Trollheart

Random Track of the Day
Sunday, October 30 2011
Although Norway is generally regarded for its black, doom and death metal bands, there has been some really good music that has come from the Land of the Midnight Sun that is not metal of any flavour. Case in point, a band I have heard a lot about, but not listened to their albums yet. They're called Gazpacho.

Snail --- Gazpacho --- from "Missa Atropos" on HWT


Believe it or not, “Missa Atropos” is the sixth album from these guys. I really must make a better effort to listen to some of their music. This is their most current album, though it comes from 2010, and there's a new one in the pipeline for next year. This is a track called “Snail”.

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We've so far featured two artistes in this section, and they've both been guys. BOO! I hear you ladies say. HISS! What about the girls? You sexist pi--- all right, all right! Point taken. There have of course been many successful female solo artistes, as as promised at the end of our last edition of “Gone solo in the game”, this time we're going to examine the solo career of that blonde icon of the seventies and early eighties


With a fairly prolific career in music, Debbie Harry is of course best known for her work with the new wave band Blondie, and has become identified with such hits as “Heart of glass”, “Atomic”, “Sunday girl” and “Hanging on the telephone”, but although she still works with the band she has over the span of her career branched out, both into solo ventures and collaborations, as well as guesting on many tracks, and indeed fronting the avant-garde jazz band The Jazz Passengers. As ever, though, it is her solo career with which we are concerned, and on which we will concentrate here.

Her first solo album was released in 1981, when she was taking a break from Blondie. With a sleeve designed by “Alien” artist and creator of visual nightmares, H.R. Giger, the album was moderately successful, though hardly broke the charts wide open like her Blondie output.

Koo koo --- 1981 (Chrysalis)


As I mentioned in the feature on Ric Ocasek a month and a half ago now, the debut solo album is always the hardest. The decision made to break out of the relative comfort of the band they're with, the artiste is no doubt faced with some trepidation as to how his or her own music will be received, not only by longtime fans of the band, but by others, who may not have liked the band. In short, the artist has to please both sides of their new fanbase: those who already know them, and those who don't.

“Koo koo” (strange title!) turns out, not surprisingly, to be a far cry from the pop/punk/new-wave rock of Blondie, much more influenced by funk and dance than rock or punk. The opener “Jump jump” does not, to be honest, impress, and were this not the Debbie Harry, this is probably where I might stop, as the signs are not good. But we're committed to checking this album, and her others, out in their entireity, so let's perservere. Decent keyboard solo, but very very lightweight, with little improvement for “The jam was moving”, which was apparently chosen as a single. Hmm. Nice but of guitar there from Nile Rodgers, from seventies disco band Chic, while his partner, Bernard Edwards, takes bass duties. Still very dance-oriented though.

Bit of rock tries to force its way through on “Chrome”, which does have more of a Blondie feel, and though I don't want to fall into the trap of rating songs as like-Blondie/not-like-Blondie, it is part of this brief that we compare the artiste's solo output to that which they produced, or produce, within the band structure. This is the least dancy of the tracks so far, and therefore my favourite as I listen. Harry and her Blondie bandmate and boyfriend, guitarist Chris Stein, write about half of the material on the album, with the other half penned by the Chic duo, with or without input from Stein and Harry. “Chrome”, perhaps unsurprisingly, is a Harry/Stein original.

Back to the funk then for another Chic-written number, “Surrender”, and the hard edge is gone, almost forgotten. I'm sensing opportunities missed here. It's almost as if Debbie is allowing Edwards and Rodgers to dictate the kind of music she records, and while they do produce the album, I think it's a pity that they exercise such tight control over the material. “Surrender” is, frankly, crap. Not much better is “Inner city spillover”, where Debbie goes all reggae. Interestingly, this is one of the songs she writes with Stein, and while weak it's at least devoid of the funk influence of her producers. In fairness, it's not too bad, but I'm not a fan of reggae music, so I guess I'm biased in that way. That said, I certainly prefer it to anything else so far, “Chrome” excepted.

And here comes the funk --- complete with horns --- for “Backfired”, which was also a single. I feel both of these releases perhaps would have given a false impression of Debbie's solo work, and something like “Chrome” would have been a better bet. This has elements of semi-rap in it, sharp, jangly guitar echoing the melody of her hit single with Blondie the previous year (well, that year --- 1981, but the album was released in 1980), “Rapture”, which itself was seen as something of a departure from Blondie's recognised musical style, the rap in itself intensely embarrassing and laughable. She obviously hadn't learned from that...

