GALLEONS OF PASSION

If yours truly can still place Finch's first two albums upon the same shelf (the ones in my living room), it must be said that the group's last album didn't make it for a long time, eventually finding the exchange outdoor. Indeed much had changed by the release of Galleons of Passion, not the least, a major line-up change seeing keyboardist Determeyer and drummer Klaase leaving, replaced respectively by Wammes and Bosboom (forest tree). Not only does that smell potential trouble, but the atrocious artwork (who picked the colours??) confirms it.

The balance of the group is altered and this might be to the profit of bassist Peter Vink, whose Rickenbacker bass, so used to be inspired by Chris Squire is actually let loose in this album. But strangely enough if Determayer's keyboards gave a very apt response to Joop's guitar in previous album, I always thought of the keyboards being slightly buried, but here the newcomer's keys are maybe too loud and even at Joop's expense. On this album the sound has drifted between Yes and a lesser-era Camel (no attack intended)

Musically, if you're not the nit-picking type, you could say that GOP is more of the same of BE and GOIF, but upon closer scrutiny and beyond the line-up change, things are different. I'll take exhibit A called Remembering The Future where Vink's bass, although always well mixed and free of its movement within the limits of its role, here it takes an unneeded (for the music) bass solo, more a case of show-off that hadn't been present before in their music. However impressive the bass solo is (and it is), it feels a bit of a wanking the neck until premature ejaculation occurs. As One is a slow developing track where a slight crescendo is happening with Joop's guitar fighting not to be upstaged by Wammes synth layers (mixed a tad loud, for a change), but at least it's one of the rare track on this album avoiding the cheese fondue in which the album is simmering in. With Love As The Motive the other interesting moment on this album, but the synths are again over-powering/mixed a tad too loud and therefore the layers do bring a bit of melted Edam cheese

Probably a tad better than I allow my pen to argue it, GOP is certainly the weakest of the three, and many fans will confirm this as it sold much less than the previous two albums, but the music industry was moving fast and the unsuspecting public would follow them blindly. I say that this is for confirmed fans only, although the majority of them would say that it deserves as much as the other two. Don't say I didn't warn you?.

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