Mood Swings

Archive for the ‘Year 2005’ Category

Verdict (& Rating): ‘Overly’ complex Prog (70%)

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

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

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

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

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

More Info: www.hamadryadmusic.com

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

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

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

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

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

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

More info: www.towersound.net

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

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

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

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

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

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

More Info: www.sacredheartband.com

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

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

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

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

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

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

More Info: www.parallelmind.com

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

More info: spitfirewolfmusic@hotmail.com 

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

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

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

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

The album is available from:

23 Nightingdale Close
Rowlands Castle
Hampshire
PO9 6EU
England

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

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

Dig deep into those pockets!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

More info: www.favorednations.com

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

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

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

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

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