PYRAMID

I've decided to revisit the few APP LP's I've hung on to and submitted a (possibly) harsh review on 'Tales...' , so to put it in line - I think it's vocalist Lenny Zakatek who is the pop- star and I don't agree that his voice and singing style compliment the fairly decent music behind him (he didn't appear on the debut, thankfully). It just seems a bit overdone. This, of course, is just an opinion. If it's Eric Woolfson who sings on the excellent 'What Goes Up...' then why couldn't he sing all the vocals ?? Anyway, this album, 'Pyramid', whilst not fully blown prog, has a consistent quality throughout and the 'cheeze' level is bumped down a notch or two, more focused perhaps. Starting with another brilliant instrumental, 'Voyager', which segues into 'What Goes Up..', is the strongest opening to any APP album I've heard. The band is superb at creating a deep sounding atmosphere and carrying it across to an accessible format. 'The Eagle Will Rise Again', has a beautiful vocal sung by ex-Zombie Colin Blunstone, with equally beautiful music. 'One More River' is the only real low point on the album here, which is a straight-ahead rocker with vocals I don't enjoy. 'Can't take it With You' is a decent song, complete with a Gilmour-esque guitar solo. Side 2 kicks off with a heavily arranged, epic instrumental 'In the Lap of the Gods', with it's many changes, quite adventurous and engaging. 'Pyramania' is a quirky little ditty (some may say 'low point'), quite poppy, but doesn't outstay it's welcome, just a bit of fun. Next up, the 4/4 beat laden electronic sounds of 'Hyper-Gamma-Spaces' fuses pop with space-rock, with a most successful outcome. The last track, 'Shadow of a Lonely Man'; a big, orchestrated ballad, and one of the better ones from the Project, finishes the album off nicely. Without a doubt, this is my personal fave from Parsons and crew, and their elaborately arranged pop music can appeal to even the most stringent prog-head.