Having let Stein and Harry have their head, to some extent (STOP that dirty laughing!) on the first part of the album, the Chic duo keep something of a stranglehold on the second half, or side, writing or co-writing four out of the five remaining tracks. The first, and indeed only, ballad, “Now I know you know” is really not bad, echoes of Judie Tzuke in there, and Debbie on fine song, with some nice laid-back guitar and piano, but the following track, “Under arrest”, actually comes even closer to Blondie's own style, with a staccato, hard-edged pop/rock tune --- must be the input from Debbie and Chris on this one, although Edwards and Rodgers collaborate on the writing.

I fear for a song which has a title of “Military rap”! Still, it maintains the new-wave/punk style favoured by Blondie, even if there is a really bad attempt at a rap in there, along with some very Mexican-sounding bugles...! Fast, certainly, and not a funk lick in sight. The only track on the second side of the album without writing input for the Chic guys, and the better for it. But they're involved in the closer, “Oasis”. Hang on though: a promising start, with its eastern/arabic flavour and whistling keyboards, tom-toms and some very nice, if funky, bass.

So a decent end, then, to an album which started badly, but improved a little as it went on, until there was a final sprint for the finish line, and although I would doubt I'd listen to this album again, I'm a little more impressed with it now than I was when it began. As a debut though, I'd have to say that if this was someone other than Debbie Harry, with her already legion of fans to buy this record (whether or not they liked it is another matter), I doubt she would have secured a deal for a second album. Hey, fame is certainly handy when you decide to take that solo flight!

TRACKLISTING

1. Jump jump
2. The jam was moving
3. Chrome
4. Surrender
5. Inner city spillover
6. Backfired
7. Now I know you know
8. Under arrest
9. Military rap
10. Oasis

Personal problems prevented Debbie from releasing a follow-up to “Koo koo” until 1986. By that time Blondie had split, largely due to the illness contracted by Chris Stein, though they would reform fifteen years later in 1997. Debbie's next album was not under the control of the “Chic gang”, but was in fact produced by one of the J. Geils Band, one Seth Justman, and though he co-wrote some of the songs with her and Stein, this time they had greater artistic freedom, and Debbie and Chris wrote or co-wrote eight of the nine tracks on the album.

Rockbird --- 1986 (Chrysalis)


With a name like that, you have to hope this album would be more a rock album than a dance one, but let's see. Kicking off with a very frantic piano, “I want you” harks right back to the fifties, with a very Lewis/Richard fast piano melody, and a start/stop melody somewhat reminscent of the Jam, but definitely a step up from the debut. Although horns again feature quite prominently, this time they're used more in a jazz/ska vein than a dance mood: bold, brassy, exuberant. The opener certainly sets the mission statement, and though its 50s bubblegum pop/rock is still lightweight, it's closer to the sort of thing Blondie would be expected to produce.

“French kissin' in the USA”, ironically the only track on the album without any input from either her or Stein in terms of writing, turned out to be the huge hit single from the album, and remains one of her most popular solo songs. Very pop oriented, it's a lot slower than the opener, but not a ballad. It seems to feature a lot of programmed drums and synths, fitting well in to the sound of the mid-eighties, while “Buckle up” is more of a boogie, again replete with horns and brass, kind of Madness-like in style. “In love with love” is lightweight pop, very new romantic, close to the likes of Fiction Factory and the lighter moments of Depeche Mode.

Horns again feature prominently in “You got me in trouble”, with a pop/dance flavour, and things slow down nicely for “Free to fall”, a nice sort of mid-paced semi-ballad, and then kick back into high gear again for the rockin' title track, with some nice fast piano, some good hard guitar and decent backing vocals. Both “Secret life” and the closer “Beyond the limit” sort of pass by without making any real impression, and sadly do the reverse of “Koo koo”, which started badly but ended strongly. Still, on balance, “Rockbird” is a great improvement on the debut, and allows Debbie to spread her wings (sorry!) a little more.

