and some of the best, sharpest lyrics he's written to date: [i]”To all you Sharons and Michelles/ With all your tales to tell/ Save your milk money well/ I'm glad that spending the night with me/ Guaranteed you celebrity.”[/] “Sexed up”, the first real ballad is just perfect, piano and acoustic guitar melding in a gentle song about a breakup, hard feelings and regrets, selected as the fourth single from the album and getting into the top ten.

“Love somebody” is another ballad which starts off pure acoustic, then gets going with some really nice strings arrangement, a real sense of desperation in the chorus, real urgency. Great vocal harmonies, almost a gospel song in its own right. “Come undone” was another single, and no doubt you heard it on the radio at some point, so not too much to say about it other than that it's a great little song, and indeed one of only two on the album not co-written by longtime songwriting partner Guy Chambers. I much prefer the hilarious and clever “Me and my monkey”, though, which is in fact the longest track on the album. Hey, you have to listen to it, just for its having a title like that! But it is a great song, with a totally out-there lyric involving casinos, fast cars and Mexican stand-offs, all under a great horn-driven theme made to sound like a mariachi band playing.

”We hit the strip with all the wedding chapels/ And the neon signs/ He said 'I left my wallet in El Segundo'/ And proceeded to take two grand of mine.” You just don't get songs written like this anymore! And then you get the weirdly titled “Song 3”, where Robbie channels the ghost of Kurt Cobain, and very well too. “Hot fudge”, meanwhile, is pure LA-funk, Robbie revealing his long-held wish to make it in the US:”Hot fudge, here come the judge/ There's a green card in the way/ The Holy Ghost and the whole east coast/ Are moving to LA/ We've been dreaming of this feeling/ Since 1988...”

The album ends on a very simple, tender tribute to Robbie's grandmother, the song simply called “Nan's song”, in which he sings of losing her and how he misses her. It's a very revealing song, raw with emotion and backed by acoustic guitar and violin, a real insight into a man often accused of being more than a little shallow. It's also the other song he wrote without the help of Guy Chambers, and it closes the album in fine, if low-key style.

“Hidden tracks” can be weird. He's included two here, which run after “Nan's song” ends, so don't hit the “stop” button just yet! Screeching guitar introduces a sort of end-theme to the album, called “Save the children”, then you have to be patient as the second hidden track doesn't come in for another six minutes (!), on the back of an acoustic guitar strum, joined by organ and then piano, apparently Robbie's random thoughts when he was out on a boring date. He calls this “I tried love”.

Maybe his subsequent albums were all great, but as I said I haven't listened to anything after this one, and on that basis I find it not to be his best --- that honour still goes to the stunning “I've been expecting you” --- but a very close second. If nothing else, listen to it for “Me and my monkey”...

TRACKLISTING

1. How peculiar
2. Feel
3. Something beautiful
4. Monsoon
5. Sexed up
6. Love somebody
7. Revolution
8. Handsome man
9. Come undone
10. Me and my monkey
11. Hot fudge
12. Song 3
13. Cursed
14. Nan's song (incorporating “hidden tracks” Save the children and I tried love)



Suggested further listening: “I've been expecting you”, “Life through a lens”, “Sing when you're winning”

The eyes of the shadow --- Silent Edge --- 2003 (DVS)
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You know how some bands slip right under your radar, and then one day you hear them and you think “Holy crap! How have I missed these guys?” Well, be prepared to utter that amazed and incredulous phrase, because if you haven't heard of Silent Edge before (and I'm willing to bet you haven't), then you are in for one hell of an experience! They hail from Holland, and this is, to date, their only album, which is disheartening, as it having been released eight years ago puts a follow-up somewhat in doubt, but then, longer hiatuses have occurred --- check the review of Boston's “Third stage” a few posts back. So hopefully we've not heard the last of these guys. But if we have, what an opening and parting shot they have left us in this album.

A mixture of power rock/power metal/prog metal and some neoclassical rock/metal, “The eyes of the shadow” is an album that you will not be skipping tracks on. “Through different eyes” lays down the gauntlet to many a more established but in some ways inferior power metal band, with its fantastic keyboard and guitar sound, overlaid by the soaring vocals of Willem Verwoert. The song powers along on thunderous drums, extremely tight guitar courtesy of Emo Suripatty, meshing perfectly with the frantic keysplay of Minggus Gaspersz: some of the sudden timing changes are quite amazing, but there's nary a beat dropped nor a note missed. A band in perfect synch, indeed.

(Sorry, but I was only able to find one YT of these guys. Hopefully it'll give you a flavour of what they're all about. Why aren't they better known?? )

There are only ten tracks on the album, but as I said, each one is a stormer: no filler material here! Things get, if you can believe it, faster and more frenetic with a fantastic keyboard intro to “Savage symphony”, Suripatty's guitar growling like something alive, Matthew Boer's drums pounding out the beat while bassist Andre Hendriks keeps the rhythm section nice and tight. It may seem like hyperbole, but really, the calibre of the musicianship is so top-notch here that you can almost believe you're listening to something Mozart would have composed, had he lived to the twenty-first century, and taken up power metal! There's just no letup at all, as the epic eight-minute “Wasted lands” kicks in with a heavy intro of keys and doomsday drumming, For half of the track it's a smoking, slowburning churner of a song, then the keys really let fly and the guitar joins in as the whole thing rockets off to another place altogether. Playing this fine I have not heard for a long time. And then, just when you think it's going to fly off to the stratosphere to the end, everything calms down again and the original rhythm returns, to take the song to its triumphant conclusion.

Man, I feel worn out already, and we're only three tracks in! Luckily there's now time to catch the breath, as the superb acoustic ballad --- the only one on the album --- is next, the wonderful and emotive “The curse I hold”. This really showcases Verwoert's powerful voice, as it's just him and Suripatty's gorgeous acoustic guitar playing that carries this song. Only one ballad, as I say, but when it's of this quality, I certainly don't mind. Things get right back into the speed groove then for “Crusades”, a galloping instrumental which takes us into another epic, the frankly incredible “For ancient times”. Again this kicks off with keyboard flurries that really make me wonder if Gaspersz is not actually some sort of human/octopus hybrid? How can one man move his fingers that fast?

The song takes a break in the middle, slowing down for an instrumental section driven again on the keyboards of Gaspersz the Octo-Human, very fugue-like, which builds in intensity and power as Suripatty's guitar crashes in to add weight to the section, along with Boer's powerhouse drumming and the tough bass of Hendriks.Having had a nice three-minute rest, Verwoert comes powering back in to take the song to its pounding conclusion. And again I feel worn out, but in a good way.

The boys slow it down just a little then, for one of those rock crunchers that just drags you along. “Lost conscience” is replete with chugging guitar and swirling keyboards, the drumming on this track a little more pedestrian than other tracks, but still powerful. Suripatty outdoes himself on the axe in the closing stages of this track, and then we're into “Under a shaded moon”, kicking the tempo right back up, slamming the foot on the pedal and taking off on an Iron Maidenesque rocker, Verwoert again delivering crystal clear and powerful vocals, while Gaspersz and Surpiatty trade licks, again demonstrating the incredible timing this band has, and the almost telepathic understanding between them. The song has a great hook, and you'll be singing it long after the album has finished, I can tell you.

So is that the end of the epics? Nah, not on your life! “Rebellion” is just one second short of nine minutes, so the longest track on the album, and it kicks off in power-speed mode, Boer hammering the drums so fast and hard you feel sure his arms must fall off! It's no small tribute to Silent Edge that their longer songs --- and there are three here which are over eight minutes --- never feel overstretched, laboured or even that long. It can be surprising to finish listening to something like “Rebellion” and realise nine minutes has passed. Certainly doesn't feel like it. These guys must be white-hot on stage!

And as if this isn't a good enough end to the album, we then get “Rebellion (The Awakening)”, a piano-driven ballad (Yes, I know I said there was only one ballad, but as this is sort of a continuation of “Rebellion”, I don't really count it as … oh well, okay then: have it your way!) in the mould of “The curse I hold”, up to about a minute from the end, when Suripatty's guitar makes its final bow, in a stunning reprise that just ends the track, and the album perfectly.

No matter what I write here, it's not going to be sufficient to get across the quality of this album. Listen to the single YouTube here, the only one I could find, but make sure to click the download link and listen to the album, and you too, will understand. In the words of Alex from The Metal Observer: "Wow!", "This is…how could…damn…" (THE METAL OBSERVER - Review - SILENT EDGE - The Eyes Of The Shadow)

Could not have said it better myself.

TRACKLISTING

1. Through different eyes
2. Savage symphony
3. Wasted lands
4. The curse I hold
5. Crusades
6. For ancient times
7. Lost conscience
8. Under a shaded moon
9. Rebellion
10. Rebellion (The Awakening)

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No. 2: “Still got the blues” by Gary Moore

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I never quite noticed how expressive this cover was before now. When I went looking for another album sleeve to examine for this series, I came across this one, and it surprised me, as I never rated the album that highly, and was somewhat disappointed with it when I bought it, mostly because of the amount of covers on it. But looking at the sleeve, there's a wealth of information there, and it's extremely clever, in that it depicts the life of a blues guitarist in just two pictures.

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Due to the restriction on the amount of images allowed per post, I will be stepping away from the practice I followed on the first in this series, that is, cutting up the album cover by enlarging sections of it and posting them as single images. This process led to my having to split my original review in half, which was something of a pain in the arm, so this time what I'm doing is marking points on the sleeve which I want to talk about, and relating them to a key below. The original pictures should be large enough that you can see what I'm talking about, hopefully, without too much squinting.

This album depicts two ages, the blues guitarist as a kid on the front, with him all grown up on the back. It's really clever; if you examine it in depth you can see the differences and the similarities between the world of the boy and that of the man.

1. The guitar. Obviously it's not an expensive one, as it doesn't even have a case (that we can see), and no kid ot this age would have been able to buy, or have bought for him, any sort of really decent guitar, but it's where the dreams of the boy are kindled, where he decides very quickly what he wants to do with his life, and it's the start of a love affair with music that will last to the end of his days.

2. And on the wall, there's his inspiration, one of his heroes: a poster of Jimi Hendrix. Could a guitar player HAVE a better role model?
3. Another poster, another hero. Someone on a motorbike –- possibly Brando? Hard to make out, even on full zoom, but certainly someone the boy admires, and perhaps aspires to emulate.
4. The old “box” record player, on which no doubt the lad has heard his first rock'n'roll songs.
5. Some old vinyl records on the floor, no doubt he's learning the songs from them. They're a little hard to see, but I'm pretty sure I see “Black rose” by Thin Lizzy and a BB King record.
6. Anyone who's ever played or learned guitar knows there's only one name in amps: if you're serious, you gotta have a Marshall!
7. Some more records on the bed, presumably the ones he is currently learning. I can see one by John Mayall...

http://www.trollheart.com/bluesreverse2.jpg

And on the reverse of the sleeve, the artist all grown up. Everything is different, yet in some ways a lot is still the same...

8. The guitar is obviously a much better, more expensive make.
9. He is now in a hotel room, rather than in his bedroom. It also looks, from the neon sign outside, of which we can only see a few letters, that it's an American hotel.
10. There's a phone in the room, naturally, but back when he was a kid no parent would a) allow and b) be able to afford a telephone in a child's bedroom. This was long before mobile phones existed, and we had to make do with the landline In fact, they weren't called landlines, as there was nothing to distinguish them from. What's that you say? What were they called? Telephones.
11. He can now obviously afford, and needs, a case for his expensive guitar. In the case we can see some cassette tapes (see my guide to twentieth century musical technology, a few posts back), which may be recorded by him, his own music, or just tapes of albums he owns. They could also be demo tapes he's touting around the record labels. The hotel room is not fabulous, so perhaps he hasn't quite made it yet.
12. The staple of the rock star on the road: the good old American hamburger! Food of the gods, indeed.
13. A nice glitzy lamp is in his room, whereas when he was a kid there was none.
14. In a clever nod back to his childhood, the bedside table has a radio and alarm clock built in.
15. Some thing never change. He may have a better guitar, but there's still no substitute for quality. There's the Marshall amp, even now!
16. The records on the floor have now been replaced by CDs, as time moves on, but I think I can still see a BB King recording there...
17. And that CD on the bed that he's looking towards looks to be that man, John Mayall again.
18. Now that he's all grown-up, what else would the bluesman slake his thirst with, but a can of beer?
19. And just like his younger self, he's still sitting on the bed in a bedroom, playing the guitar.

