ACQUIRING THE TASTE

This band for me has an aquired taste. It is very unique and creative, making it very strange. Unfortunately, I do not enjoy it as much as others do.

1. Pantagruel's Nativity : One of the best Gentle Giant songs in my opinion. It is a perfect introduction to the band, since it shows their talents in strange instrumentation, vocal harmonies, and the hard rock electric guitar riffs typical of them. 8/10

2. Edge Of Twilight : A song that is not memorable at all. It is a pointless avant-garde jam with no direction. The drumming at the middle is good though. 4/10

3. The House, The Street, The Room : It has a good melody and alternates between soft and hard passages, but the middle section doesn't do anything for me, until that mean guitar blows me away. 6.5/10

4. Acquiring The Taste : a short short with good keyboard playing. 6/10

5. Wreck : "Hey Hey Hey hey .. Oh no!" that's a great vocal hook! The song is a very dynamic one with good singing and lead guitar. It is for me one of the highlights of the album. 8/10

6. The Moon Is Down : not very energetic and can be a little boring, but then the pace picks up and turns into a nice soft rocker. 6/10 7. Black Cat : A not so interesting track, it is soft and classical, but tends to bore me a bit. 4/10

8. Plain Truth : A solid closer with a similar style as the opener. Vocal harmonies are plenty, soaring riffs, and classical influenced music make this song. 6.5/10

This is a more accessible Gentle Giant release ... but it is not as strong as Free Hand and Three Friends in my opinion.

My Grade : C-