THE DAWN

The duo of Hollenberg/Driessen, who led Timelock, decided to recruit a normal drummer after ''Louise Brooks''.So Rob Louwers found himself in the line-up during the process of the band's sophomore album ''The dawn''.This was recorded again at the DB Sound Studio in The Hague and eventually came out in 1994 on SI Music.

Musically there was a slight turn on Timelock's sound compared to their debut.While ''Louise Brooks'' was fiery, energetic, in your face Neo Prog with a bunch of magnificent melodies, this one sounds a lot like a blend of Neo Prog aesthetics with modern Heavy Prog stylings, much influenced by RUSH.There is a certain ALEX LIFESON influence on Hollenberg's guitar, the tracks have a typical song format and are mainly based on steady, catchy grooves with plenty of vocals and a fair amount of breaks, as the band sounds a lot like TILES or ENCHANT.Of course Hollenberg also delivers some great solos here and there with this familiar distorted Neo Prog guitar sound, but the fascinating melodies are somewhat sacrified in the sake of atmosphere and groove.Additionally the keyboards of Driessen remain inexcusably on the background, making ''The dawn'' much of a guitar-driven effort.On the other hand the ability of the band to create some memorable tracks as well as Stoker's clean and first-class vocals offer many moments of pure delight.

A step backwards for the band compared the debut's excellent and inspired material.Still ''The dawn'' is a pretty solid release of Neo/Heavy Prog, typical product of the Dutch school, and anyone after bands like TILES, ENCHANT or US act CATHEDRAL will find plenty to like in ''The dawn''.Recommended.