TRACKLISTING

1. I want you
2. French kissin' in the USA
3. Buckle up
4. In love with love
5. You got me in trouble
6. Free to fall
7. Rockbird
8. Secret life
9. Beyond the limit

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Debbie has only released five solo albums to date, so I'm going to try to feature them all. The next, her third, was released three years after “Rockbird”, in 1989, and is interesting because for one thing she had a hand in producing it (her first, to my knowledge, attempt at any sort of production) along with Chris Stein and Mike Chapman, producer of the Blondie albums. Also interesting because she decided to release it under her full name, so it carries the name Deborah Harry, but to us she's still Debbie.

Def dumb and blonde --- 1989 (Chrysalis)


Best known for its hit single, “I want that man”, written by the Thompson Twins, the album displays something of a shift back towards the rock Blondie were famous for and away from the lighter, pop and dance flavour of her debut, so that the three albums can be seen as a progression, almost as if Debbie were meeting her Blondie career head-on, or perhaps deciding that the experimentation she had indulged in on the previous albums had not worked, and she should return to what she knew, and was good at.

“Lovelight”, the only song written solo by Chris Stein, is a sort of new wave/pop track with interesting guitar work, while “Kiss it better”, a collaboration with the Thompsons is really more like one of their songs: weirdly, as the opener, written by only them, is more a Debbie Harry song, and yet when she adds her influence the result is less than her own signature sort of music. Lots of synthy bass and jangly guitar, very poppy. Meh. Throwaway, say I. Next up is a much harder, rockier, almost punky track, “Bike boy”, with hard, sharp guitar, pounding drums and lots of shouts of “Oi!” or something similar, which a lot of the punk tracks seemed to have. Good, solid stuff though.

This album is her longest so far, with a total of fifteen tracks, so I'm going to have to cherry-pick or just refer to some in a few words, unless I want to spend all night on this part of the review. So we'll pass over the largely forgettable “Get your way”, and concentrate on the really rather good “Maybe for sure”, which has a nice keyboard intro and then goes into a very Blondie melody, quite like “Sunday girl” in fact. Nice to hear her returning to her roots. Great song.

NOT so good to hear her going down the reggae route again! Still, “I'll never fall in love” isn't a bad song, but I could live without it. “Calmarie” is an atmospheric, almost Native American-type song, with chants and gentle percussion, with Debbie singing in another language (Italian?), with I think smatterings of English in there too. Almost Enya-like in its mood and style, it's a really nice, laid-back song that really showcases the true beauty of her voice when she takes it down a notch. “He is so” is another Blondie-like song, mid-paced and with a great melody, good hook. Really nice keys work near the end.

“Comic books” is pretty madcap, flying along at punk speed, with stabbing keyboards and churning guitars, while “Forced to live” kicks the speed up even more, so that you really get the impression you're listening to someone like maybe Siouxsie and the Banshees or Hazel O'Connor, with Debbie (sorry, Deborah!) at her loudest, grittiest, sultriest punk bitch best. After all that craziness and speed, things slow down for penultimate track “Brite side”, a nice little ballad with rather good drum programming and quite a reserved, restrained melody. Is this the same woman who just moments ago was shouting her head off?

Closer “End of the run” is also the longest track on the album, and indeed her longest to date, at just over seven minutes, and has a nice guitar intro followed by a spoken vocal which reminds me of Faith Hill's later “Beautiful” off her album “Cry”: stuff like this is hard to pull off properly --- you're essentially creating poetry to music. But it works for Debbie, and she intersperses the spoken word stuff with some lovely breathy singing, really making the song something special, and bringing a rather triumphant end to what is, so far, her best solo effort and her most complete album.

TRACKLISTING

1. I want that man
2. Lovelight
3. Kiss it better
4. Bike boy
5. Get your way
6. Maybe for sure
7. I'll never fall in love
8. Calmarie
9. Sweet and low
10. He is so
11. Bugeye
12. Comic books
13. Forced to live
14. Brite side
15. End of the run

1993 saw the release of Debbie's fourth solo album, and her second under her full name. This would also see the end of a fifteen-year association with label Chrysalis, who had released all the Blondie albums as well as all of Debbie's solo material, up to and including this one.