So the two pictures show a “before and after” snapshot of a boy who has grown to be a man, and though much has changed, some things never do. The basics are the same --- guy listening to the music he loves, and grew up on, and playing, or learning to play it, alone in a room, away from others. The life of a blues guitarist can be lonely, indeed. But he's happy doing what he loves.

“Still got the blues”, then, could have two meanings. It could be that he's still not happy, but it could also mean that, whatever else I lose in this life, one thing I will always have is the music I grew up listening to and loved, and still do today. As another famous blues guitar player, also sadly no longer with us, once wrote: “Toothbrush, a guitar, got no tail to drag.” With Gary Moore now tragically taken from us, perhaps we can find solace in the expectation that there must be one hell of a jam session going on somewhere right now, as these two kindred souls meet.

Wild cat --- Tygers of Pan Tang --- MCA (1981)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...S-WILD-CAT.jpg

I don't really think I can recall another instance of a band starting off as total heavy metal/rock and changing so completely into an AOR/soft-rock outfit, but that's exactly what happened with the Tygers of Pan Tang, who had a great chance to be one of THE heavy rock bands of the early eighties, and threw it all away. When I first heard “Wild cat”, their debut album, I was completely hooked. This was headbangin' stuff, but with enough melody to stand out from the likes of Motorhead, Saxon et al. In fact, the first I heard of them was the single “Suzie smiled”, and then I HAD to get the album. My brother ended up getting it, and becoming a loyal Tygers fan, but I was crestfallen when they released the followup, “Spellbound”, as it just wasn't what I had expected. It was nothing like the debut, and as their career went on it went from bad to worse. But enough of the history lesson. Let's concentrate on this excellent debut, and try to put the subsequent mistakes behind us.

The album kicks off with some heavy drumming courtesy of Brian Dick, with the growling guitar of Robb Weir as “Euthanasia” gets us going, and although it's not in the same class as some of the later songs, it's a solid rocker that leaves you in no doubt as to what to expect. The swaggering vocals of Jess Cox typified the Tygers' sound, and I feel they really lost something when he left after this album. For me, he WAS the voice of the Tygers, and cheap imitations just didn't cut it. Much better is “Slave to freedom”, with some great axe work by Weir, and solid bass from Richard Laws, who on the album went by the name of “Rocky”. This is one of the longer tracks on the album, and gives Weir freedom to indulge in the solos he was to repeat throughout the album, and other later ones, when allowed his head. It settles down into a nice sort of bluesy groove halfway through, but of course that doesn't last and we're soon into the dirty, heads-down rock and roll that was the Tygers' trademark.

Look, let's be clear about one thing: the Tygers weren't --- originally --- about subtlety. They didn't write deep lyrics, they didn't do complicated keyboard solos (mainly cause they didn't use a keyboard player!) and they didn't do ballads. Every song on this album is either fast, or just slightly less fast. The Tygers didn't do slow. But as an honest rock album, you'd search to find one as good. The rockin' continues with “Don't touch me there”, and if there's a charge to be levelled at “Wild cat” it could only be of a lack of variance in the songs: most sound relatively like the others, with a few notable exceptions. But then, when they're songs of this hard rockin' quality, who cares?

One of the best tracks on the album is “Killers”, also the longest, at just over six and a half minutes. The tale of gunslingers in the old West, it's a powerful, riff-laden rocker that kicks off with a great bassline from Rocky, before he's joined by Robb's snarling guitar and the whole thing plays out like the best of Thin Lizzy, with some truly spectacular solos from Robb, clearly enjoying himself as a modern-day desperado, swapping a Colt 45 for a Fender Strat. Things speed right up at the end, as the whole band goes a little crazy, one trying to outdo the other for speed, before it all comes to a powerful end.

“Fireclown”, again introduced on Rocky Laws's bass, shows that the Tygers have some ideas in their lyric-writing book, as this is based on a science-fiction novel written by Micheal Moorcock, called, you guessed it, Fireclown. I should probably also mention that the band got their name from another Moorcock book (forget which one), in which an island is called Pan-Tang, so they were obviously fans of his work. Another plus for them, as far as I'm concerned! The title track could probably be a bit more memorable, but it does have some nice echo effects, and another great Robb Weir solo. Shades of the old seventies band, the Sweet, in there too. Personally though the best track for me is the one that got me into this band, “Suzie smiled”. Okay, it's nothing terribly special, another hard-rocker, but it was the first time I heard THAT guitar sound, and THAT voice, which totally turned me on to the Tygers, so it'll always remain my favourite.

The album ends on another long track, “Insanity” just beaten out by “Killers” as the longest track by a few seconds. More great solos, ch ugging guitar and thundering drums carrying along a track which really brings the album to a steamhammer ending, the way it should finish.

Look, I'm not going to make any false claims here. You're not going to find anything amazingly new here, nothing that's going to make you want to tell everyone about this album, but in a time when so many rock bands were more AOR or glam-rock than metal, the Tygers stood for pure, honest, down-to-earth no-nonsense metal, and it's such a pity their story went the way it did. Once Jess Cox left and John Sykes got into the band, things went very much the other way and the Tygers became a far softer, radio-friendly band, resulting in their eventual disbanding in 1983. Well, to be fair, there were some really nasty factors that contributed to this, mostly label pressure and an attempt to make the band into something they were not, nor wanted to be, as well as disagreements within the band and changes to the lineup, not to mention some disloyalty on the part of Sykes.

But the fact remains that if you look at the subsequent albums, “Spellbound” shows their symbol/mascot, the tiger, on top of a mountain, looking somewhat trapped, while the next one has him somewhat incongruously doing a “King Kong” atop a building, swatting at little planes (Tiger Moths, I believe!), and by 1982 he has been well and firmly caged. Here, he is free, wild and roaring unfettered on the album sleeve, a challenge to all comers, a beast to be feared. This tiger was not about to be caged, not in 1980!

“Wild cat” is how the Tygers should have been, and how I want to remember them. Download, hit play and listen to them roar!

TRACKLISTING

1. Euthanasia
2. Slave to freedom
3. Don't touch me there
4. Money
5. Killers
6. Fireclown
7. Wild catz
8. Suzie smiled
9. Badger badger
10. Insanity



Suggested further listening: You can try “Spellbound”, “Crazy nights” and “The cage”, just don't expect any of those albums to be anywhere close to “Wild cat”

The cat is out --- Judie Tzuke --- 1984 (Legacy)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...cat_is_out.jpg

(Note: this review was originally written some years ago for my own Judie Tzuke website, so it may seem a little more in-depth than usual, and may assume more familiarity with her work than would normally be expected, as it was written with her fans in mind. For those who are not familiar with her work I've added a short preface to the review.)

I first fell in love with the music of Judie Tzuke when I heard the hit single “Stay with me till dawn” on the radio late one night, and went out and bought her debut album, “Welcome to the cruise”. Since then I've bought just about everything she's released, and it's been a pretty impressive turnover. Up as far as this album, she has released an album a year, though after “The cat is out” it would be five more years before the follow-up, the stunning “Turning stones”, would see the light of day. Her album previous to this, 1983's “Ritmo”, had not gone down well with me, and is still what I consider to be the nadir of her career, though happily her output soon returned to the excellent quality I had come to expect from her, and so far she has not yet put a foot wrong since that one bump in the road.

So two years after the release of "Ritmo", Judie returns with a new label and a whole new sound to the last album. A full lineup this time, with Rhino Edwards taking over all bass duties on "The cat is out", and doing very well too. Longtime guitarist and partner-in-crime Mike Paxman and Judie's husband, Paul Muggleton provide the backing vocals between them, and Paul even gets to play guitar! (This is jokingly referred to on the sleeve notes as "accidental guitars"). A new drummer in Andy Newmark and a permanent saxophonist in Andy Hamilton helps to give the whole album a more "together" feel, more polished and professional than the previous outing, and it shows in a far better album.
(Annoyingly, this is the only song from this album I can find on YouTube. Philistines!)

The opening track, “How sweet it is” is a celebratory song of love, rattles along at a nice pace, the keyboards of Bob Noble complementing Mike's steady guitar, and the whole ensemble works very well as Judie sings "How sweet it is, oh how sweet it can be", as if she herself realises that they are making a far better album than the last one. She sounds happy to be cutting records again, and whether this has anything to do with the change of label or not is open to speculation, but she certainly does sound freer, more relaxed than she was on “Ritmo”.

This is another collaboration between Mike and herself, though he is given first billing, so perhaps it's more his song than hers.There aren't really any dark songs on this album, and maybe that's what makes it so good. Track two, “Who do you really love?”, the second attempt from Paul and Bob, is a song of angst, as Judie tries once again to get the proper commitment from her man, but he once again appears to be cheating on her, and it's tearing her apart. She vows "I'll know the truth from you, I won't let go until I know." The song itself is paced against an urgent sort of beat, with keyboards and drums meshing to sound like clanging bells, and the overall impression is of a sort of insistency, a need to know. Judie drafts in the assistance of two other women, Jaqui Robinson and Diane Wright to help out on the backing vocals on this one.

“Love like fire” shows Judie in disillusioned phase, as she realises that not everyone falls in love, and sometimes you just have to take what you can get. The tune itself is solid, nice synth backing line, a thumping bass and steady drums. Again, this track gives an impression of the entire band meshing together as a unit, really working well together and most importantly, enjoying themselves. I personally didn't get this feeling from "Ritmo": in places, yes, but not all through the record. And then it's on to the standout ballad, which was released as a single.

“ I'll be the one“ echoes remembrances of “Come hell or waters high”, from 1981's “I am the phoenix”, with a lovely piano backing and synth line, gentle drums and understated guitars, as Judie sings of her devotion to her lover, and how she will always love him: "It's me who loves you/ Till your waves will cease to wash my shore/ And much more..." This is again penned by Bob and Paul, and this time they have got it spot-on: a ballad worthy of Judie or Mike's writing themselves.The backing vocals halfway through and to the end are really nice also, Mike and Paul counterpointing Judie's impassioned lead vocal wonderfully. Should have been a classic. Was, in my book.

An interesting song, “Girl without a name”, another Muggleton/Noble effort, tells the story of either a man having a waking fantasy, or a woman who only appears to him, and only at night. There are perhaps dark undertones to this song, if you want to look at it that way (succubus, temptresses etc), but taken on its own merits it can be an amusing or sad song, depending on which way you choose to view it. The music is light and lilting, as is Judie's vocal, and the backing vocals from the two lads work, as usual, very well in counterpoint to her lead.

The first collaboration between Mike Paxman and Paul Muggleton works out very well indeed. “This side of Heaven” is about a broken love affair, which may have involved the death of the man in the affair, as Judie sings "I keep wishing I could see you again/ This side of Heaven". The music is very upbeat, with nice Spanish/acoustic guitars in the background. Then it's on to “Harbour lights”, an excellent song, penned by Paxman/Tzuke, in the vein of “Molly” from her second album, “Sportscar”, but a far more mature song. “Harbour lights” tells of a woman going down to the harbour to wait for her lover to come back, which of course he never will. The music is slow, with insistent urgency in the chinging guitars in the chorus. The electric piano of Bob Noble keeps a lovely counterpoint to the vocals, and you can almost see this girl standing at the jetty, watching as the dusk closes in and "She stands alone /But the harbour lights/ Won't be turned on tonight"
.
The next track, simply titled “You”, appears to be a cover, possibly written by Ian Hunter(?). It's a great song though, and cracks along at a fine pace, Mike's guitars punching out the melody while Bob's keyboards match him chord for chord, and Judie sings of an illicit affair with a younger man of lower station than she: "I can't let you hurt yourself /By being seen with me". The backing vocals are very powerful, as is the whole song. A good rocker, and a chance for Judie to exercise her varied range. And then it's pull back on the throttle for another ballad, a gentle, flowing song which celebrates the wonderful way that love, which sometimes seems to become boring, suddenly rekindles and it's just as good, if not better, than the first time. “Falling” features a lovely, slow, laidback beat, with pianos meshing gently with guitar to create a gorgeous tapestry against which the jewel of Judie's soft vocal rests.

The last track is a fast, bouncy number, declaiming the dangers of not grabbing the moment when it comes, as the world passes us by uncaringly. Live for the moment seems to be the underlying message of “Racing against time”, and I have to admit that though it's a Tzuke/Paxman/Muggleton effort, I don't really like it, but it's short and closes the album more as a filler than an actual song as such. I'd prefer to be humming Falling as I put the album away though...

