BLACK MOON

ELP's first studio album since 1978's "Love Beach" album. With this happening after Keith Emerson recorded two albums with two different bands. First, the "Emerson Lake and Powell" (1986) album, with Greg Lake, and with Cozy Powell (who replaced Carl Palmer, who at the time was with ASIA and didn't participate). And later, with the band called "3" (with Carl Palmer, and with Robert Berry replacing Greg Lake) which recorded their "To the Power of Three" (1988) album. With both bands and albums having some influences from the mid to late eighties's musical sounds, but with the "To the Power of Three" album being even more Pop Rock in style, and with the two albums having moderate success, and with both bands having a brief existence.

For this album titled "Black Moon", the band was signed to Victory Music Records, a record label which also signed YES in 1993 and other famous musicians like DAVID BOWIE and his band called TIN MACHINE. That record label had a brief existence, and later disappeared due to financial problems. Anyway, ELP recorded three albums for that record label ("Black Moon" 1992; "Live at the Royal Albert Hall, 1993; "In the Hot Seat", 1994) before their split as a band in 1998.

For this "Black Moon" album, the band had, for the first time, external producers (Mark Mancina, Ian Morrow, John Van Tongeren), with the first time in their history on which Greg Lake was not the producer of their albums. The album also was influenced by a more "modern" sound for the nineties, with a more Pop Rock /Prog Rock musical style, with more modern keyboards and drums sounds. In fact, some of the drums sound like being played in an electronic drum kit, and some percussion parts in fact sound like being programmed. Also, Greg Lake's voice obviously sounds changed, due to the natural passing of time, with him singing in a lower register, but singing very well.

This "Black Moon" album is a very good album, in my opinion. Different to their most Progressive albums of the seventies, and maybe more related to the "Emerson Lake and Powell" and "To the Power of Three" albums but still with some Prog Rock influences. Maybe they sound more "mature", due to the natural passing of time, but they sound very well.

The best songs in this album are "Black Moon", Paper Blood", "Romeo and Juliet" (an arrangement by Emerson to a theme from Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet"), "Farewell to Arms" (which sounds to me in a similar way to ELPowell's "Lay Down Your Guns"), and "Footprints in the Snow". Even producer Mark Mancina (who also worked with YES and with Trevor Rabin) contributed with one song ("Burning Bridges"). Greg Lake contributed with two ballads ("Affairs of the Heart", written by him with ASIA's Geoff Downes in 1988; and "Footprints in the Snow", written only by him). Keith Emerson contributed with two very good instrumental pieces ("Changing States" and "Close to Home"). Carl Palmer co-wrote two songs with Emerson and Lake ("Black Moon" and "Paper Blood"). Emerson and Lake wrote two songs together ("Farewell to Arms" and "Better Days").

A very good "reunion album" from ELP. Maybe less Progressive and more "modern" in musical terms for the nineties, but very good anyway, in my opinion.