Excellent cd!
Music lover | 06/17/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is an album with no weak moments (at least to my ears). Jakko has a great back-up band comprised of Richard Barbieri and Gavin Harrison of Porcupine Tree. Sam Brown provides some backing vocals and the excellent Mick Karn and Ed Poole provide the bass. B.J. Cole plays pedal steel guitar and Jakko does the rest--vocals, some keyboards, Flute, and programming. There is a nice variety of music in this fine piece of work. There are the songs that are more rockers and there are the more mellow sounds. Jakko's guitar, as always, sounds excellent and he couldn't have chosen a better back-up band. I believe if you liked "The Bruised Romantic Club" (which unfortunately wasn't in print very long), then you will like this earlier album also. Check it out!"
Pleasant surprise
MWerks | 11/26/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'd never heard of these guys. I got this album based on the short low-fi demo clips. I expect I'll be checking out more. The musicianship is impeccable. The lyrics and vocal work are solid. The recording and engineering are excellent.
The album makes some stylistic shifts. They range from fusion/progressive (The Devils Dictionary), to 80's power pop with a commercial sheen (Perfect Kiss), to the interesting and introspective (Little Town), to the experimental(Saddleworth Moor). It basically settles into a quality pop groove. They remind me a bit of one of my favorite underrated bands, Toy Matinee. They also recall Icehouse.
There aren't any real duds, but some of the tracks feel a bit cookie cutter. Overall a very listenable album with a few absolute gems."