TRACKLISTING

1. How sweet it is
2. Who do you really love?
3. Love like fire
4. I'll be the one
5. Girl without a name
6. This side of Heaven
7. Harbour lights
8. You
9. Falling
10. Racing against time



Suggested further listening: “Welcome to the cruise”, “Sportscar”, “I am the phoenix”, “Turning stones”, “Wonderland”, “Shoot the moon”, “Under the angels”, “Left hand talking” and the double-live “Road noise”

Long live the King --- Narnia --- 1999 (Nuclear Blast)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...King_Cover.jpg

Christian rock bands, huh? Definitely not my cup of tea. Normally. I don't profess to being a practicing Christian --- I do my best to be a good person, but I don't swear allegiance to any god, and definitely not to any religion, least of all catholicism. So when I hear a band who make a living praising God in their lyrics, I usually run the other way. I would think I'm not alone in this. Were God (assuming, for the moment, that He exists) to walk in to the Rock and Metal Pub and order a beer, I don't think too many of us would be sitting at the bar with him. We're used to more, shall we say, dark elements making up our rock and metal music. I was brought up on the likes of Maiden, Sabbath, Dio and Whitesnake, and hey, even Manowar, and these guys seldom mentioned the G word: usually their lyrics and images paid homage (jokingly, loosely or in some cases --- Venom I'm looking at YOU! --- seriously) to t'other side. Hey, as AC/DC told us once: Hell ain't a bad place to be!

Well, it probably is, but let's be honest: there was and is much more fun to be had singing about the Devil and Hell and damnation and flames and demons, than there ever was extolling the virtues of Heaven, angels, choirs and Jesus. It's just how it is. And bands who decided to throw their lot in with the Almighty tended, in the main, to get laughed at, and not considered by serious metal fans.

Well, all that changed for me when I heard Narnia for the first time.

To be perfectly honest, I just thought they were another metal band, and the Narnia in their name referred to the CS Lewis books (which it does), but then, examining those a little more closely, the books are very heavily slanted on the side of Christianity, in a way other fantasy novels are not. So when I first heard “Gates of Cair Paravel”, the short introductory opening track to “Long live the King”, I was impressed. Great keyboard work, cool guitars, solid drumming. This is going to be a good album, I thought.

And I wasn't wrong, though I would have to seriously change my entrenched opinions, as it happened.

“Living water” kicks off then, and it's a humdinger, a great metal track that would not be out of place on any Iron Maiden or Van Halen album. It's only when vocalist Christian Lijegren sings ”I met Jesus Christ/ He's the Son of God” that I did a doubletake. Oh no! These guys were CHRISTIAN ROCKERS, or indeed, worse, Christian Metallers! But wait, don't turn off that track yet. What's that incredible guitar and keyboard solo going on as I try to process this new information? Holy ****, that's good! So maybe it's a Christian song, but maybe it's just this one. Let's wait and see. Man, that track is power metal at its very best! For God-botherers, these guys are amazing! So let's stick with it. For now.

Oh yes, this is much more like it! A stomper, cruncher, thumper, call it what you will, but the power of “Shelter through the pain” can't be denied. Just listen to guitarist Carljohan Grimmark play --- oh no! What was that Lijegren sang? ”Lord give me shelter/ Every night, every morning.” Maybe it's just a generic “lord”. But no, there he goes again: ”Oh my Lord/ From Heaven above.” Nope, it's definitely the Lord he's talking about!

Okay, so now many of you are probably saying, what's the big deal? If the music is good, what does it matter that the lyrics praise God? To be honest, you're right, but at the time I really struggled to continue with the album, as, being a non-believer, I don't like to listen to the opinion of others --- well, I don't like to be pushed towards the view of others; you know, the old conversion idea --- on religion and gods, especially through music. That's not why I listen to rock music. But in the end, the pure quality of the music won through, and I defeated my demons (see what I did there?) and went on to thoroughly enjoy this album.

So, differences settled then, there is no praise high enough for this band, and this album, the only one of theirs I've so far heard, though I have the rest of their discography to listen to. The musicianship is first rate, with excellent keys work by Martin Claesson, and the stupendous guitar work of the aforementioned Grimmark. It's kind of like listening to one of those eighties heavy metal albums we used all to love, stuffed with squealing guitar solos and thundering drums, powerful vocals and a keyboard player who sounds like he has been taking lessons from Rick Wakeman!

“The Mission” is a little less impressive, a little ordinary, but “What you give is what you get” pulls things back on track. It's kind of hard for me to evaluate the lyrics, as they're pretty much all of the “repent-and-be-saved” ilk, which makes them both samey and unimaginative, and also outside my experience, and I feel unqualified to pass judgement (no pun intended!) on them. The rhymes are a little obvious though, and I would certainly say that, even my own preconceptions and problems with them aside, the lyrics are the weak point of Narnia's formidable arsenal. Of course, if you're into this sort of thing you'll probably love it, but I would rather hear songs about cars, battles, love, even mystical rainbows to weird lands than repeated warnings that I'm going to go to Hell.

I suppose it's a measure of just how good this album is that I'm prepared to champion Narnia's cause, despite my aversion to their lyrical content. But it is that good, you just can't avoid it. That's not to say of course that every track is excellent, but as a pure metal album this really works as a cohesive unit. “The lost son” is a good solid rocker, with drummer Andreas Johansson really getting to express himself, and the title cut is a bombastic, storming brute of a track, with growling guitars and heavy, powerful drumming as Lijegren affirms his fealty to God's cause: ”I wanna live, wanna fight/ Yeah long live the King.”

In all fairness, Narnia are not constantly trying to ram God down your throat, just staying true to their own beliefs, and it's only “Dangerous game” that comes across as almost unendurably preachy, as Lijegren warns of the dangers of turning away from God: ”Dangerous game/ You're playing with your soul/ Devil's game/ You're under his control.” Rrrighttt.... Annoyingly, it's one of the best tracks on the album, with a really cool harpsichord-type intro and then careening along at breakneck pace, with the obligatory guitar solo from Grimmark, and some fine, ferocious drumming from Johansson. Damn! They almost make you WANT to turn to God! Who said heavy metal is the Devil's music?

“Star over Bethlehem”, the longest track on the album, unsurprisingly celebrates the birth of Jesus, on the back of a heavy drumbeat, choral organ and whirring guitar, and there's no doubt as he sings that Christian Lijegren means every word. ”I see the world with different eyes/ The Son of God has changed my life/ He is salvation.” You can't deny, listening to it, that it's a real metal epic, one of those heavy crunchers that just marches along like an unstoppable army.There's a real sense of majesty, power and indeed awe about the song as it flips the finger at Satan, and yeah, I can see rockers punching the air to this, either unaware or uncaring what the message in the song is.

A nice little medieval-type outro called “Shadowlands” closes the album. I guess it brackets the album between it and the opener, “Gates of Cair Paravel”. It finishes the album on a lower key note than I would have preferred, but it seems oddly appropriate, somehow.

I guess the real lesson learned here is that the music is its own power. It doesn't really matter what the singer is singing about, if you enjoy the musicianship and the arrangements, the solos and the intros and the outros. I learned this with the music of Josh Groban, some years ago. Half the time I didn't understand what he was singing --- or even in what language --- but I loved his music, and grew to really love the songs. So my advice here is similar: ignore the lyrics if you can/will, or let them wash over you and hey, maybe they'll change your life. Me, I can now easily listen to this album without worrying about the religious side of it, but it took a little internal struggle for me to get there. It may not take you as long, or you may not have that struggle, but if you do, please do your best to persevere, as it really is worth it.

I feel like saying now, having listened to the album, “Glory Hallelujah, I have seen the light!” I haven't, but I feel like saying it. Considering I was thinking of not listening to the whole album originally, I think I've come a long way.

Long live the King. If he exists. Maybe.

TRACKLISTING

1. Gates of Cair Paravel
2. Living water
3. Shelter from the pain
4. The Mission
5. What you give is what you get
6. The lost son
7. Long live the King
8. Dangerous game
9. Star over Bethlehem
10. Shadowlands

Diamond sun --- Glass Tiger --- 1988 (Capitol)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...DiamondSun.jpg

The second album from Canadian rockers Glass Tiger, this is an AOR gem, packed full of airplay-worthy songs, singles and some deep, thoughtful compositions. Most of the tracks on it are written by vocalist Alan Frew and drummer Michael Hanson, with a goodly portion also being collaborations between Frew and Jim Vallance, who produced the record. And parts of it were recorded in Dublin. Yay!

It starts off with the title track, a slowburner with great keyboard, military-style drumming, detailing the plight of the Native American: ”We came to this land/ We gave our friendship/ Gave them our hands/ But it was never to be/ Oh you must bow down they said/ Fall to your knees.” It's a powerful opener, certainly in lyrical content if not musical, but it's on the next track, “Far away from here” that Glass Tiger get to really stretch themselves and kick it up a notch. A great little AOR tune, it lets guitarist Al Connelly cut loose, while “I'm still searching” takes things up another gear, Connelly again showing what he can do with his axe, a perfect foil for Frew's vocal style. This song gets closer to true rock territory, while “A lifetime of moments”, the first of two ballads on the album, takes us firmly back there, with some nice organ and electric piano from keysman Sam Reid.

Much of this album is, I suppose, unremarkable. No-one's going to suddenly join the Glass Tiger fan club or want to seek out all their other recordings after hearing this. But to its credit, it's a very good album, a competent release and a good follow-up to debut “The thin red line”, which yielded the hit single “Don't forget me (when I'm gone)”, and looked like it could have painted a bright future for the Tigers. That didn't quite happen, but they went on to release a very good, solid, enjoyable album, which is no small feat.

They even draft in the services of legendary Irish traditional band The Chieftains to provide a very celtic feel to “My song”, which bounces along at a nice rhythm, and the second ballad on the album, “(Watching) worlds crumble” --- they do like their brackets --- is far superior to the other one, a gentle, piano-driven lament on the state of the world, with some very soulful singing from Alan Frew. A song which appears on my mix “Ten from Trollheart”, which can be found a few pages back, closes the album in grand style, the slowburning “This Island Earth”, kind of taking the theme full circle. Great guitar solo from Connelly at the end too.

Yeah, it's not going to set the world on fire --- probably went pretty much unnoticed when released, though it DID go double platinum. In Canada. But that doesn't mean it's not an album worth checking out. If your thing is decent AOR, good melodies, well-crafted songs and interesting themes then give Glass Tiger a listen. You could certainly do worse, and what have you to lose?

TRACKLISTING

1. Diamond sun
2. Far away from here
3. I'm still searching
4. A lifetime of moments
5. It's love u feel
6. My song
7. (Watching) worlds crumble
8. Send your love
9. Suffer in silence
10. This island Earth

]

Suggested further listening: “The thin red line”

Judas Christ --- Tiamat --- 2002 (Century Media)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...udasChrist.jpg

Hey, these guys look scary! You sort of wonder how dark their music is going to be, and I believe it is, usually, but I was fortunate enough to choose their “lightest” album to begin my exploration of their music. Kind of a mix of heavy metal, goth and new wave rock, this is actually one hell of a good album, and though I'm quite aware now that it's not representative of their usual musical output, I was very pleasantly surprised when I listened to it.

First off, I have to say, kudos to any band who names themselves after the mythical mother-dragon of Babylonian legend! Cool! And I also have to admit to a wry smile at the album title, but what about the music? I mean, you can look hard, have a cool name and a great attitude, but hey, if your music sucks, then what's the point?

Luckily, “Judas Christ” does not suck. At all. Weighing in with the doomy “The return of the son of nothing”, it's not exactly going to have you dancing around, nor indeed headbanging or playing your air guitar, but it's a great song to open what turns out to be a really great album. Some nice jangly guitar starts the track off before you're absolutely hammered by electric guitar and drums, and the doomy voice of Johan Edlund, his Swedish twang unmistakable, as he also plays the guitar, backed up by Anders Iwers on bass and Lars Skold on drums. Someone's playing a violin on this album, but I can't find a credit for it. I think it may be Edlund (yeah, him again!) on keyboards... It's a heavy opening, but the album does not stay that heavy, in fact “Son of nothing” is about the darkest and doomiest track on the album, by a long way. But once I had heard it, I was sold.

“So much for suicide” is a heavy enough song, but less dark than the opener, while “Vote for love” is positively poppy and very upbeat, with female backing vocals and a positive message: ”It's about time we all get out/ And vote for love.” “Fireflower” is introduced on spacy, swirling keyboards and ethereal vocals, before the guitar takes the track, while “Sumer by night” is a great piece of guitar work, the fretboard screeching as Edlund squeezes every drop of emotion out of it on this short track. If you've never heard a guitar scream before, you will here!

