WINDOWS IN THE JUNGLE

Having more or less given up on the band since the two-way split, although the 10 CC name still managed a few good tracks and a major hit in Dreadlock Holiday, the post-split albums didn't quite reach the quality of the original foursome. The aptly-titled Deceptive Bends, the poor Bloody Tourists (saved by their last huge hit), and the miserable Are You Normal (of yes, you are), the remaining duo of Stewart and Gouldman pulled this one out of their bag in 83, but sadly it was clear by now that the band had over-stayed its welcome. Despite an impressive cast of guest proggy musicians (drummers Gadd, Phillips, saxman Collins, etc.), the album doesn't manage anything exciting or even enthralling, partly because of the AOR sound ala Toto or Don Fagen flattening this album's dynamic curves.

Indeed, out of the 8 tracks, none really manage to stand out from the almost-insipid pop, even the longer tracks not being really successful to arouse the progheads' interest. Despite that last remark, it is the two longer tracks that are slightly less soporific, but the 8- mins 24 Hours never allows for the pure pop brilliance of yesteryears to happen. Sappy and atrocious ballads like the 6-mins interminable Yes I Am (could be subtitled I Am Ready For Love) are abusing of your patience by being twice length it needed to. The worst part is that outside the Toto soundscapes, we get some pretty bad Foreigner vibes (circa the 4th album), but without the energy of Gramm's voice, even in faster tracks like City Lights. To keep the dancing thing going, the band plays out one or two reggaes (like Feel The Love, or Food For Thoughts) to emulate the success of Dreadlock Holidays, but sadly fails in doing so. Even worse, "Working Girls" emulates the horrible electro-pop new-wave ala 2Duran that had conquered the airwaves.

It's rather obvious that part of the failure of this album (still a tad better than its predecessor from what I recall) is its 80's AOR production (let alone a boring artwork on the cover), but at least we're not dealing (not that I know of, anyway) with cheap digital synths and rhythm boxes. Don't get me wrong, even insipid 10CC albums like this one are worth twice any Toto album of any era (and not just IMHO). Best avoided, just in case you hadn't understood yet.