HEAVY HORSES

I had to laugh at the title to febus' review of this album. "Songs from the barn" Haha. Well he's right, this is the folkiest album i've heard from Tull. The focus is on Anderson's vocals which seem a little rough at times. Cool to hear Darryl Way (CURVED AIR) on violin for two tracks.

"And The Mouse Police Never Sleeps" is all very intricate as Ian sings over top. I like the ending with intense vocals. "Acres Wild" again is very intricate as the vocals join in. Way is on violin here. Catchy tune. "No Lullaby" has some good guitar to open surprisingly. Drums take over followed by vocals. More guitar later then it picks up. Good tune thanks to the guitar of Barre. "Moths" has Anderson again sounding like he has a cold. Mostly acoustic with some orchestration. Not a fan. "Journeyman" sounds better with the prominant bass and intricate sounds. Vocals and flute help out as usual. Guitar comes and goes.

"Rover" sounds great to start.Vocals before a minute. I really like how these sounds mesh together. The intricate sounds are the appeal of this album for me. "One Brown Mouse" is an acoustic track for the most part. Flute and orchestration before 2 minutes then back to the original sound. "Heavy Horses" settles a minute in as vocals and piano take over. It gets much fuller from here although there are contrasts still. More orchestrations which I don't like. The violin from Way though is good. "Weathercock" opens with acoustic guitar and flute as vocals join in. Flute solo 2 minutes in. Electric guitar after 3 minutes.

A low 3 stars for me.