There's even a ballad on here, which I'm reliably informed is a rather large change for Tiamat, although in fairness its opening lines are ”I want to crush every bone in you/ Cos I got nothing better to do.” Not exactly a love song, then! But “Love is as good as soma” does come across as a ballad of sorts, certainly with its slow drumbeat, organ backing and acoustic guitar. It's almost like these guys have to be dark even when writing love songs, as later lines are ”Hug me till you drug me honey/ Kiss me till I'm in a coma.” Er, yeah. Sure. Very relaxing song though, if you ignore the lyrical content. What IS soma anyway? A drug of some sort, I'm thinking...

“Angel holograms” gets things sped up again, great guitar and a very catchy song wth some cool vocoder work on the chorus. The funny thing about this album is that it starts off very heavy, crunchy metal tunes and doom-laden lyrics, and as it progresses it becomes more accessible, commercial and evolves towards being more a standard rock album. Tracks like “I am in love with myself” and closer “Too far gone” would not be out of place on a Metallica or even Dio album. That said, Tiamat do have a sound all their own, which keeps them original and innovative, and definitely worth listening to.

TRACKLISTING

1. The return of the son of nothing
2. So much for suicide
3. Vote for love
4. The truth's for sale
5. Fireflower
6. Sumer by night
7. Love is as good as soma
8. Angel holograms
9. Spine
10. I am in love with myself
11. Heaven of high
12. Too far gone



Suggested further listening: Well, to be honest, I haven't heard any other Tiamat albums yet, and as this is something of a departure from their usual style, all I can say is, you know, proceed at your own risk...

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Yes, it's time once more to fly the flag for Irish rock. And you thought I'd forgotten, didn't you? Well, there are several acts I have lined up to be reviewed over the coming months, but there's no point in putting them all out at once. So here's the next in the series, a little-known Irish band who really should (like a lot of Irish bands, it seems) have achieved better success than they did.

The long acre --- In Tua Nua --- 1988 (Virgin)
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Another great Irish band that you've probably never heard of, In Tua Nua (literally, in Irish, “A new people”) released their third album overall, second since signing to Virgin, in 1988. “The long acre” is a mixture of rock, pop, Irish trad with some nice ballads in there too. It kicks off with guitar, heavy bass and violins all behind a steady drumbeat, as uileann pipes join in and the first track, “Woman on fire” gets going. The vocals of Lesley Dowdall are strong and impassioned, and the song rattles along at a great lick, Jack Dublin's jangly guitar forms the backbone of the piece, aided by sweet violin provided by Lovely Previn --- yeah, that's her name, and she's the daugher of world-renowned conductor Andre. Things stay at a good pace for “All I wanted”, the violins taking over a little from the guitar, and it's a great poppy/commercial song, which was actually released as one of the three singles from the album.

Things slow down a little then for “Wheel of evil”, and even more for the soft and tender “Meeting of the waters”, and its message of hope: ”When I return we will be wed/ At the meeting of the waters.” Some really nice acoustic guitar here, and Lovely gets to make that violin cry, with additional whistles and pipes from Brian O'Brian. It's a very short song, and precedes the best track on the album, and at five and a half minutes, the longest. “The innocent and the honest ones” starts off slow with uileann pipes and guitar, with some precision drumming from Paul Byrne, and gets more intense as Lesley rails at the Church for its repressive regime, and for twisting the teachings of God: ”You gave us sexuality/ Desire is no sin/ You gave out common sense/ But not in a catechism.” For an Irish band, in the eighties, this is a brave and risky attack on the most powerful institution in Ireland. ”I've learned to hate the holy hold on civil freedoms/ Rabble-rousing religious salesmen/ Self-denying catholic virgins/ The papal bull for useless reasons/ The holy wars against women/ Sacred vows against treason.” It's a very powerful and moving song, and builds to a crescendo that's hard to ignore, or forget.

After that, it's hard to imagine anything being as good on the album, and generally speaking, you'd be right. “World wired up”, while a good fast rocker warning about the dangers to the world, is no follow-up, and despite the anger in Lesley's voice, it's not as cutting or as sincere as she displays in the song she just sang, perhaps In Tua Nua's best ever. “Some things never change” is pure radio-friendly celtic rock, while “Don't fear me now” raises the bar a bit, with its acapella opening and great catchy melody, not to mention Lesley's tempting offer ”I'm too tired to talk right now/ But if you wish it I will kiss you once more.” Eh, yes please!

It's only as the album approaches a close that the songs begin to hold a candle to “The innocent and the honest ones”, with “Emotional barrier” a great, soulful ballad carried on some very gentle percussion, a showcase for the raw power of Lesley's vocals. The song has minimal instrumentation, with guitar, bass and violin there, but very much in the background. The title track then is a real “power-jig”, for want of antoher word: a very Irish, traditional song recounting the emigration from Ireland that has been a constant bugbear for us, down through our history, and persists even today. For the only time on the album the vocals are not delivered by Lesley, but are taken on by Martin Clancy, with Lesley providing backing vocals along with Lovely Previn. Some great uileann piping on this too.

The album finishes on “Sweet lost soul”, perhaps the fastest on the record, and really allowing Lovely to push herself on the violin, as she plays like some demented fiddler. Lesley's back on vocals to close out the album, and gives it everything she has. It's a great finale to a really great album.

Sadly, In Tua Nua are no more, one of those bands who flourished for a few years, never quite made it as big as they would have hoped to, and split to pursue different paths. Who knows what they would have come up with, had they achieved the success they should rightly have, but this album will forever stand as one of the very best Irish rock has produced. Give it a listen and see if you disagree.

TRACKLISTING

1. Woman on fire
2. All I wanted
3. Wheel of evil
4. Meeting of the waters
5. The innocent and the honest ones
6. World wired up
7. Some things never change
8. Don't fear me now
9. Emotional barrier
10. The long acre
11. Sweet lost soul

http://nyc3img.soundclick.com/20/ima...jpg?version=46

Just came across this, and if you're into good prog rock you should check it out. Band are called "A thousand year dream" and don't seem to be signed yet, but this track is really great. It's called "Backwards motion". Just click on the "music" link on the page and listen, see if you're not impressed.

Music page of A Thousand Year Dream - MP3 music page on SoundClick

Ghost opera --- Kamelot --- 2007 (SPV/Steamhammer)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...host_Opera.jpg

Kamelot tend to get a lot of stick from people who describe them as “derivative”, “unoriginal” or just “crap”, accusations I believe are unfair and unfounded. Their releases, to me, have consistently proven that Kamelot are a force to be reckoned with, and are not going away any time soon (sorry, naysayers!), and the best thing that 2007's “Ghost opera” does is reinforce this suggestion, and place Kamelot's boots further on the road to success and longevity.

They have been going, in one form or another, since 1991, although their first album was not released until four years later. Since then, they have changed singers, keyboard players and drummers, but I believe found their feet with 1998's “Siege perilous”, their first to feature current vocalist Roy Khan, who has very much become the voice of Kamelot. Sadly, it appears Roy has left since this year's “Poetry for the poisoned”, and who will replace him is at this time unknown, but they'll have to be one hell of a vocalist to hold a candle to him.

But to the album. Known now to be the penultimate one to feature Roy Khan on vocals, it's quite a tour-de-force, beginning in laid-back style with the violin and keyboard intro called “Solitaire”, which lasts just one minute before the album revs up in proper with “Rule the world” (no, not a cover of the Westlife song!), more a keyboard-driven song than usual, sort of mid-paced and a little restrained for those who know Kamelot's usual work. Roy is in fine voice as usual, though to be honest this song doesn't allow him to shine as he normally does. All that changes for the title track though.

THIS is more like the Kamelot I know and love! Roy's impassioned vocal soars above Thomas Youngblood's familiar screeching guitar, at last given its head, while drummer Casey Grillo pounds the skins like there's no tomorrow. The keys of Oliver Palotoi , this his first outing with Kamelot, are still strongly in evidence, but somewhat forced to take a backseat to Youngblood's guitar histrionics, including one of those great solos we've come to know him for. The speed of the track is more classic Kamelot too, ie breakneck! Always keeping a hold on proper melody, Kamelot nevertheless manage often to play as fast as the fastest thrash metal band you can name.

“The human stain” is very much guitar-driven, albeit with some really nice piano lines here and there, and the catchy melodies Kamelot are known for. ”Don't you wish you were a child again?” Roy sings, ”Just for a minute?” “Blucher” is a strange track, not only because I don't know what the title means, or refers to, but it also features some vocoder work, similar to that employed by Savatage on “Complaint in the system” from “The wake of Magellan”, reviewed earlier here. Its melody comes somewhere close to “Across the highlands”, in places, from 2001's “Karma”. Great guitar work from Youngblood here, and some nice sequenced recordings. Weird little piece though.

Unusually for a Kamelot album, every track here is short, only one over five minutes, and this is next, the semi-ballad “Love you to death”, with some really nice orchestration and backing vocals from Amanda Somerville, Thomas Rettke, Robert Hunecke-Rizzo and Cinzia Rizzo, collectively known as “The Ghost Opera Choir”. Some sparse acoustic guitar and violin underscore this song, before Youngblood sets off on another solo. “Mourning star” is a real Kamelot rocker, starting off on gentle piano with accompanying chants from the Ghost Opera Choir, then becoming a real vehicle for Youngblood's guitar as it bops along at a great lick, with tremendous female backing vocals from Amanda Somerville. “Silence of the darkness” speeds everything up again, recalling the best from “The black halo” and “Karma”, and featuring a great keyboard solo from Oliver Palotoi, to take us up to the only proper ballad, “Anthem”, which truly showcases Roy Khan's mellifluous voice melding with the gentle piano melody and string section to produce a thing of real beauty which comes close to the opening part of “Memento mori” from “The black halo”. Some lovely uileann-pipes lend the composition a really celtic feel, adding to the atmosphere of the song, which apparently Roy wrote to welcome his soon-to-be-newborn baby son into the world.

Closer “Eden echo” is something of a jolt after the pure, breathless beauty of “Anthem”, and I personally feel it was a bad move. I think “Anthem” would have closed the album much more effectively, but there it is.

I believe “Ghost opera” proves Kamelot have more than one string to their bow, and shows us the band at their very best, creatively and musically. The orchestration, the choir, the whole feel of the album is polished, professional and powerful. This album shows Kamelot standing out on their own, as part of a small, select group of musicians who are not content to remain in the conceptual box they have been placed in, whether by fans, critics or even they themselves. The future can only hold good things for this band.

TRACKLISTING

1. Solitaire
2. Rule the world
3. Ghost opera
4. The human stain
5. Blucher
6. Love you to death
7. Up through the ashes
8. Mourning star
9. Silence of the darkness
10. Anthem
11. Eden echo

Suggested further listening: “Karma”, “Siege perilous”, “The fourth legacy”, “The black halo”, “Epica”, “Poetry for the poisoned”. Beware though of “Eternity” and “Dominion”, as they have a different vocalist and come across as quite different albums to those listed here.

The Virgin Suicides (Original Motion Picture score) --- Air --- 2000 (Astralwerks)
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Never thought I'd be into a band like Air. Jazz/electronic/ambient? Not normally my cup of tea, mate. But after hearing “Playground love” I just had to hear more. Now admittedly this album is a film score, but all the music on it is by Air, their own compositions, so I still consider it to be a “proper” album. There's no doubting the laid-back joy of the aforementioned “Playground love”, which opens the album, with its breathy keyboards and lazy sax, understated vocals and just general air of feelgood, nor second and much shorter track “Clouds up”, which is an instrumental, basically carried on growling guitar and synth, only a minute and a half long, nor indeed “Bathroom girl”, another instrumental which starts off with church-like organ and rides along on a wave of digital piano and guitar. But it's “Dark messages” which really ups the ante, providing a skewed anthem worthy of the most eccentric of Tom Waits' compositions, and making you feel just a little on edge...
(Unfortunately, EMI seem to have blocked most of the content from this album on YT, so this will have to suffice. Sorry.)
The album, as might be expected, is almost all instrumentals, bar the opener, and parts of the final track, and it's all very ambient music, which I have to admit I find a little hard to review (so why am I reviewing it? Cos I like it. Didn't stop me reviewing Vangelis' “Oceanic”, now did it?), but very impressive. “The word hurricane” features a spoken explanation of how a hurricane occurs, halfway through the track, which then goes a little crazy with mad piano and bashing drums to the end. Weird, with a capital W. Then we're on to the longest track on the album, over six minutes of music which goes under the title of “Dirty trip”, with a nice funky bassline and those churchy organs again. Nice hi-hats and tom-toms add to the feel of the piece, with some sort of weird growling sound, presumably made on a synthesiser or guitar and some cool reverb. I would say that for music of this nature six minutes seems a little long, and the track sounds and feels overstretched: maybe three or four minutes would have been better, as it really doesn't change much throughout.

