STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL

Crimson Glory was a fantastic heavy prog/power metal band in the late 80s, but real commercial success has never reached them. The first two albums - especially the second one, "Transcendence" - contain brilliant power metal songs a la Fates Warning, Iron Maiden, Metal Church and the then-leading prog metal band Queensryche, but the riffs were heavier, the songs were darker and vocalist Midnight could sing even higher and more forcefully than Geoff Tate. But after these metal masterpieces something has changed.

"Strange And Beautiful" is rather a Midnight soloalbum than a CG album. The songs are mostly acoustic ones, sometimes very pleasant to listen to them, but that's all. Commercial, uninspired, lack of direction, dull ballads: these are the words come into my mind when I listen to this stuff. If you enjoy albums of a high standard from the early 90s from AOR/hard rock/glam bands (the best example: "Pull" from Winger), then you can give it a chance.

Highligts: Deep Inside Your Heart, In The Mood, Promise Land

5.5/10