SONGS FROM THE LIONS CAGE

Since I got to know ARENA through this site The Visitor , Immortal? and Contagion were the first albums I purchased, because they had the best ratings. After having listened to those albums many times I started really liking this band and decided to buy the rest of their studio albums.

Songs From The Lion's Cage was a very pleasant surprise. The first thing I noticed between The Visitor and Immortal? was that ARENA had replaced their lead singer. And I must admit I was initially impressed more by the voice of Paul Wrightson than by the voice of Rob Sowden. However: I must cut Rob Sowden some slack, since he has proven to be a very talented singer who fits well to ARENA's music. What I didn't know was that ARENA had yet another lead vocalist on their debut album called John Carson. His voice is quite similar to Paul's and even reminds me of Fish. And we have Mick Pointer (ex-Marillion) playing the drums, so that ARENA's debut album even sounds quite a bit Marillionesque might be more than a coincidence.

What I like especially about Songs From The Lion's Cage is the variety in songs. Some songs are merely instrumental and very "spacey" (e.g. Crying For Help III ) and this stands in great contrast with the heavier edged ones. (e.g. Solomon )

Conclusion: All and all Songs From The Lion's Cage is a debut to be proud of and was already an indication of what was yet to come.

A solid 4 stars well deserved!

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