Much better is “Highschool lover (theme from “The Virgin Suicides”)”, sounding like a throwback to seventies-era Supertramp, before it becomes an instrumental interpretation of “Playground love”, mostly on piano and synth, which works very well. “Afternoon sister” is introduced on acoustic guitar, which breaks the constant keyboard music up nicely, even if those organs are back again, with violins that no doubt were produced on a synthesiser keyboard. “Ghost song” comes in on haunting harpsichord and organ, suddenly joined halfway through by angry electric guitar (though to hear the way it's played, it could be the synth again, or one of those hand-held synth-guitars that were popular for a short time in the eighties). “Empty house” gives a great impression of panic, over keyboard arpeggios and organ backing with drum-machine sounding like a heartbeat.

“Dead bodies”, meanwhile, kicks up the tempo in no uncertain fashion, great piano playing and a real boppy rhythm forcing the toes to tap, with some nice choral synth about halfway in taking over from the piano. Some pretty cool bass work too. The album ends on “Suicide underground”, which opens with a spoken announcement concerning the reasons people commit suicide, then slips into a nice laidback synthy score while the voice continues to speak. I guess it helps if you've seen the movie. I haven't.

As I said, reviewing a film score is not easy. There are no lyrics to talk of, no real themes in the songs and add to that the problem that if you aren't familiar with the film being scored, you may miss out on some important points the music tries to make. Nevertheless, I like this album, and it certainly makes me want to hear more of Air's work. At worst though, like most scores, this is a good album to put on if you want to lie back, turn out the lights and close your eyes and just relax. Maybe leave out the last track though, as the voiceover is likely to spoil your relaxation and your enjoyment of the music.

TRACKLISTING

1. Playground love
2. Clouds up
3. Bathroom girl
4. Cemetary party
5. Dark messages
6. The word 'hurricane'
7. Dirty trip
8. Highschool lover (Theme from “The Virgin Suicides”)
9. Afternoon sister
10. Ghost song
11. Empty house
12. Dead bodies
13. Suicide underground

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You guys may not (will not) know this, but I used to work for a very local radio station, here in Dublin, and part of my weekly four-hour show was devoted to love songs, which I called The Tunnel of Love. I don't do radio work anymore, but in an effort to share some of the songs I consider the finest slow songs ever written, I'm sort of resurrecting that show. This part of my journal will be written in the style of that radio show (without the obligatory ads!), and will feature some of my favourite ballads, love songs, soppy songs, call them what you will, they're the songs you put on when you want to chill out and relax, or bring down the lights, if ya gets my meanings.... heh heh.

I'll be posting the songs that mean most to me, or that I just really like, and talking a little about each. They'll be posted in batches of seven (why? Cos it's my lucky number!) and unlike my other stuff will not be uploaded, as they'll all be here in YouTube form. Some may have cropped up in previous album reviews or other posts. I don't know if this “faux radio” format will be popular or not, successful or no, as I've never tried it before, but hey, it's different. If you don't think it works, if it comes across as too narcissistic, too boring, too annoying, whatever, just let me know.

As usual, comment is invited. By all means, if there are songs that mean a lot to you that you would like featured (requests, as it were), just let me know, and if I have or can get them, I'll include them in one of the selections. I can dedicate a song to someone who means something to you, if you want, or relate a personal story you wish to share. Anyway, we'll see how it goes.

So, tuning in.....

Hey, welcome along and thanks for tuning to Trollheart's Tunnel of Love. We have some really gorgeous tunes for you, and first up is one I consider to be one of the most moving, emotional and expressive lovesongs ever written, “Angel” by Sarah McLachlan. Every time I hear this I just break down. Hey, I'm only human! See if you can hold back the tears. Simple, piano-based melody by a woman with a truly soulful voice. Magnificent.


Christy Moore is a real institution in Ireland, and he's had some great songs down the decades. This, however, I consider to be by far his best, written by Jimmy McCarthy, beautiful acoustic guitar, with stunning strings. “Ride on” just takes you places other songs can't...


Let's not forget that Rod Stewart has had his share of lovely ballads, among them “First cut is the deepest” (the old Cat Stevens number) and of course “Sailing”, but this is my favourite by him, also covered by Everything But The Girl, but I prefer his version. This is “I don't want to talk about it”.


Natasha Bedingfield is not someone you'll find in my record collection, but I must admit I loved this single, “Soulmate”. It's a surprisingly mature song from someone I would normally associate, perhaps wrongly, with more or less vacuous pop songs. Mind you, I did suffer through her entire “NB” album, and I have to say this is the exception to the rule, as far as that goes. Powerful song. Give it a listen.


And keeping with the ladies, Nanci Griffith has long been a favourite of mine. This is from her album “Lone star state of mind”, a gentle little song that became a hit for her, but was written by Julie Gold. This is “From a distance”.


Neil Hannon, also known as the Divine Comedy, knows how to write great ballads, and this is from his album “A short album about love”, the excellent “Someone”.


And to wrap up this first edition of “Trollheart's Tunnel of Love”, the original and the best, a classic among classics from Harry Nilsson, the superlative “Without you”. Maria who? ;)


That's it for the first show, as it were. Hope you enjoyed it, and as I say, any suggestions, feedback, requests for inclusion, just post and let me know. Thanks for being here, and we hope you'll tune our way again very soon.

For now, it's goodnight and peaceful thoughts....

Count three and pray --- Berlin --- 1986 (Geffen)
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Yeah, there I was, back in the heady eighties, when I had a job, a full head of hair and a fuller wallet, and not all that much to spend it on, at age 23. No girlfriend (ah, through choice, through choice!), didn't drink or smoke and no real bills to worry about, as me ma took care of all that once I gave her her allowance from my wages. Oh yes, life was good! So what to spend money on? Why, music of course! And having been to see Tom Cruise's flag-waving nonsense Top gun, and with Berlin's “Take my breath away” riding high in the charts (remember that video with herself standing on the wing of a fighter?), sure I had to check out their album!

So, another band whose name did not give any clue as to where they came from: in the same way that Europe were not Europeans, Texas were from Scotland, Asia from America and America …. well, okay, America were Americans. But Berlin were most certainly not Germans, that was for sure. They actually hail from LA, wouldya believe?

A little surprised, maybe, to find that the gooey ballad was not at all what this band were all about, I listened as the first track pounded its way out of my speakers. “Will I ever understand you” throws down the marker from the off, with thumping drums, screeching guitar and did that voice really sing on the number one hit single?. Vocalist Terri Nunn sounds much raunchier, angrier and trashier than she ever did on “Take my breath away”, with the band adding backing vocals in a very punk-type way. It's a great track though, and a good start to the album. Rockin', for sure.

It's soon abundantly clear that, despite their smoocheroonie hit, Berlin are no Air Supply. Next track, “You don't know” starts off with spacey synth and guitar, before slow drums appraoch and a really nice bassline brings the song to life. In ways, this is a ballad, but it's a powerful one, and very catchy too. The message in it though is different to that of most ballads, as Terri sings ”If I walked away and left you there/ Would you know why?” Some nice programmed sequencing adds to this track's appeal, then we're back rocking with “Like flames”, introduced on cheerful whistles and then exploding into a rock/pop masterpiece with a great hook. Excellent guitar work from Ric Olsen, with nice keyboards from Matt Reid.

One thing that quickly becomes evident about Berlin is that their music is, almost to a track, catchy and memorable, with great melodies and hooks, and Terri herself is a powerful and passionate singer, and indeed, through songs like this and “Heartstrings”, which is up next, you begin to see the raw power she has in her voice, which she was able to inject into what could have been a very limp ballad, but instead comes across as one of the true power ballads of the eighties. “Heartstrings” indeed has a sort of Duran Duran-like guitar vibe, and then it's thatsong, which let's be honest, requires no coverage from me. If you don't know, or haven't heard “Take my breath away” at least once, then you're unlikely to be reading this, as you haven't yet discovered the Internet, or even computers.

“Trash” is throwaway fun, with its feedback guitar opening and Terri doing her best Debbie Harry, and there's a sharp edge to “When love goes to war”, with some nice backing vocals, but it's not until the magnificent “Hideaway” that we truly see Berlin at their best. A tender love song, played mostly against a jangling guitar, it's Terri at her most soulful and vulnerable as she sings ”Forget the pain/ Hideaway in my arms/ Where's the shame/ Cry away, there's no harm.” The song is a great vehicle for Terri's impassioned vocal, the instumentation mostly stripped-back, except for a great guitar solo from Ric halfway through and another, better one to fade out the song to its close.

The production on the album is perfect, handled as it is between the band themselves and two mega-producers, Bob Ezrin and Giorgio Moroder, the latter of which co-wrote “Take my breath away” for Berlin. Everything is crystal clear, nothing lost in the mix, the vocals are never subsumed and the overall impression is of clean, clear, professional production, as you would expect with such heavyweights involved.

It's interesting that the only song on which Terri and Ric collaborate turns out to be one of the very best on the album. Closing the album perfectly, “Pink and velvet” is another ballad, with dramatic keyboard and heavy drums, almost nineties Genesis-like, nice piano and Ric shining as he does his best Gilmour impression, providing a gorgeous musical backdrop against which Terri sings her song of love and seduction, showing her tender side as the album comes to a triumphant close.

TRACKLISTING

1. Will I ever understand you?
2. You don't know
3. Like flames
4. Heartstrings
5. Take my breath away
6. Trash
7. When love goes to war
8. Hideaway
9. Sex me, talk me
10. Pink and velvet

Eliminator --- ZZ Top --- 1983 (Warner)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...Eliminator.jpg

The enduring memory of one of the surprise hits of 1983 is of girls in short, tight-fitting leather skirts, three guys in shades and a super-cool classic car. These were the elements that helped make this album, ZZ Top's eighth, their most successful ever, selling over ten million copies. The marketing campaign was spot-on, and worked like a dream, as who otherwise would have wanted to hear songs sung by a Texas blues band? But those videos! Oh yes, they got the attention without question. And when we had all calmed down and had a cold shower, though the videos stayed in our heads so did the music. And it is of course the music that we're concerned with.

I'm as guilty as anyone of knowing no ZZ material prior to --- or even after --- “Eliminator”. I had heard of them, but only vaguely, mostly while leafing through the record bin in my local record shops and seeing the dusty cover of “Tejas” and “Tres hombres”, and moving right on. But this album marked a huge shift in ZZ's musical direction. Whereas previous albums had been low-key, blues and rock efforts that garnered little interest outside of their own fanbase, the one prior to this, “El loco”, had introduced the use of synthesisers and was a lot “poppier” and more accessible than past efforts, rewarding the band with decent sales (about half a million worldwide). So when they came to record “Eliminator”, it was commercial, catchy songs all the way, and it was a formula that absolutely worked.

Kicking off with the super-hit “Gimme all your lovin'”, you can't really listen to this without seeing the video in your mind's eye, but even apart from that it's a great song, with great guitar from Billy Gibbons, thumping drums courtesy of Frank Beard (the only one without a beard, incidentally!) and the chugging bass of Dusty Hill. It's toe-tapping, instantly catchy and spelled HIT all over. Which it was. “Got me under pressure” is faster, with some great guitar and the feel of a very tight band who know exactly what the others are doing, and want. “Sharp-dressed man” is another hit single, that familiar drumbeat carrying the song, and an excellent guitar solo from Gibbons at the end.

It's not till we get to the first slow track that we see ZZ Top in their natural element, with “I need you tonight” a blues masterpiece, squealing guitar and chugging bass under Billy Gibbons' growling voice as he sings ”It's three o'clock in the morning/ And the rain begin to fall/ I know what I'm needing/ But I don't have it at all.” A blues booty-call, the song is dirty, grinding and terrific. Some of Gibbons' best guitar work on the album is in evidence here, and it's a pity in a way that a song like this sort of got overlooked by the more upbeat singles that people always remember this album for, as it's a real piece de resistance. Too long to be a single (over six minutes) and to have cut it down would have been a crime, but even so, the standout track on the album in my view.

