RHETORIC

Now, this is much more like it! Whereas Credo's debut album was hampered by weak compositions, an excess of Fish-mimicry and poor production, Rhetoric shows a big improvement. The band's sound now resembles a mixture of Twelfth Night and early Pendragon, with just a pinch of influence from Arena and early Marillion plus some ideas which genuinely seem to be the band's own.

Thematically, the album as a whole is a moving exploration of interpersonal relationships and their end - whether that's divorce, bereavement, or some other separation. Emotionally, then, it's often a rather dour and bitter piece, and whilst I kind of appreciated that on first listening, having come across it at a rather glum time in my life, over time I find that I have rather soured on it.

Part of that is simply down to no longer relating to the emotional tone of the album at this stage in my life, its sympathy-inducing misery at points spilling over into myopic self-pity, or - even worse - sneering point-scoring and blame-assigning. A larger part of it, though, simply comes down to the musical backing simply not being that special - the production is better this time, but the band aren't really doing anything that I'd listen to in preference to any of their influences.

Still, its retro-1980s stylings will be a real treat for anyone keen on the first-wave neo-prog sound, and Credo still deserve praise for capturing their emotions so vividly and recognisably, even if you need to be in a very particular mood to appreciate it.