Debravation --- 1993 (Chrysalis)


It starts off badly, I have to say, with the europop dance number “I can see clearly”, which to my mind throws her firmly back to the days of “Koo koo” and the over-involvement of the boys from Chic, though they haven't been in her music at all since. Nevertheless, there's an uncomfortable sense of deja vu here, and it's not helped by the second track, another ill-advised attempt at a rap, which once again scores high in the embarrassment factor. In fairness, the rap in “Stability” is only peripheral, but the rest of the song is pretty sub-Madonna pap. Not in love with this.

Luckily, things take a turn for the better then with “Strike me pink”, a Kim Wilde-like ballad with soft percussion and nice piano and keyboards, and a nice little soulful sax break. Keyboard-heavy beyond a doubt, Debbie employs the talents of no less than thirteen keyboard players --- not including Guy Pratt, who plays keys as well as guitar , as opposed to eight guitarists. So the album has a very sort of europop feel to it, yet not as dancy or disco as “Koo koo”, with some nice melodies and some very good ideas.

“Rain” is not bad, if a little limited, although it gives Debbie a chance to clean out her pipes, and has a nice guitar solo in it. “Communion” is nice, mid-paced bopper with a nice line in piano and some very good backing vocals, with it has to be said some extremely dodgy lyrics:- ”Take, eat, this is my body/I give it to you/ Take, drink, this is my blood/ Do it in remembrance of me/ So you won't forget me.” I'm sure the religious right would have had a field day with THAT one! Not a bad song though.

“Mood ring” has a very oriental feel, with some seriously funky bass and some really nice keys, a nice ballad, the first time she's had two on the same album. Again some really nice saxophone adds to the atmosphere of this song, then we're into “Keep on going”, which rather surprisingly maintains the low-key, laid-back and relaxed tone of the previous track. “Dancing down the moon” rocks things back up again, and for a while now fears that Debbie was going to return to the dance-oriented “Koo koo” have evaporated, as the album has improved, really in leaps and bounds, as it's gone on.

“Standing in my way” has a very Pretenders vibe to it, more fast rockin', with more than a nod back to the Blondie era, quite “One way or another”, in fact. Some great keyboards redolent of Dire Straits circa “Walk of life”. “The fugitive” is down and dirty soul, but the weirdest contribution has to be that of cyberpunk author William Gibson, who wrote the lyric for closer “Dog star girl”, and perhaps in deference to the great man the melody is quite industrial/electronic and futuristic sounding.

Mention should be made of the appearance of REM on the track “My last date with you”, which appeared only on the US version of the CD as an additional track, but as it's not on my copy I can't review it. However, Micheal Stipe and the boys are pretty heavyweight guests to have on your album.

I still at this point prefer “Def dumb and blonde”, but this is a worthy successor, and shows Debbie developing both as a musician and as a songwriter.

TRACKLISTING

1. I can see clearly
2. Stability
3. Strike me pink
4. Rain
5. Communion
6. Lip service
7. Mood ring
8. Keep on going
9. Dancing down the moon
10. Standing in my way
11. The fugitive
12. Dog Star girl

Although Debbie also worked with other artistes down the years, including Talking Heads, Giorgio Moroder and Fall Out Boy, and indeed joined and then fronted the Jazz Passengers in the mid 1990s, as I mentioned it is purely her solo work we are concerned with here. So as with Phil Lynott we didn't go into his association with the Three Musketeers or any other projects he was involved in, so too here we will leave such collaborations and contributions, including her many film soundtracks, to others.

Nonetheless, it does go part of the way to explaining why Debbie's next, and so far most recent, solo album did not emerge until fourteen years later. It's the longest of her albums by far, with a total of seventeen tracks, and her first not to be on the Chrysalis label.

Necessary evil --- 2007 (Eleven Seven)


Quite a polished feel from the off, with nice production on a smooth mid-paced opener with nice bass and good keyboards, understated guitar and indeed rather restrained vocals from Debbie on “Two times blue”, which was in fact the first single to be released from the album. Very catchy, stays with you long after it's ended. Good start indeed. “School for scandal” continues her return to the rock songs that characterised her last two albums, with a good mix of guitars and keys and some solid drumming, then we're into the first ballad, “If I had you”, which to me has a very REM flavour, a kind of waltzy rhythm, possibly picked up after her association with them on her previous album. There's also a little Bryan Adams in there too, maybe also a nod to Coldplay.

