COGS, WHEELS AND LOVERS

"Cogs, Wheels and Lovers" is Steeleye Span's twentieth studio record and they still do nice folk rock which sounds a bit like their golden days of the seventies. Well the music doesn't have the same egg or sharpeness in instrumentation but Maddy Prior's voice is still great and the melodies are sweeping. "Cogs, wheels and lovers" came four years ago 2009, 39 years after their debut "Hark! The Village Wait" and now the musicians of Steeleye Span are: Maddy Prior(lead vocals), Rick Kemp(bass, vocals), Peter Knight(violin, vocals), Ken Nicol(guitar, vocals) and Liam Genockey(drums and percussion). Unfortunately Tim Hart died in the same year but he hadn't been a member since 1980.

What's most obvious from the beginning is Maddy Prior's voice that is still beautiful, little darker than in old days, not as sharpe but on the other hand it's more mature now. The best songs here are "The Machiners' Song", almost the title track with weird machine sounds and a playful melody and good bass line, spiced with great song and harmonies. If something is little progressive on this disc, it may be that song. "Locks and Bolts" has a dark tune with fine violin work and "Just as the Tide" has an interesting lyrical approach and nice melody. In "Our Captain Cried" Steeleye Span reuses a bit of the melody of "Fighting for strangers" (from "Rocket Cottage"), this song is good but perhaps too soft. "Two constant lovers" is tho only song with male lead vocals and that is a pity they are so few. The lyrics are mournful and beauteous but I lack the edge in melody and instrumentation. "Madam Will You Walk" is little rockier and has a dashing approach which I like. The other songs are little uninteresting but still they have MP's great voice. What I lack here, what was present formerly was a little mor stumbling instrumentation, with a dominant bass and little more originality. This is some ways too soft and coherent, perhaps this listening was too easy for my taste. But consider this is the bands 20th disc, almost fourty years after the band's debut, then it's amazing they still do good music. This is nice but if you haven't heard Steeleye Span I rather recommend "Below the Salt", "Parcel of Rogues" and "Please to See the King" than this.