Sometimes it's hard to review an album that's so well known. You've heard all the hits. You know that “Gimme all your lovin'” is a rock classic. You don't need me to tell you that “Legs” is ZZ at their most electronic, but there are other good tracks on this album, some almost as good as those which got selected to be released as singles. “I got the six” is pure heads-down boogie rock, with its cheeky and irreverent ”I got the six/ Gimme your nine!”., while “If I could only flag her down” is just a rockin' good time. In between, there's the somewhat neglected “TV dinners”, (even though it was a single, it's not one people remember, in my experience) with its grinding, dirty guitars and truckfuls of innuendos.
Man, you feel like having a shower when it's all over! Or a smoke...

“Dirty dog” is galloping rock at its best, with no points scored with the feminist movement, with lines like ”You're just a dog/ A scummy dog!” The drumming on this track is excellent, and another fine Billy Gibbons solo too. Apart from “I need you tonight” and “TV dinners”, this album is a heads-down, nonstop charge to the finish, and sure you'd expect nothing less from an album whose cover features one mean-lookin' classic souped-up Ford Coupe comin' at ya like the Devil himself is at the wheel!

“Eliminator” will forever be known for those three singles, and ZZ will always be, for the majority, those three guys in beards and shades (despite Frank not having a beard: how the human brain can fill in these details to suit itself!), with twirling Ibanez guitars and that mega-cool car. But though it's fair enough that this should be the case --- the singles were fantastic, and did open up ZZ's music to a whole new audience, if only temporarily --- the album is so much more, and deserves more than just to be the vehicle (ahem!) that carries the three hit singles. Go on, give it another chance, you know you want to! Here's the key, climb on in, and beware of brunettes in leather miniskirts.

Or not...

TRACKLISTING

1. Gimme all your lovin'
2. Got me under pressure
3. Sharp dressed man
4. I need you tonight
5. I got the six
6. Legs
7. Thug
8. TV dinners
9. Dirty dog
10. If I could only flag her down
11. Bad girl


Suggested further listening: ZZ's music prior to “Eliminator” was MUCH different to what you would expect, listening to that album, but I believe “Afterburner” followed a little in its steps. Other than that, I don't know as I haven't heard any previous ZZ albums.

Random Track of the Day
Monday, August 1 2011
As promised some time ago, here is where I will be choosing one single track at random, via the shuffle feature on my media player, and reviewing it. It may be from an album, it may be a single, a hit, a one-hit-wonder. It may be something totally unknown, a live track or a bonus track, or something I may not even have heard myself. I'll be telling you why I like, or don't like it, and possibly a little about the album it comes from, assuming that's the case. It's Dame Chance in control again, so here we go...


Safeguard to Paradise --- Epica --- from The Divine Conspiracy on Nuclear Blast
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...Conspiracy.jpg

As it happens, this is one I haven't heard. I've listened to Epica's “Consign to oblivion”, and very much enjoyed it, but this album is new to me. One of the many hundreds, perhaps even thousands waiting on my hard disk to be heard. So, let's give it a whirl, eh?



Starting off with a nice piano and keyboard melody, it sounds like it may be one of the slower songs on the album. The divine voice of Simone Simons comes through then, behind lovely strings and piano, no percussion as yet. The song is, apparently, concerned with the methods used to convince young Islamic men and women to become suicide bombers, so controversial at the very least. Beautiful strings counterpoint the dark subject matter as Simone sings ”It's the truth between his cunning lies/That hands him his suspicious alibis/ Persuading with your forms will never be/ The way to our destiny.”

With a subject like this, first of all bravo to Epica for tackling it, and also for not necessarily slanting it either way, but a lot of bands would have gone the hard-rockin', shouting way to make such a point. Epica, known for their dramatic heavy progressive metal, decide to take an entirely different tack, and create a gentle, haunting ballad that somehow hits home harder with its light piano runs and gentle strings than a battery of shredding guitars and pounding drums would, and it's quite a miniature masterpiece they've come up with here.

The power is also in the lyric, as in the closing lines: ”Many virgins wait for him to come/ Persuading with your force will never be/ The way to our destiny.” Full marks to Coen Janssen too, on his keyboard and synth work, which sounds like a string section and is extremely effective.

So, not bad for a first selection, and one I didn't know beforehand. Let's see what tomorrow brings then, shall we?

Trilogy --- Yngwie Malmsteen --- 1986 (Polydor)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...en-Trilogy.jpg

Considered by many of his peers to be one of the best guitarists in the world, Yngwie Malmsteen's primary influence on his music is not Jimmy Page, or Eric Clapton, or even Jimi Hendrix. He's a great admirer of nineteenth century violinist Niccolo Paganini, and it's this classical influence that characterises and sets his particular brand of music apart from other rock guitarists. In fact, he has been credited with pioneeering the style of guitar playing known as “shred”, among whose proponents are counted the likes of Steve Vai, Randy Rhoads and of course Buckethead.

Starting off with “You don't remember, I'll never forget” (also the longest title on the album), it's pretty much a keyboard-driven song, with powerful vocals by Mark Boals, of Royal Hunt, Seven the Hardway AND Ring of Fire, the keys handled by Jens Johansson. There are brief flashes of the brilliance later evidenced on the album by Yngwie here, but they're sort of held in check for now.

A quick word for the cool cover: Yngwie shooting an attacking dragon with his Fender. Awesome, as they say. But back to the music, and “Liar” is a faster track, with furious drumming by Jens' brother, Anders, and some great guitar, as you might expect, from Yngwie. The classical influence is very clear here, and Boals sounds like Ronnie James Dio at his very peak. There's a lot of anger in the lyric to this song, not surprisingly with a title like that. ”You smile in my face/ When I turn around/ You stick a knife in my back/ You think you're clever/ You know you're insane/ Your lies are not white/ They are black.” Okay, so the lyric is weak, but hey, listen to that guitar!

“Queen in love” is more a crunching rocker, slower but no less heavy, and more guitar-led this time, while the real standout is “Crying”, five minutes of pure guitar Heaven from Yngwie, a slow, classical piece with sparse accompanying organ and percussion. You can just see him sitting on a chair, bathed in a blue spotlight on stage, shaking his head and making those funny/tortured/ecstatic faces guitarists do when they're really into their songs. This is where Yngwie really comes into his own and shows what he can do when let loose. Great stuff.

It's back to the shredding then for “Fury”, Anders Johansson again punching out a steamhammer beat on his skins, Yngwie playing faster than it seems human fingers can move. “Fire” gives centre stage to Jens' keyboards, and comes across as almost Foreigner AOR, quite commercial. Elements of heavier Journey in there too, circa “Frontiers”. Speeding back up then for “Magic mirror”, with the spotlight firmly back on Yngwie's shredding guitar work, and slowing right down for another cruncher in “Dark ages”, with some great keyboard work by Jens. Very much a Dio feel about this one.

And finally we're into the centrepiece, and indeed the title track. “Trilogy Suite Op. 5” is a total Malmsteen-fest, with the man absolutely working his fingers off in a seven-minute display of every facet of his considerable skill, from furiously fast shredding to delicate classical guitar-picking, to chug-along soloing, with help from Jens on keyboards and Anders on drums. But this is Yngwie's show, and he is the consummate showman, secure if not smug in his expertise, perhaps a little narcissistic, but then, with talent like his, we can allow that.

I'll be totally honest: although I really like this album, there's no doubting that the songs on it are not right up there with the best. In many cases they're mediocre at best, formulaic and trite, but behind it all shines the blinding sun of Yngwie Malmsteen's amazing skill on the guitar. Listen to it just for that and you won't be disappointed. Hey, someone's gotta do the heavy lifting, right? We can't all be genius....

TRACKLISTING

1. You don't remember, I'll never forget
2. Liar
3. Queen in love
4. Crying
5. Fury
6. Fire
7. Magic mirror
8. Dark ages
9. Trilogy Suite Op. 5

Suggested further listening: “Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra in E Minor”

Different light --- The Bangles --- 1986 (Columbia)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...rent_Light.jpg

Back before “girl bands” like the Spice Girls and Girls Aloud were hip, the Bangles were sisters doin' it for themselves. A girl band in the true sense of the word, the Bangles all played an instrument, and they also wrote their own material. Their second album, “Different light”, broke them wide open commercially, spawning no less than four hit singles --- one of which hit the number one spot --- and quite possibly influencing the “girl power” movement before it had even been thought of. In a world where there were not that many female performers, and less bands made up of women, the Bangles were a breath of fresh air, and in many ways a risky proposition for a label to back, but helped by the writing talent of Prince, who penned their number two hit, “Manic Monday”, it was a gamble Columbia must have been glad they took.

I was more than a little surprised to find that it's a really good album. When I bought it, I of course knew the singles (who, at that time, had not heard of “Manic Monday”, “Walk like an Egyptian” or indeed “If she knew what she wants”?), but I had no idea how good the rest of it was. There is, literally, no filler material, and just about any of the other eight tracks could have been released as singles.

It starts off with the instantly recognisable “Manic Monday”, penned by Prince under the pseudonym of “Christopher”, but everyone knew it was him. It's not that surprising: if you listen to the verses you can sing those of Prince's “1999” to them. But it was a huge hit and sent the Bangles on their way to pop stardom and repeated chart success. It's a good song, if a little simplistic, but very catchy, and more to the point, it's something we can all relate to, that feeling ”Wish it was Sunday.../ Don't have to run day” The title track is a rockier affair, strictly speaking it's called “In a different light”, and sounds to me like Simon and Garfunkel's “Hazy shade of winter”, which they ended up covering later. Great guitar work from Vicki Peterson, and of course Susannah Hoff's honey-sweet voice which would become one of the hallmarks of the late eighties.

This is certainly a guitar-oriented album. In addition to those played by Hoffs and Peterson, bassist Micheal Steele also plays guitar, and there are “additional guitars” credited on the album to Rusty Anderson and Barbara Chapman. That's a LOT of guitars! The poppy sound continues on “Walking down your street”, a happy, breezy tune which was also released as a single, with some nice keyboard touches courtesy of Mitchell Froom and David Kahne. Then we're into their biggest hit, the number one smash “Walk like an Egyptian”. Personally, although this was their most successful single, it's not one of my favourites, but it's good fun.

The songs on this album are predictably all short. There's only one over four minutes, and many under three, or just over. No epic compositions then. But that's not what the Bangles are about. It's short, snappy, singable tunes they're into, songs you remember and recognise, and that appeal to everyone; songs that play well on the radio. It's perhaps telling that of the four tracks that became hits, only one of those is even co-written by any of the Bangles. This is rather a pity, as they write some pretty good stuff, much of which got ignored on this album. “Standing in the hallway” is a keyboard-led toe-tapper that I felt for sure would have been released as a single, but never was. The keys on this give it, to me, quite a sixties feel, and following track “Return post”, the longest on the album at just under four and a half minutes, is a great little blues/boogie tune with some nice bass lines and some great vocal harmonies.

But no, it's another non-Bangles-penned effort, up next, which gets released as a single, and to be fair, “If she knew what she wants” is a great little track, and a good choice for a single, but there are others which could have done as well, but as might be expected the rockier tracks on the album were overlooked in favour of the more commercial, accessibly pop ones. Nevertheless, I see no real reason why “Let it go” was not considered, with its close vocal harmonies and steady beat, nice piano and guitar that rocks but is still within the sphere of acceptable pop. “Angels don't fall in love” rocks out nicely, while “Following”, the slowest track on the album, is almost a spoken vocal, with guitar accompaniment only to open, then synth backing, but a very stripped-down, acoustic song, and certainly the only dark song on the album, where the Bangles show they can be more than just happy popsters. A great little track, very effective, written by bassist Michael Steele, and unless I'm very wrong, sung by her too.

As I say, no filler at all, with each track on the album capable of standing on its own merits, and more than a few unreleased ones which could have been singles. It's not a guitar solo-fest, it's not brimming with keyboard arpeggios or deep, meaningful lyrics, but it's more than just a pop record. Like I said at the beginning, bands like the Bangles set the bar for the plethora of girl bands who came after, so if nothing else the likes of Destiny's Child, Girls Aloud and Atomic Kitten owe these five “gurls” a debt of thanks. Like most things though, the Bangles had their day, and after the initial euphoria of this album wore off, much like already-reviewed “Eliminator” by ZZ Top, people lost interest and though the Bangles continued recording up to their breakup in 1988, and reformed ten years later, with an album due out this year, 1986 was the year of their breakthrough, and also the apex of their career.

