ALL THE TIME, ALL THE TIME, ALL THE TIME

First of all a big thankyou to Julian (Gooner) for allowing me to hear this long out of print album. THE BOX were a band I was very familiar with as an avid music listener in the eighties. They had several hits on the radio during that decade and I always appreciated their clever and creative tunes. They are from Quebec but the words were in English and Jean-Marc their singer has such a good voice.

I feel the need to mention my buddy Thomas (tszirmay) who many on here know for his flowery, humerous and well written reviews. Thomas is one of i'm sure a few on this site who was there when Prog began and has been a faithful fan ever since. His parents immigrated to Canada from Hungary when he was a baby and Thomas lived a charmed life including going to private schools which is where he became good friends Jean-Marc the lead singer from THE BOX as well as the lead singer from MEN WITHOUT HATS. This was of course before these guys became somewhat famous in Canada but Thomas tells me both of these guys were into Prog.

I was certainly taken back to the eighties everytime I listened to this over the past couple of weeks. The synths and beat can't help but bring that era to mind but for me it's a good thing because it takes me back to a great time in my life. So lets take a quick look at this charming album from 1985.

"Remnants" is a top three for me in fact it's my favourite which is surprising because i've never heard this one before. Love the atmosphere to start and the relaxed guitar that joins in. Vocals 1 1/2 minutes in. Man this is pure emotion for me. There's some beautiful tension late. "With All This Cash" is all about the humerous lyrics. I'm not big on the accompanying music but hey that's not what this song is about. "And Say Goodbye" opens with solo multi-tracked vocals then those eighties sounding synths with a beat take over before the vocals return. A feel good tune for me that is mid-paced. "School" opens with the school bell going off then this uptempo synth-led soundscape kicks in. How good is this ! The words are about hating school. Great stuff. "Friends" is pretty good song about friends of course.

"To What We Shall Believe" is a catchy eighties sounding track with vocals. Some nice guitar before 4 minutes. "My Dreams Of You" is tough to keep out of my top three but i'll rate it as my fourth favourite. This has the album's title in it of course repeated during the chorus. Synths and a beat lead the way before the vocals join in just before a minute. Great track ! "L'Affaire Dumoutier (Say To Me)" is a six minute track that was on the radio a lot back in the day. If you heard this now you would probably be surprised at this. I would call this proggy as we get narration coming and going throughout describing the whole affair. This includes other people speaking as well. It's about a murder and is very creative to say the least. Very catchy too which is why it was a hit. There is the radio edit and an extended version as part of the bonus tracks. A top three. "Evil In me" is the final song and the other top three for me. Lots of synths to start before it kicks in with deep bass and drums. This reminds me of SAGA. Great chorus too. I need to mention one bonus track that really "does it" for me, it's called "For The First And Very Last" . It actually reminds me of FRUITCAKE but with better vocals. An emotional and laid back tune that I really enjoy.

Well these albums are hard to come by but if you can get any of their first three recordings i'd jump on it. I hear their most recent release is excellent as well. A solid four stars.