DAWN

Following a quartet of ever improving releases recorded by a substantially stable line up, Eloy appeared to have the world at their feet. All the indications were that the following albums would bring the breakthrough the band deserved. Unfortunately, it was at this point the the band imploded. Much of the blame for this appears to have been placed with the band's manager Jay Partridge, who is alleged to have pulled them apart. Whether Partridge should be held solely responsible is a matter for conjecture, and we must assume that he merely exacerbated existing difficulties between the members.

Whatever the true facts are, one fact remains. Frank Bornemann found himself to be the sole remaining member of Eloy when all the others who recorded "The power and the passion" downed tools and left.

To his credit, Bornemann did not simply throw in the towel. He sought the help of Eloy's record label to assemble a new line up, and set about recording "Dawn". Thematically, the album appears to be a sort of continuation of "The power and the passion", but the story here is much more obscure (if there is one!). This can perhaps be attributed to the fact that while Bornemann is credited with the story, new boy Jurgen Rosenthal actually wrote all the lyrics.

In another first for the band, the string section of an orchestra is added to several tracks, enhancing Eloy's symphonic credentials. The liberal use of mellotron though means that the effect of the strings is limited though.

After the short but credible "Awakening", we enter the four part "Between the times". With the track lasting just over 6 minutes, the constituent sections are brief. The conversation aspect of the male female vocals harks back to "The power and the passion".

"The sun song" is an undoubted highlight of the album, with swirling mellotron supporting a powerful vocal and symphonic prog effects. Those who crave all things mellotron should seek out this track alone as one of the finest examples of its use. The following "Dance of doubt and fear" continues the mellotron dominance, but a heavier beat and obscure spoken word combine with some fine organ work to make for a more complex arrangement. For reasons not obvious, the title of the two "LOST!?" tracks is in capital letters. The first part, "Introduction" features some synthesised choral vocals and a synth solo. It is the most adventurous track recorded by the band thus far, and a good indicator or what was to come. The latter part of the track sees the strings take over, playing a sad but melodic classically tinged refrain. The second "LOST??" (note the two question marks) is subtitled "The decision". The organ intro is a sort of variation on a well known Bach piece, but the main tune soon takes us in a different direction. Musical dramatics are used to fine effect here, before an orthodox vocal section rounds off the track.

"The midnight fight/The victory of mental force" is the longest track on the album. Here, all the dramatics and orchestration scattered throughout the album are brought together with a frantic beat in a cacophony of controlled aggression. This track, more than the others, harks back to the rock roots of the band, but this time the overall sound is so much more sophisticated and refined. "Gliding into light and knowledge" returns us to the majestic mellotron soaked symphonic prog on which the album is largely based. The album closes with the mostly instrumental "Le reveil du soleil/The dawn", which includes the line "Nous sommes du soleil" There are certainly some Yes references in the track, but they are much more "Awaken" in origin.

In all, despite the enormous challenges faced by Frank Bornemann, he and his new colleagues manage to take Eloy to new heights with this album. Musically, there are still some rough edges here, but in terms of overall quality, this is a milestone recording for the band.

By the way, unlike preceding album, the remastered CD release contains no additional material.

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