EVEN IN THE QUIETEST MOMENTS ...

While not equalling the najesty of the "Crime" album nor bearing a similar dynamics as that of the "Crisis" album, Supertramp showed with the release of "Even in the Quietest Moments." that they were still able to create an excellent musical opus. Their signature sound is now redefined with a more obviously stylish vibe, and it is also obvious that their material tends to be more accesible regarding both writing and arrangements, but you can tell that their standards for performances and expansions of the musical ideas by Hodgson or Davies remain high and interesting for the average art rock melomaniac. The album kicks off with the easy going number 'Give a Little Bit', a simplistic yet candorosly captivating hymn to friendship and solidarity that reminds us how influential were McCartney's and Harrison's songwriting for the development of Hodgson's musical vision. One of those Hodgson-penned hits that allowed Supertramp to perpetuate their place in the business. 'Lover Boy' sounds like the continuation to 'Poor Boy' from the previous album, although with a cleaner spirit and a rockier coda. Interesting, but not as great as other legendary Davies compositions. His piano ballad 'Downstream' is more emotionally charged in comparison, but it is when we get to the amazing mini-suite 'From Now On' that we can enjoy the best of his dark vision about life and mankind in an inspired musical frame. Almost matching his top track 'Rudy' (from "Crime of the Century") in terms of existentialist obscurity, 'From Now On' depicts in a very majestic way the weird fantasies of richness and solace of an average simple- minded boureaucrat. Alternating with these pieces are some of the best Hodgson compositions ever. The namesake track is based on acoustic guitar arpeggios, augmented with exotically driven clarinet lines by an ever amazing Helliwell and complemented by subtle ornaments on synthesizer and organ. Hodgson's lead singing keeps itself very faithful to the gradual emotional climax tha tthe song intends to create: this song is a perfect example of how a simplistic composition can be efficiently enriched by a constraint use of clever complexity along the way. 'Babaji' is more decidedly symphonic, bringing powerful piano chords in a perfect marriage with the rhythm section, while the extra keyboards, the sax solo and the string arrangements effectively help Hodgson to provide his message to the divine powers that rule the Universe and our lives. But the icing of the cake is the splendid closer 'Fool's Overture', the most genuinely progressive song in the album, and a definite gem in Supertramp's career. Based on the starring role of the grand piano, this 10-plus minute suite delivers a series of varied sections fluidly coordinated all the way through until the final reprise arrives in an ultimate explosion of rocking fireworks and controlled orchestral chaos. Lirically speaking, 'Fool's Overture' is the bitter counterpart to the optimistic vibe of 'Give a Little Bit', also inspired by the pacifist subject but this time focusing on the terrors and horros of war and destruction - the sounds of politica speeches, mysterious chorales, whirlwinds, etc., are really creepy, in a very coherent way. Hodgson gets really emotional as he sings his first lines during the middle section, and no other sax solos as the ones delivered by Helliwell could match that passion so well, even enhancing the drama of the lyrics. An excellent ending for another Supertramp jewel: "Even in the Quietets mOments.", not being a genius album, contains enough musical quality as to deserve the label 'excellent'.