STYLE: Rock RATING OUR PRODUCT CODE: 52681-14886 LABEL: Independent FORMAT: CD Album ITEMS: 1
Reviewed by Stephen Luff
Peter is the bass player of renowned prog rockers Pendragon and here brings together a hand picked bunch of musicians so he can deliver his second solo album. Steve Thorne (sounding like Peter Gabriel at times) and Simon Clew deliver the vocals, Steve Christey is on drums and Peter himself takes care of all the guitars, keyboards and percussion. Add this to some great songwriting and the combination should work beautifully. But alas it is not to be. The mixture of contemplative songs with short instrumentals inbetween proves intriguing on the first couple of listens, but becomes frustrating after that. Shame. There are however some standout moments - "You Gave Me Life" contains inspiring lyrics that lead you to a place of gratitude, while "The Lady In My Life" is a beautiful song of romantic love. But it is only when we get to track 12 that the musical pace finally picks up when we are introduced to "Sunset Boulevard", which expertly turns observations on American life into reflections on man's condition. Peter is clearly a fine talent but in truth this isn't a fine album.
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