LET'S GET THIS MOTHER OUTTA HERE

When I listen to this album I can detect a lot of references to other psych/space bands which are representing quite different styles by all means. I don't want to enumerate them all in my review. No - it's not my opinion that SHIP OF FOOLS are existing from plagiarism. I'm only surprised by the manifoldness. Okay - this is a compilation on the other hand - probably something like a Best Of taken from their two albums from 1993 and 1994. Their music is stimulated by powerful and excellently played drums, sometimes tribal in the vein of some Hungarian bands like Sonar and Korai Öröm. Keyboards and electronics are dominating, guitars are taking a backseat but when they appear played mellow and very emotional. Overall the songs are relatively short (with one exception) so maybe you can say they avoid extended jamming in general.

The opener Diesel Spaceship is a great space rock tune garnished with samples and diverse synth elements but also played with a modern straightforward beat. Ambient soundscapes are substituted by heavy guitar riffs after some minutes on L=SD2 where keyboarder Damien is getting near to Eloy's symphonic style. One song I want to point out especially is From Time - the exception I mentioned before - wonderfully floating 14 minutes with great guitar appearance which can be defined as jamming for sure - a highlight! And it seems they reworked the original tracks for some new transitions. The song is fading into Passage By Night from the other album as if they were produced as one epic. The nice folk/pop tinged Western Lands gets a little bit out of the range.

Because SHIP OF FOOLS are blending a bunch of influences this album is diffult to compare as for the whole entity. Very spacey using spheric keyboards and soundscapes but also provided with a modern neo progressive groove this might appeal to fans of Ozric Tentacles or Körai Öröm. You will explore music which is not weird or experimental particularly - an interesting find anyhow with quite accessable songs according to the genre - 3.5 stars.