BLACK NOISE

I found this disc on a venders table at Cal-Prog for $10.00. Remembering some of the reviews I'd read, I was intrigued. A solid 4 stars.... but in desperate need of some remastering, mainly the drum tracks, they don't hold up well at a high volume.

Musically, I find it sounding as though it was recorded by a supergroup of 70's icons; Tony Banks tasteful keyboards, Eddie Jobson's violin, Pierre Morlien (on loan from Gong & Hillage) playing drums and Geddy Lee's bass (when he played a Rickenbacker) pumping the music along. Vocally, I'm kind of lost on a comparison, soft and delicate, but not as highly pitched as Jon Anderson.

The vocals, however, are not what make this a great album. I'd have to credit the fine trade-offs between keyboard and violin that swing very naturally. This could have been a very solid instrumental album. Strong melodies keep your ear tuned in, good driving music.

Lyrically, it's very "stuck in the space travel" genre and somewhat simplistic. The lyrics are the filler between the solos and they serve their purpose.

I would put this album in a multi-disc player with Hillage "Fish Rising" and U.K. "U.K." Stylistically compatable.