Like many bands classed as “one-hit wonders”, or indeed “one-album-wonders”, the Bangles are still recording today, but sadly these days it seems trends have moved on, and few, if any, care. For their time the Bangles were a spirit of the age, something new and exciting, but since the oversaturation of boy and girl bands that hit the world since the late 1990s, and with shows like the X-Factor and American Idol bringing more and more often dubious talent to the fore, it would seem that the heady days of success for these girls is over.

TRACKLISTING

1. Manic Monday
2. In a different light
3. Walking down your street
4. Walk like an Egyptian
5. Standing in the hallway
6. Return post
7. If she knew what she wants
8. Let it go
9. September gurls
10. Angels don't fall in love
11. Following
12. Not like you

Random Track of the Day
Tuesday, August 2 2011

So what have the gods of chance rolled for us today? Nightwish, it would seem. Well, I've heard a few of their songs, but not that many. What I have heard I've liked, and this is from a live album, and although my music library and the album art has it as from “Over the hills and far away”, checks show that this track was not on that album. I have a feeling it may be from the live “From wishes to eternity”, but at any rate, it's the live version of “Kinslayer”, which appears on their 2000 release, “Wishmaster”.

Kinslayer --- Nightwish --- Originally from Wishmaster on Drakkar
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._kinslayer.jpg


The song was written about the Columbine school massacres, and features dialogue between the two shooters in the middle. It's a keyboard-heavy intro, with angry guitars and Tarja Turunen at her operatic best on vocals. As might be expected, it's a very intense, angry song, eerie keyboard passages perhaps mimicking the two killers stalking through the corridors of the school in their search for victims. A very unsettling track, when you know what it's about, but very powerful and effective.

A great review and despite the horrible Take My Breath Away track it is a really great Pop Rock album.

I originally bought it on cassette for one reason. It IS David Gilmour on the track Pink and Velvet and not a poor imitation from Ric. As I am a Gilmour fanboy I will give anything a listen he is on.

Also Europe were from Sweden so their name is apt and Asia were a British band too!

Heartstrings and When Love Goes To War are my favourite tracks. Pink and Velvet is also damn good.

Thx for the comments Jack, and am I surprised to find that WAS Gilmour on that track! Guess I should check my album liner notes more, but I only have this one on vinyl, and as I haven't fed the three-headed dog that guards my album collection on vinyl, I didn't want to take the chance and go rooting for it! :) Thanks for clearing that up though.

As for Europe, well yeah, they were from Sweden but [pedant] Sweden isn't part of the European Union (it's part of Scandinavia)[/pedant] so I'll stand by that one. As for Asia, what did I say they were? American? Oops! But they still weren't Asian! ;)

Glad you enjoyed the review: keep the comments comin'!

Flirtin' with disaster --- Molly Hatchet --- 1979 (Epic)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...h_Disaster.jpg

(Ahem. Excuse me just one moment...) YEEEE-HAAWWWW!
Sorry, just had to get that out of my system.
I LOVE southern rock! You can't get much more honest than the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd, 38 Special, Blackfoot and of course these guys, Molly Hatchet. “Flirtin' with disaster” is their second album, released in 1979, and it's chock-full of hard-drinkin', poundin', smokin', down-home heads-down rock and roll! Yeah! Just looking at the lineup tells its own tale: vocals, guitar, guitar, guitar, bass, drums. No synthesisters or drum machines here! There are some keyboards, but then, where would southern rock be without a pianner?

Things get going with “Whiskey man”, and right away you know you're in Jack Daniels country. Grinding, growling guitars, thumping drums, and the raw, whiskey-honed vocals of Danny Joe Brown --- this is what it's all about! Next up is a seriously kicked-in-the-head cover of the Stones' “It's all over now”, which makes Jagger sound like a boy soprano; great honky-tonk piano from Jai Winding really gets this song rockin', and you feel it could have gone on for a lot longer than the just over three and a half minutes it lasts for, but then we're into a serious bassline and slide guitar for “One man's pleasure”, triple guitar attack making this one monster of a song.

There is, as I said, one word which describes southern rock, and that is honest, but there's another too, and it's fun. You can't help tapping your feet and even shaking your head while listening to any of these tracks, and it's clear the band too are having a good time. Guitarists Dave Hlubeck, Steve Holland and Duane Rhodes take it in turns to shine, creating a veritable wall of guitar sound that somehow never drowns out the songs, or indeed the singer, although with a voice like Danny Joe has, it'd take a 747 to drown him out!

I first heard “Boogie no more” on one of those rock compilation albums --- think it was called “Killer Watts” --- and I loved it right away. It's pure southern rock from its screaming guitar opening to the growly bass vocals, right to the inevitable guitar boogie ending. It's a great song, starting slow but quickly picking up tempo as the band really get into the groove. A real vehicle for the axemen – it's hard to know who's playing, with three guitarists, but they all put in a great shift. It's six minutes of pure southern rock power, and great fun: YOU try sitting still while listening to it! My feet are dancin' even as I'm typing this!

The title track, the next longest at just barely under five minutes, is another solid rocker, verging into heavy metal territory, with great guitar licks and stomping drumming by Bruce Crump. There are places, admittedly, where the triple guitar attack is a little overkill, and some piano would have been welcome, maybe even some fiddles, but Molly Hatchet found a style that worked for them, and they stuck to it, and I can't really fault them for it. The only thing I would say is that there is very little variety in the tracks --- not so much that one blends into the other, but “Flirtin'” is remarkably similar to the melody of “Boogie”, and so on. But then, southern rock ain't about innovation, clever lyrics or intricate passages of play. It is what it is, like it or not, and no bad thing say I.

“Good rockin'” has a certain ZZ-vibe about it, while “Gunsmoke” recalls Bob Seger at his best, with some really cool piano there. There's a real lookback to their country roots for penultimate track “Long time” before the album closes appropriately with “Let the good times roll”, a real heads-down boogie with what sounds like fiddles but I think is just clever guitar at the beginning, and an almost Beach Boys sort of melody, but suitably rockin', of course!

If your only experience of southern rock is “Free bird” or “Sweet home Alabama”, you need to check out Molly Hatchet. This is only one of thirteen albums they've released to date, so grab your shotgun, jump on your hog and head off down south, where the welcome is warm and the rockin' is hard!

TRACKLISTING

1. Whiskey man
2. It's all over now
3. One man's pleasure
4. Jukin' City
5. Boogie no more
6. Flirtin' with disaster
7. Good rockin'
8. Gunsmoke
9. Long t ime
10. Let the good times roll



Suggested further listening: “Molly Hatchet”, “Beatin' the odds”, “Take no prisoners”, “No guts... no glory”, “Lightning strikes twice”

Back to Bedlam --- James Blunt --- 2004 (Atlantic)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._To_Bedlam.jpg

Okay, let's get one thing out of the way right from the start. When most people hear the words “James Blunt” they usually respond with a curse and a (sometimes lengthy) diatribe about “THAT eff-star-star-kay-ing song!”, and I will agree, the airplay “You're beautiful” got was overkill. But then, that's not the fault of the artist. Britney Spears' “Toxic” was played, at least on my radio, as much as if not more than Blunt's single, and no-one complained about it, even though “Toxic” is a vastly inferior (imo) song.

But to dismiss “Back to Bedlam” on the basis of one bad experience, and to allow that one overplayed single to colour your entire view of the man and his work would be, without going over the top, tragic, because this is one hell of an album. With songwriting of the same calibre as the greats in this arena --- the Dylans, the Bowies, the Springsteens --- and great musicianship throughout, it's a real gem of an album that, while not flawless, has an awful lot to recommend it. But then, if you've made your mind up that you hate him, you're not going to read this review, are you? Are you? Go on, give him a chance. What have you to lose?

Kicking off with the lovely “High”, you're immediately struck by Blunt's distinctive voice, that if you give a chance can get right into your soul, believe me. It's a great little semi-ballad, a celebration of the good things in life, with nice little touches like electric piano and marimba. It's one of several ballads on the album, most of which is, after a fashion, fairly laid-back.

Then we come to the elephant in the room. Not much to say about this song that hasn't already been said (or cursed), but I personally don't think it's that great a song. The lyric is very weak, where Blunt declares ”I've got a plan” but we never hear what it is. It's a very confused and confusing song, though the melody is really nice. However, as we all know, jackhammer repeated airplay to death has ruined it for all but the very hardest-core Blunt fans. And I never liked it in the first place. Much better to skim over it and land on the weird and obscure “Wisemen”, with its classical guitar opening, and its totally uninterpretable lyric, but a great melody. Very catchy, as are many of the songs on this album, with some really nice Rhodes piano and organ adding real atmosphere to the song. In fact, apart from singing and playing guitar, Blunt plays a total of nine other instruments on the album, ranging from organ to mellotron to marimba, proving that not only is he a great singer and songwriter, but a multi-talented musician.

“Goodbye my lover” is perhaps one of the most tender ballads on the album, with its simple piano melody and its message of farewell to a loved one. I can't make up my mind whether his lover is dying, whether he is, or whether it's just a relationship breaking up, but either way it's a touching song, with some great lyrics: ”I know you well/ I know your smell/ I've been addicted to you.” There's some really nice string arrangement near the end too

But one of the standout tracks is “Tears and rain”, another acoustic ballad on piano and guitar, Blunt's soulful voice carrying the song into realms of otherworldly beauty. Another great string section here fills out the track nicely, with some feedback guitar which seems incongruous but somehow works. “Out of my mind” is easily the heaviest track on the album, slow but with a lot of power, with some nice touches on the organ, but I could do without “So long Jimmy”, a faster track that just doesn't do it for me. I remain convinced that James Blunt is at his best when tackling ballads and slower numbers, and this just comes across as filler to me, with its semi-reggae rhythm and its lyric of loss, which somehow personally fails to move me. Even the Doors-like electric piano solo leaves me cold.

“Billy” falls into the same category, but then we get “Cry”, another soulful ballad, touching and sentimental, a song of people at their lowest ebb when they need someone else to just put their arms around them and comfort them. There's a real sense of Blunt drawing on his own personal experience for this song, which makes it all the more sincere and effective. ”I have seen birth/ I have seen death/ Lived to see a lover's final breath”.

The best has been saved for last though. There are few words to describe the power and emotion of the closer, “No bravery”, a searing indictment of war, played against a piano melody as Blunt sings ”Old men kneeling/ To accept their fate/ Wives and daughers/ Caught and raped/ A generation drenched in hate...” The glamour and glory associated with serving in the armed forces is dissected as he remarks ”I see no bravery/ In your eyes anymore/ Only sadness.” Blunt has firsthand experience of such feelings and events, as he served in Kosovo before taking up a career in music. The drums come in halfway through, punctuating the song and lending it an extra dimension, with organ moaning in counterpoint, joined by electric guitar which seems to wail the despair of a torn and broken people, be they the citizens of Basra, the villagers in Kandahar, or any of a thousand more groups of civilians caught up in a war they neither understand nor want.

It's a powerful, epic and sobering finale to an album which really deserves to be heard. To think, if fate had been unkind, James Blunt could have died in action overseas, and we would never have heard his wonderful music. As it is, I think we have one of the songwriters of a new generation on our hands. Give “Back to Bedlam” a chance: as George Michael said, listen without prejudice, and you may just be surprised by what you find.

TRACKLISTING

1. High
2. You're beautiful
3. Wisemen
4. Goodbye my lover
5. Tears and rain
6. Out of my mind
7. So long, Jimmy
8. Billy
9. Cry
10. No bravery

Random Track of the Day
Wednesday, August 3 2011

Just to show how hit-and-miss this random selection can be, here we have a very obscure track from an even more obscure album (so obscure it appears now to be deleted!) from a relatively obscure-to-most artist. Gandalf is the name taken by Austrian composer and musician Heinz Strobl, who has released over the course of almost three decades a total of over thirty albums, all of which are instrumental and of the “new-age” bent, like Michael Nyman or Eddie Hardin. I guess you could call him the Austrian Vangelis, though Gandalf tends to go for less electronic and more organic music, and takes his inspiration from nature and the world around him.

Admittedly, his music can be hard (read, boring) to listen to for a full album, but some of it is really quite lovely. The Random Track of the Day today comes from an album he recorded called “Labyrinth”, and though it says it's a soundtrack from the film, I must assume it's not the Labyrinth --- you remember the one, with David Bowie and the goblins? --- as that movie was out in 1986, already has a soundtrack (courtesy of the Thin White Duke), and this one was released in 1990, four years later.

