BEYOND TIME

"Beyond Time" is an album by the Dutch LIFE LINE PROJECT. After three albums, all recorded with a complete band, this one is an early album on which all instruments are played by multi- instrumentalist Erik de Beer. Apart from lots of keyboards and guitars he is also taking care of the bass guitar and drum parts, while he also shows his skills on the flute, mandoline and the renaissance lute. The album is entirely instrumental and so are the two added live bonus tracks.

The music on the album is all very symphonic and contains many beautiful melodic and majestic themes, performed both on the keyboards and the lead guitars. An acoustic gem is delivered with "Acceptance", which is almost like a prelude to the core piece of the album "Beyond Time", a piece of 17 minutes and 33 seconds, leading us through lots of beautiful themes, surprising interludes and containing many tempo and character changes.

Some of the music on this album dates back to the seventies, a period in which Erik was already active in symphonic rockbands J.S. Quasar & Brancard. Both the "Overture" and the "Finale" (obviously based on the same theme) were already written in 1976 and the over 8 minutes lasting piece "Shadows Of A Distant Past" goes back to 1978. The overall sound on the album is very seventies indeed and the music will please to fans of this somewhat nostalgic sound. The drums on the album are played both on acoustic drums and a Roland electronic drum kit, which is maybe the only disadvantage on this otherwise splendid album. We have to bear in mind however, that this album was recorded on eight analogue tracks only and considering this, the sound quality of "Beyond Time" is very good. This goes in particular for the two live tracks, played by one of the numerous live line ups of the band during the nineties. One track "Little Alice" can also be heard in a studio version on "The Finnishing Touch", while "Last Run" is a track dug up in the Life Line Project vaults. Both tracks show us the excellent live potential of the band.

"Beyond Time" is a very beautiful album indeed and it makes me curious to other old Life Line Project- recordings.

Theo Schop