Three solid songs. Not bad. Can she maintain this quality throughout? Let's see. Well, “Deep end” is sort of new wave for the twenty-first century, with low growling guitar and heavy bass, slow measured percussion and Debbie doing her best Blondie, while “Love with a vengeance” comes across very Queen-like, with its busy bass and handclap beats, and then we're into the title track, a raw, edgy, sharp tune with very punk overtones and Jam-like guitar. “Charm redux” is the first ever instrumental on a Debbie Harry album, very electronica with the title chanted behind the music, a short little track at just over a minute, then “You're too hot” is another rocker with a deceptive opening, and “Dirty and deep” is just that, very Janet Jackson with its programmed keyboards and low vocal, and its harkback to previous track with the refrain ”Don't touch me/ You're too hot!”

Another ballad follows, nice little acoustic guitar on “What is love” and “Whiteout” is a pretty screaming rocker, with “Needless to say” then taking the tempo right down for the third ballad on what is really turning out to be a pretty flawless album, and pushing “Def dumb and blonde” for the place of best DH solo album. It's interesting that this time around she has decided to collaborate on, or write herself, most of the tracks without the input of Chris Stein, who is only involved in two, near the end. Most of the songs, in fact, are written by the triumvirate of herself and producers Barb Morrison and Charles Nieland, and the songwriting team seems to have struck gold.

“Heat of the moment” has an almost voodoo/jungle vibe, mostly driven on percussion, with just the one lyric --- yeah, you guessed it! It's a short song, and gives way to “Charm alarm”, on which the trio pull in an extra helper for songwriting duties, one Guy Morrow, and it's a sort of funk/dance fusion which unaccountably reminds me of Matt Johnson's The The...! Chris Stein then comes into the picture, as mentioned, writing both the next song and the one after it. “Jen jen” is almost New Order in its guitar and drum machine opening, with an African chant of some sort forming the lyric, and some pretty cool guitar work --- very different indeed. As a matter of fact, I don't even hear Debbie singing on this...

Not so great is “Naked eye”, his other contribution, possibly the weakest track on the album, a little confused I feel, then the closer, “Paradise” is, I believe, one of the songs recorded by the Jazz Passengers. It's a nice smooth ballad, with not at all surprisingly some smooth and sweet sax to take the song to its conclusion, a good way to close what has turned out to be a really good album overall.

TRACKLISTING

1. Two times blue
2. School for scandal
3. If I had you
4. Deep end
5. Love with a vengeance
6. Necessary evil
7. Charm redux
8. You're too hot
9. Dirty and deep
10. What is love
11. Whiteout
12. Needless to say
13. Heat of the moment
14. Charm alarm
15. Jen jen
16. Naked eye
17. Paradise

So, what are we, in the final analysis, to make of the solo career of Debbie Harry? Well, like our first star to feature in this section, Phil Lynott --- and unlike our second, Ric Ocasek --- it seems clear she is unafraid to try new things, branch out and extend her reach beyond the type of music she usually plays in Blondie. Her embracing of dance, techno, funk, reggae and other styles, as well as some of the lyrical themes visited over her five solo albums demonstrate an artist who is prepared to take chances, experiment and is not all that pushed about commercial success, as she waited almost as long as some people's music career lasts between her fourth and fifth album, so she's not about to rush any product out to placate record labels.

“Necessary evil” was four years ago now. By Debbie's standards, that's a short hiatus, but it will be interesting to see if, and when, she heads into the studio again. One thing is for certain: whenever she does, and whatever comes out of those sessions, it won't be predictable.

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Bit of soul funk from the worm-master today, this is Sister Sledge with one of their huge hits, “We are family”.

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There are few who would doubt the singular genius of Paddy McAloon. Here he is with Prefab Sprout, and one of their early hits, the intensely powerful and emotional “When love breaks down”.

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BOO! It's Halloween: time for ghosties and zombies and vampires and all sorts of weird and dread creatures to stalk the night seeking candy and treats at the doors! Lock up your supply of funsize Mars Bars --- they're out there and they're hungry!
To tie in with the spooky celebrations, here is a selection of themed songs all about, you guessed it, supernatural creatures.

Start off with the great Annie Lennox, with her lovely bitter ballad, “Love song for a vampire”. Get yer teeth into this! (Sorry, sorry!)


Vampires not your thing? Try werewolves instead...


