THE SPOTLIGHT EFFECT

"The Spotlight Effect" is the third full-length studio album by UK progressive rock act Strangefish. The album was independently released in 2018. It´s the successor to "Fortune Telling" from 2006. Strangefish decided on a longer hiatus in 2008, but in 2012 the band slowly started up again and by 2014 they had rehearsed and written enough new material to consider themselves reunited and ready to work again under the Strangefish monicker. There have been a couple of lineup changes since "Fortune Telling" as bassist Julian Gregory has been replaced by Carl Howard, and female lead vocalist Jo Whittaker (wife of drummer Dave Whittaker) has been added to the linuep to compliment male lead vocalist Steve Taylor. Strangefish is therefore a sextet on "The Spotlight Effect".

Stylistically they still play a hard rock infused neo-progressive rock style and the material on "The Spotlight Effect" is instantly the sound of Strangefish. The addition of Whittaker to the lineup has a great impact on the band´s sound as she both has some lead parts but otherwise almost constantly provide harmony vocals to the lead vocals by Taylor (who as always delivers and impressive performance). If it´s a vocal sound you appreciate or not is a subjective matter, but objectively it works pretty well and it´s obvious that Strangefish felt the need to try something new and develop their style.

Strangefish are generally a very well playing unit and there is nothing wrong with their songwriting skills either. The sound production is a bit up and down during the album, suggesting that the album was maybe recorded and mixed over a longer period of time, which is just a detail, but it´s slightly disturbing for the consistency of the listening experience. Personally I think I prefer the sound of the 2000 - 2008 period lineup, but "The Spotlight Effect" is still a good quality release and a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.