MINISTRY OF INTERIOR (EH! GEOFF MANN BAND)

Historical background: Geoff had a religious experience which set him on the road towards becoming a pastor, and during his theology studies, where he also had to run his household, while his wife was earning the money, he didn't see much of the outside world and made some albums in those days which were, in retrospect, and in his own words, a bit like "navel - gazing".

This album is his comeback - album, though, in several ways. Not only did he find contact again with the outside world, and did he form a real live band again, but also, for the first time since his Twelfth Night days, he made some steps towards progressive rock.

That is not to say that the whole album is progressive. No, the first five songs are just pop / rock, though with intelligent lyrics. For example, "Bashan Beef" is about materialism and "What's In A Name" is about the value of a name and the way in which you use it.

The real gem on this cd is "The Waking Dawn", an epic with different segments, about a city which lived in the dark. Geoff's christian belief's come to the surface quite clearly in this cd, but not in a way that it would irritate people. Geoff said that he didn't want to converse people with his music, but every artist sings about what is important to him / her. But Geoff does it very imaginatively, especially in "The Waking Dawn".

Don't expect "The Waking Dawn" to be an epic like some epics you heard before. Geoff was really beginning to think progressive again, and the last thing he wanted was (and now I quote from Geoff Mann himself) "songs about hobbits on drugs, in some weird time signature". "The Waking Dawn" almost sounds like industrial prog in some places, a very modern sound, because Geoff really wanted to create something new. It is therefore that "The Waking Dawn" doesn't even resemble great Twelfth Night epics like "We Are Sane" and "The Collector".

This cd was an important move back towards progressive rock, and that would even get more in the latest phase of his life, where he made the amazing full prog - album Casino with Clive Nolan, continued with some very artistic music with Marc Catley, and where he made a stunning avant -garde solo cd called Second Chants . But Ministry Of The Interior is his comeback - album, in a way.