THE
FLYING ACES "Seashell"
As
you might imagine from the name The Flying Aces are led by Martin Ace,
guitarist and founder member of the legendary Welsh rock band Man. He
is joined on this recording by two other former Man stalwarts- Hammond
organ/ piano player Phil Ryan and Deke Leonard on piano.
The pleasant eponymous psychedelic opener (vinyl version) opens the
album and also closes it (tape version)
I was disappointed with certain aspects of this album although in 'I
Got Beautiful You' they have constructed an excellent Beatlesque song-
one to treasure! I also enjoyed the humour in 'Elephant At My Side'
(Budding pop stars beware!)- this reminded of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah
Band.
I began to think about the early days of Man when they took their first
faltering steps with the marvellous schizophrenic guitar riff of 'Sudden
Life' and I was also prompted to dig out my copy of Man's live 1976
farewell album 'All's Well That Ends Well'. This reminded me that Man
was basically a very popular 'rock 'n' roll' band who liked to stretch
out a bit and who came across better live than in the studio.
'Seashell' is essentially for Man 'completists' as it says in the press
release.
(Voiceprint Records- PNTVP 122 CD) 
(Phil
Jackson) musician
and reviewer
POCKET VENUS
"Make It Through Your Day" ep
I
first heard this remarkable Welsh band on Alchemical Radio (through
the Aural Innovations web site) and find their music as intense and
inspiring as on my first listen. .
It begins on the title track with rich acoustic guitar and strings but
basically this is a guitar based band who produce a 'wall of sound'
that is full of emotion with some striking Dave Gilmour styled vibrato
lines and ending with some 'tinkly' piano- excellent!
This is the sort of song Oasis should be now be doing to justify their
currently over inflated standing and there are passing similarities
in style (on this track anyway)
'Rollercoaster' begins like a classic ballad full of angst about the
kind of relationship that is becoming more and more prevalent -'Day
by day I work out what to say'. Again there are some great little fills
and a terrific 'full' production.
The songs are about 5 minutes in length and 'Like You' starts with nice
brooding guitar arpeggios and swirling synth before building through
some inventive guitar work to an anthemic chorus punctuated briefly
by piano and powered by a solid rhythm section.
The slightly longer closing instrumental 'Like You Too' could go on
forever in my book, a 'variation on a theme'- the guitar riff (edged
by modulated synth left alone like a demented siren at the end) is dark,
menacing but strangely uplifting- watch out for the backwards effects
(It first roared onto my speakers when crossing the Forth Road Bridge-
awesome!) I'm a big fan already!
A recommended release of 2002- check it out!
Contact: www.pocketvenus.co.uk
(Secrets of Sound 2002)
(Phil Jackson) musician
and reviewer
DIO
- Killing The Dragon (Spitfire)
No,
Ronnie, no!!!! Yes, it is called Killing The Dragon, and yes the cover
does show, wait for it, a dragon being killed. Ah, well, not many people
can lay claim to creating a genre, and where would most of mainland
Europe be without power metal, the template for which was laid down
by Mr Dio and cohorts in the late 70s / early 80s.
Unfortunately,
RJD has yet to record a truly classic album (shut up at the back). Half
of Rising, bits of Rock'n'Roll, a couple of Rainbow, half of Heaven
& Hell, nearly made it with Mob Rules. You get the picture. The
solo stuff veered between classic tracks and appaling filler. That was
up until Magica, so close to being the killer. And it may prove to be
in years to come that will be the Dio magnum opus. Which means Dragon
has a lot to live up to.
Let's
see. Jimmy Bain and Simon Wright in the saddle. Ex Hurricaner Doug Aldricher
a last minute sunstitute for Craig Goldy (who really ought to have known
better). Ten tracks, as it should be. Shaping up well. First of all,
no matter what anyone tells you, Ronnie James Dio is actually THE VOICE
OF ROCK!!. Who else keeps on getting better. Saw him blow Alice Cooper
off stage on his last European tour, a remarkable performance, and one
which will have me, ticket in hand, at his Glasgow show In October.
But
the music. Bona fide Dio classics. There are ..... First of all, "Scream",
a mid tempo stomper. "Rock And Roll", despite the lamentable
title reclaims that teenage feeling of our music, above all else. Not
bad for a man of 60+. "Throw Away Children" would have made
it, bar the childrens choir sneaking in. But "Cold Feet",
adds an Eastern tinge to things and ends the album on a high.
Stinkers
- there are two, "Better In The Dark", so eighties single
release it hurts and "Push" which should have been packed
off back to Mr Goldys Ritual. The rest inhabit the ggod, but not great
zone. However, in a world where Pop Idol rules, this is another excellent
chapter in what a career in music should be.
http://www.ronniejamesdio.com
|