Japan had a great song way back when, entitled simply “Ghosts”...


… and the Cranberries sang about zombies....


… while the Eagles were more concerned with witchy women!


Of course, we couldn't leave out the Halloween song, from the late Michael Jackson!


Then there's Tom Waits, who's not afraid to go “Whistlin' past the graveyard”. Think the ghosts would run from him!


Perhaps one of the best and most famous songs about supernatural beings, here are Blue Oyster Cult, with “Don't fear the Reaper”.


You could always dance with the dead, like Axxis...


… or do the Graveyard Waltz with the Hooters.


Okay then, that's our little contribution to the ghostly goings-on that take place on this unhallowed night. Mind your step as you're leaving, and keep checking behind you! MWA-HAHAHAHA!

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Random Track of the Day
Monday, October 31 2011
Another good track taken from my extensive collection by random selection, this is one of my all-time favourite artistes, the late great Dan Fogelberg.

Hard to say --- Dan Fogelberg --- from "The innocent age" on Full Moon


A great song from a truly great double album, “The innocent age” is described on the cover as “a song cycle”, and indeed it is, beginning with songs about birth and following through a life to the inevitable conclusion we all face. Most of you may know Dan for his hits like “Longer”, “Leader of the band” and the perennial Christmas favourite, “Same old lang syne”, but this is a nice little country-tinged ballad about trying to figure out why a romance just didn't work out. Backing vocals by Glenn Frey, too. Sadly, we lost Dan four years ago, and are unlikely to see a songwriter of his calibre and gentle grace again.

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Random Track of the Day
Tuesday, November 1 2011
A new month begins, and we have a good one to start us off on Random Track of the Day, from a very underappreciated talent. This is Lana Lane, whose album “Lady Macbeth” I reviewed a lot earlier, and who also lent her voice to Gary Hughes' project “Once and future king”, which I also reviewed some time ago.

Souls of the mermaids --- Lana Lane --- from "Queen of the ocean" on Think Tank


Seriously, ignore the stupid “Little mermaid” video --- it's the only version of this song I could find on YT --- and enjoy the song. It's from her “Queen of the ocean” album, a great little rocker called “Souls of the mermaids” (hence the annoying video).

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Thought it might be time for another whistle-stop tour of a band, give you a flavour of what they're about, feature some tracks from their repertoire, and perhaps introduce you to some music you may up to now not have heard, or perhaps even be unaware existed. This time around it's British prog metal band
Balance of Power

I did feature one of their albums here some time ago, the excellent “Perfect balance”, but that was a while ago, and they have created a lot more good music prior to, and since, that release. First though, a little history.
Balance of Power were formed in London around 1995, and have to date released six albums, one of which also contains a CD of live music AND a DVD, but more of that later. The current lineup of the band is below, though as with most bands who have been together for a while, there have been some changes since they started out, as noted below.

Corey Brown --- vocals (see note 1)
Pete Southern --- guitar (see note 2)
Tony Ritchie --- bass (see note 3)
Lionel Hicks --- drums

Note 1: Original vocalist was in fact Ritchie, who now concentrates on bass duties. He was also a founder member, though after Balance of Power's first album, “When the world falls down”, he was replaced as vocalist by Lance King, who remained in the post until 2003, just before the recording of their last proper album, “Heathen machine”, when he was replaced in turn by John K. Corey Brown is the current vocalist, but although he played with the band on some gigs he has not yet been involved in any albums.

Note 2: When the band formed there were in fact two guitarists, Paul Curtis and Bill Yates. Curtis left after the first album, but Yates stayed on for three more albums, sharing guitar duties with new man Pete Southern. After 2001's “Perfect balance” he left, leaving Southern as the sole axeman for their, to date, last album.

Note 3: As mentioned above, Ritchie was originally vocalist on the debut album but switched to bass guitar when he was replaced by Lance King. He was a founder member of the band, but prior to King's arrival, bass duties were taken by Chris Dale, also a member of the original lineup.

(It should also be mentioned that although on some BoP albums there were no keyboards (or at least, no keyboard player credited), Ivan Gunn, founder of the band, took these for the first and second albums, with Leon Lawson coming in for the next two. “Ten more tales of grand illusion” does not credit any keysman.)