Anyway, whatever film it refers to, this is Gandalf and a track called “Facing the demons”. Have a listen, see what you think.
Facing the demons --- Gandalf --- from the “Labyrinth” film soundtrack on Seagull
http://www.gandalf.at/cache/S_00000061.jpg
(Not surprisingly, I couldn't find a video for this on YT, so I had to throw something together myself and upload it. Don't expect much...)
First of all, don't ramp up your volume, thinking there's nothing there, as the track fades in very slowly and quietly and takes a little time to get going. If you're really impatient, you can start hearing clear music at about the 1:20 point.

Yeah, it sort of sounds like someone tightening a ratchet in the background, doesn't it? Nice keyboard work as ever though, gentle and dreamy, as most of Gandalf's work is. Some proper keyboards coming in on the 3:18 mark, as the track gets a little more distinct, then what sounds like guitar and strings. Kind of gets going just a little then fades out again.

Well, that's Gandalf for you: an acquired taste, certainly. A track like that one though is probably hardly likely to whet your appetite for more, but hey, that's where the chips fall. I don't pick 'em, I only post 'em.

Hopefully something a bit more mainstream or interesting tomorrow...

The seeds of love --- Tears For Fears --- 1989 (Fontana)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._of_LoveLP.jpg

I was never a huge TFF fan: in the early eighties I found their particular brand of electronic pop/new-wave music soulless, empty and cold. Age changes opinion, and although I would still not class myself as a follower of theirs, I can now listen to “Tears roll down”, the greatest hits package, and like most if not all of the tracks on it. This album, however, marked a pretty fundamental shift away from synth-pop for the band, and they began to experiment with jazz, blues and outright rock. “The seeds of love” was still poppy enough though to be accessible by their legion of fans, who had grown up on the likes of “Pale shelter” and “Mad world”, and while it did not yield such hugely successful singles as the previous “Songs from the big chair”, it still went to number one and was highly acclaimed by critics.

There are only eight tracks on this album, but most of them are quite long, few under six minutes and one is over eight. It kicks off with “Woman in chains”, a slow, stately affair decrying the lack of equality between men and women in today's society: I”It's a world gone crazy/ Keeps women in chains.” Curt Smith and Roland Orzabel --- who ARE Tears For Fears --- are joined on this opener by Oleta Adams, who would go on to have a very successful recording career herself. The song is carried on jangling guitar and synth, with powerful drums provided by none other than Phil Collins. Halfway through the electric guitar kicks in in no uncertain fashion and the song gets a little heavier.

On lead vocals, Roland Orzabal is on top form, and this is nowhere more in evidence than in the next track, the longest at just over eight and a half minutes. “Badman's song” opens with jazzy, tricky piano with trumpet and takes on a somewhat gospel-like feel as it relates the confession of a man deemed a desperado and a “bad man”. The jazz influences are very prevalent here, especially in the piano and bass part about halfway through. The song changes though, going from reasonably fast to a slow blues vibe before picking up speed again to the end.

The title track is a nod back to the Beatles circa “Yellow Submarine”, with its multi-tracked vocals and psychedelic sound and somewhat nonsense lyrics, rolling drums and trumpets. The album sleeve reflects this too, in a pretty hippy-style drawing. Guitar takes something of a backseat here to brass and keyboards, but comes back into its own for “Advice for the young at heart”, perhaps the most commerical track on the album, and one of the four singles to be released from it. A faster, poppier track than those which had gone before, it's also one of the two shortest, at just over four and a half minutes long. In addition, it's the only one on the album on which Curt Smith takes lead vocals. It skips along on a nice piano and guitar melody, sort of mid-paced (haven't used that expression for a while now!), very catchy. Nice guitar solo too, the first to be heard on the album.

In contrast, “Standing on the corner of the third world” is much slower, almost ambient, with the instrumentation kept intentionally sparse until brass blasts in and the backing vocals lift the song, accompanied by shivering harmonica and ending on a jazzy, dissonant fade. “Swords and knives” maintains the slow pace, piano and organ the vehicle for the tune for the opening of the track, which then sparks into life halfway and becomes quite a rocky tune, guitar and keyboard and thumping drums fading out at the end, when it slows right down again.

The penultimate track, “Year of the knife”, is recorded as if live, but I doubt it is. It knocks things up a gear or two, getting quite frenetic in places, and is the second-longest on the album at just under seven minutes. Great backing vocals give the song real heart, with the drums pounding the beat away and driving the piece onwards. It's the last fast track, and fades directly into the powerful yet undestated closer, “Famous last words”, with its almost muttered vocal and beautiful string arrangement (probably thanks to that Fairlight controller Roland is using) and touching lyric: ”As the day meets the night/ We will sit by candlelight/ We will march, we will sing/ When the saints go marching in/ And we will carry war no more.” There's a powerful explosion of instruments in the middle, an impassioned vocal from Roland, and then it all fades away very quietly, finishing the album very nicely.

“The seeds of love” is another one of those often rare albums that I can listen to all the way through without skipping a track, or at least, without wanting to. Every track on it is gold, and as a cohesive whole it really is excellent. Even if you're not into TFF --- like me --- it's a damn good album, and worth a listen.

TRACKLISTING

1. Woman in chains
2. Badman's song
3. Sowing the seeds of love
4. Advice for the young at heart
5. Standing on the corner of the third world
6. Swords and knives
7. Year of the knife
8. Famous last words.

Aphrodite –- Kylie Minogue --- 2010 (Parlophone)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._Aphrodite.jpg

Ah yeah, I'll admit it: I've always had a soft spot for Kylie, at least since she broke away from the Hit Factory. It takes great guts and indeed vision to tamper with a winning formula, but Kylie didn't want to be another manufactured commodity, basically a mouthpiece into which messrs. Stock, Aitken and Waterman fed their pop pap recycled garbage, and made money off her. So she struck off on her own, met Michael Hutchence, dabbled in recording with the Prince of Darkness, Nick Cave, and carved herself a whole new identity, or three.

I'll also admit that Kylie records are not numerous among my collection, I have “Light years” and “The Ultimate Kylie”, and that's all I need. But then I heard the lead single from this album, and I liked it so much I thought hell, why not? And I bought the album. So is it any good, or was I fooled by one excellent track into buying a disc full of rubbish? Well, let's see.
(Hey, believe me, it's worth just watching the video! ;))
As mentioned, “All the lovers” was the single that preceded the album, and it is DAMN good! It's pure pop/dance heaven, with great hooks and a bouncy beat. Kylie is on top form as ever, and though no-one is expecting to hear deep lyrical ideas or intricate instrumentation on this album, it's musically very rewarding, with not surprisingly keyboards and synth taking centre stage, among a battery of drum machines. As you might expect on a dance record, it's all pretty much programmed stuff, and there's a very electronic feel to the music. There are guitars, bass, banks of keyboards, but nothing really sounds individual, everything sort of sucked into the mass to produce the hybrid sound that seems to permeate most dance music --- one of the reasons why it does little for me.

And producers! This album must break some sort of record for the number of producers it credits. I count no less than seventeen, including Stuart Price (executive producer) and Calvin Harris. In fairness, the production of the album is pristine --- you would certainly hope so, with that many separate producers involved --- it's bouncy, clean and clear. But after the initial euphoria of “All the lovers” has worn off, things take a dive towards the mundane.

“Put your hands up” is essentially “Hand on your heart” updated for the 21st century, while “Closer”, despite an interesting line in synth and an almost Abba-like melody, doesn't step far enough from the formula to establish its own identity. “Everything is beautiful” however, raises the bar a little. A semi-ballad, penned by Fraser T. Smith and Keane's Tim Rice-Oxley, it's a nice break from the constant dance rhythm, though make no mistake about it, this is unashamedly a dance album. There are no attempts to rock out, or break into any other genres here. This is, basically, Kylie returning to what she does best, and excelling at doing so.

The title track comes in on bongo-like drumbeats and then gets going as another catchy dance track, with interesting vocals by Kylie, nice electric piano recalling the heyday of ABC at their best. I guess it's par for the course with a dance album --- of which genre I admit I have very little experience --- but the drum machines always sound very dry and soulless. It's a pity she didn't draft in the services of a human drummer for at least some of the tracks. I think this may be why so many sound the same, or at least similar.

“Illusion” is the first song which Kylie co-writes, but to be honest you wouldn't know, and you'd ask yourself why she bothered, when it sounds pretty much like the ones that have gone before. Nice ELO-style strings in the song though, and decent backing vocals. Also reminds me of China Crisis, for some reason...

It's probably my own fault for trying to review a dance album. No doubt a true Kylie fan, or someone better acquainted with pop/dance music would have a lot more to say about this album, but I find it hard to find anything really positive to say about it, apart from of course the opener. Everything sounds contrived, constructed and pre-programmed, and ultimately I find myself sort of listening and typing on auto-pilot as the album winds on towards its eventual conclusion. “Too much” is a faster, piano-driven song that has a little individuality about it, for about thirty seconds, then it falls back into the same old groove. I would normally stop the album now, bored out of my mind and quite disappointed, considering the high hopes I had had having listened to the opener, but this is a review and so I owe it to you, my readers, to finish it. So I'll listen on, but I don't expect too much. Sadly, there haven't been any ballads even, which might have helped rescue this album for me. Can't beat a good love song.

To be fair, for anyone into dance music this is going to be a blast, and there's no doubt it'll be a favourite on the dance floor and at parties, but it's not an album I would put on to actually listen to. One thing I really hate about drum machines is those bloody handclaps! Is there any drumloop that doesn't use them? And don't get me started on the overuse of vocoders! Anyway, “Cupid boy” is the longest track on the album, at just under four and a half minutes, and it's more of the same. The only good thing about it is that it denotes that the end of the album is coming up: only two more tracks to go! Can I last?

It's a real pity, as I do like Kylie, but I'd love to see her bring in some proper guitarist (Slash, anyone?) and try some rock. I think she could really handle it, and could be very good at it. However, she knows her market and she plays to them, and you certainly can't fault her for that. She has taken her share of chances in the past, so at this stage in her life --- and having survived a cancer scare into the bargain --- you can't blame her for playing it safe. Hey, it's all money in her bank account, and she'll certainly never be short of fans, or people to buy her albums. I just don't feel I'll be bothering in future. File under “took a chance, failed”.

Ah well, despite it all, I still love ya, Kylie!

TRACKLISTING

1. All the lovers
2. Get outta my way
3. Put your hands up (if you feel love)
4. Closer
5. Everything is beautiful
6. Aphrodite
7. Illusion
8. Better than today
9. Too much
10. Cupid boy
11. Looking for an angel
12. Can't beat the feeling

Random Track of the Day
Thursday, August 4 2011

Another strange one today. Oh, how Lady Luck likes to toy with me! Yesterday we had a six-minute ambient instrumental by an obscure instrumentalist. Today we have a track that's not even two minutes long, but from an internationally-recognised and acclaimed band. “Bornlivedie” (spelt that way, I'm not having problems with my spacebar!) is the opening track to the fourth album by Porcupine Tree, “Signify”, released in 1996.

Now, I am still making up my mind about this band, but one thing is without question: they are more than just a progressive rock band. They're more an experience, in much the same way Floyd are. Their music varies so much from album to album --- and even from track to track --- that I find it hard to get a handle on them. Some of their stuff I really like, some I don't and some just confuses me.
This is one of the latter.

Bornlivedie --- Porcupine Tree --- from “Signify” on Delerium
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ee_signify.jpg
(Again, this video was not exactly available on YT so I had to knock together another of my own. I know it's not great, nor appropriate to the song, but hey, I don't have a whole lot of video footage lying around, so used the best I had.)

More an intro than a piece of music, it starts off with a radio announcer leading in a programme, then there's some ambient and feedback synth, with swirly sounds and then more voices at the end. I assume (though I haven't yet heard this album) that it then goes into the next track, but taken on its own it's really quite weird. Just shows that what I said above is indeed true: Porcupine Tree can be great, but then on other occasions they are downright strange! Ah well, I'm sure that taken in context it probably makes more sense.

Here's hoping Friday will allow us to select at least a recognisable song...

Liberation transmission --- LostProphets --- 2006 (Visible Noise)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ansmission.jpg

DUE TO THE HORRIBLE, EVIL CRIMES OF LEAD SINGER IAN WATKINS, THIS REVIEW IS NOW DELETED. I WILL BE DUMPING MY CD AND ERASING LOSTPROPHETS' MUSIC FROM MY COMPUTER. THEY WILL NOT CONTAMINATE MY JOURNALS IN ANY FORM. MAY WATKINS DIE IN PRISON, AND ROT IN HELL!

(In case you don't know what I'm talking about...)
BBC News - Lostprophets' Ian Watkins sentenced to 35 years over child sex offences :mad: