FREE HAND

Free Hand is on the verge of being consecutive highest quality album by Gentle Giant. For me it's big wondering between 4.4 and 4.5, because according to my rules, if I give 4.5 I shall have to rounded it to 5 stars, when the average rating of the album is below 4.5. And yet, I think it won't happened. This album is the fourth best by the band (after Three Friends, In a Glass House and The Power and the Glory and little above Acquiring the Taste) for me!

Here we have big medieval impact with the second and sixth songs - On Reflection and Talybont; and medieval/relax/new age impact with fifth song - His Last Voyage. All songs are very good, but most of them lack a little bit of masterpiece intensity and energy. It's very little indeed in my opinion. The other four songs are almost pure progart with dynamic sense of energy! And so, very difficult and unsure 4.4 stars for me!!!