HEAD IN THE SAND

Nessie's second album is clearly a step downward IMHO compared to their naïve debut, but it does remain betterthan anything else Belgium had to offerin the symphonic rock during those years. With an artwork sleeve that reminds me of Happy The Man's second album, this sophomore release is clearly in the line of their debut but fails to pick-up where they had left off. The album is not any better, although there are attempts to make something different most notably on Spanish Singer, but it remains little more than a hook with slight Flamenco intinations. But they could not pretending more as they were a "poorman's BJH", but nevertheless having endearing qualities and one of them is clearly the singing sometimes veering towards music hall tradition, but most tracks on side 1 are clearly lacking real personality.

Again, this album, a private release never got a Cd re-issue and the original vinyl is costly. You might want to wait until an artist-friendly label releases it in a 2 albums on 1 CD DEAL; I have Musea in mind..as they released so many Belgium groups before.

Nessie is an obscure late '70's progressive rock band from Belgium who released two albums , one in 1977 and second from 1979 - Head in the sand. Both albums are rather cheesy prog rock with some symphonic influences and some pop rock here and there. The second album Head in the sand is not an improvement over the first, not the song writting or the ideas of the musicicnas change on this labum, is the same lamentable symphonic rock without many highs , but with a lot of lows. The low parts are many, the voice, the sound is so mediocre that it may give you hard times listning this album at once: Unreal body and It's a new day dawning is a desaster (copying Barclay James Harvest mid 70's period) the good parts are fiew, the opening track Too much money is ok, nothing realy over the top, but pleasent as a whole, The popy piece Lightnig stars is another worthy track, while is a pop tune is very ok, and the voice of Bill Pons is good, the rst of the pieces are between forgetable and ok. Well because this album was never released on CD so far , this band is even less known, the vinyls are very expensiv and not for everybody, so another thing that will bury this band into oblivion. Not one of the top belgian bands. 2 stars, forgetable and without substance, only one or two tracks worth intrest, not enough to be more then a forgetable release.