MAP OF THE PAST

The second album from the reinvigorated It Bites is not as immediate as its predecessor, the brilliant Tall Ships, but repeated plays really show this as an album of rare brilliance. The haunting opening of Man in the Photograph segues into the punchy Wallflower with some keyboard acrobatics from Beck underpinned with solid bass and guitar. Map of the Past is the band in Bombastic overload with its big chorus and chunky riffs. Mitchells Guitar truly soars here. It also contains the best lyric of the album "what seperates from Chimpanzees is finite sense of Dignity". Clocks is the big ballad of the album with its swaying rhythm and beautifully understated musicianship from the entire band. Mitchells vocal style suits this type of song like a velvet glove. Flag is old school it bites, poppy, bright keyboards and singalong chorus ensure this is going to be a live favourite. A change of pace with Big Machine, a Progtastic little gem allowing beck and , in particular, Bob Dalton to shine. Theres also a trademark Mitchell piece of Guitar genius thrown in for good measure. Cartoon Graveyard fizzes and tumbles, briefly shakes hand with Genesis, and runs into Send No Flowers which limps along like a wounded animal and should have been put out of its misery on the cutting room floor.Standout track, Meadow and the Stream, is beautiful,chilling and nigh on perfect. We end with the emotional, heartbreaking Last Escape with one of those wonderfully stirring Mitchell solos and a final acoustic farewell. The whole album is held together by Daltons' superb drumming and Pomeroys understated bass. Just missing out on album of the year so far due to freak genius and clockwork angels