RED

1. Red 10/10 This is in my opinion what Black Sabbath should have sounded like, and if they had they would have been even better than they already were. A thundering prog-metal instrumental that is seemingly quite simple on the surface with its repeated verse/chorus type riffs but the riffs are varied in repitition, and along with some clever overdubs and leads it makes the piece much more complex. A brilliant way to begin the album.

2. Fallen Angel 10/10 Absolutely beautiful song that takes a little while to get to you, but for me at least this is the best song on the album. The haunting intro crescendos in with a little mellotron (? maybe bass?) backing a dark and beautiful guitar lead from Fripp. Two complex verses pass before a foreboding slow heavy riff and Wetton's bellowing of "fallen aaaaaaangel..."; when that first explosion of saxophone hits on the next repition of "fallen" I get a massive uncontrollable chill. Amazing saxophone work on this song. Even after just the first chorus there's already a jam, with a really dark and apocalyptic feel, finally crescendoing to another awesome riff and several solos that sound strangely like slow Metallica solos from the 80s, only better. Truly an amazing piece.

One More Red Nightmare 9/10 Another fantastic piece, this is in some ways kind of like "Red" only with vocals and the slow arpeggios/sax playing parts that really make this piece stand out. Bill Bruford's drumming on this song is absolutely phenomenal, you really have to listen closely to it and you gain a hell of a lot of respect for the man.

Providence 6/10 Not much to say here, this is the only real disappointment on the album. It's a good piece, but doesn't fit with the otherwise rocking vibe of the album. It sounds a lot like a track for a film soundtrack; good but not worthy of this album IMHO.

Starless 9.5/10 Outstanding; people say it best when they say its a two-part song: the first half is a slow and haunting mellotron-driven ballad and the second half is haunting progression driven by arguably the most effective minimalist guitar solo in history. It all progresses to an absolutely amazing explosion into a saxophone solo near the end, then up to a slow haunting oboe (or maybe an alto sax or something) solo while Bruford maniacally taps the cymbals. Then everyone goes crazy on their instruments, then reprise the melody, backed by washes of haunting mellotron. Truly an amazing song.

A fantastic album worthy of all the praise, and one that deserves more respect I do say. Exquisite.

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