EVER

What a big and pleasant surprise this album was! Pete Nicholls back on vocals, a great bass player added to the team and a collection of simply great songs. What a difference with "Are you sitting comfortably" that was far too poppy for a progrock band as IQ! The album starts off with one of the highlights, The darkest hour, that is haunting, sets a spell on you never to loosen it again. Albeit that "Out of nowhere" is a bit out of tune with the rest of the songs, being a rather straightforward poppy rock song. But the rest: waw!! Just listen to the two ballads "Fading lights" and "Came down" where Pete Nicholls and Mike Holmes play so beautifully, and you'll realise that this album really put them back on the right track. I've seen them on their Ever tour which was the first time I saw Pete Nicholls in peson. He was not a great singer live (but most certainly improved!!) but his person on stage and the playful interludes with Holmes. Jowitt and Orford illustrated clearly that playing in IQ was fun again. And that remained so until today, I guess, giving the fact that Ever was only the first of a couple of classical albums just to emerge in the years after its release.