When the world falls down (1997)

Their debut was first released in Japan, and it's a damn good first try. Right from the off, after the atmospheric keyboard intro it goes into full-fledged rock mode, with great vocal harmonies, catchy melodies and to be honest, more an AOR feel than prog metal, featuring their signature tune, the eponymous “Balance of power”. But it's tracks like “Hide your heart”

and “These are the days”

that make this album stand out from the crowd. Admittedly, this is more an AOR effort than true progressive metal, but future albums would take on a much harder, heavier edge, and establish Balance of Power as true exponents of melodic, mature and powerful prog metal. As debuts go, therefore, it's not the strongest but neither is it a bad album, just that what would follow would make “When the world falls down” seem just a little ordinary.

Book of secrets (1998)


Only a year on, but what a change for Balance of Power's second album. New vocalist Lance King replaced Tony Ritchie, and their sound became much heavier and more in the vein of metal than rock, with a concept album based on, believe it or not, the Bible Code.

With ongoing narration from Rob Brown, the album tells the story of the coming final days of the Earth, and you can hear the urgency in the much-heavier music that populates the album, like “Walking on top of the world”

and the excellent “Seven days to nevermore”

As mentioned, this album marked the debut of singer Lance King, and also the swansong for founder member and keyboard player Ivan Gunn. It also featured the debut for guitarist Pete Southern, who would become BoP's main axeman and stay with them to the end. The album was produced and engineered by Lionel Hicks, and he certainly seems to have done a very good job!

Ten more tales of grand illusion (1999)


Only a year later they were back with their third album, “Ten more tales of grand illusion”. This continued the heavy metal influence and more or less eschewed the commercial/AOR feel of the debut. Again produced by Hicks, the album heads almost into the realms of speed/thrash metal at times, while still retaining the melodic style that characterised previous albums.

Examples of the growing maturity of Balance of Power include the likes of “Blind man”

and the shattering “Sins of the world”

This album spelled the end of Chris Dale's involvement, and for the follow-up he would be replaced by Balance of Power's original vocalist, founder member Tony Ritchie on bass.

Perfect balance (2001)

Already extensively reviewed by me earlier, “Perfect balance” is indeed that, the perfect coming together of this band and without question their best album. It features the last appearances of Lance King behind the mike, and Bill Yates on guitar, and whereas no keyboard player was credited on the previous album (if there was a keysman; it sounds like there was) this time Leon Lawson takes up those duties. The development of the band is now complete: they have mostly dropped the soft-rock leanings of “When the world falls down” more and more, and concentrate on a heavier, more powerful sound.

To be fair, just about every track on “Perfect balance” is excellent, but as we can only pick two we'll go for two of my favourites, the stunning “Shelter me”

and the wonderful “One voice”

both of which showcase the melodic rock element of this band, the way they can rock like demons but still retain the musical expertise and songwriting ability that can make their songs seem very commercial, even if they haven't achieved anything in the way of chart success, or even much recognition.

Heathen machine (2003)

To date the band's last album, apart from a compilation featuring live material released in 2005, “Heathen machine” is the first (and so far only) Balance of Power album to feature new vocalist John K. As mentioned, Bill Yates had also departed by now, leaving Pete Southern as the sole guitarist. Leon Lawson remains on keyboards.

It's another powerful album, and if it is to be their last then it's a fitting ending, bristling with great songs, like “Chemical imbalance”

and “No place like home”


New singer John K doesn't sound out of place, and the band seem to be meshing even more tightly together despite the loss of one guitarist. Hopefully we may hear more of them in the future, though I believe at the moment most of the band members are working on separate projects, but hey, never say never!

Finally, although I generally don't tend to include “greatest hits” and live albums in this section, mention must be made of 2005's “Heathenology live” triple album.
Heathenology Live (2005)


Not only did this boxed set contain remastered versions of tracks from the first four albums, which goes under the subtitle of “Archives of power”, there is also a live recording of the guys in concert PLUS a two-hour live DVD of Balance of Power live in 2004, as well as extra material and a full-colour 24-page booklet! Now THAT's what I call value!

If you haven't heard of Balance of Power before, you could do a whole lot worse than check them out. They've certainly done a lot to try to make their mark in the world, even if the world has largely ignored them. But they've kept going, produced some excellent music, and as I say, it's possible that we have not yet heard the last of them. If there's any justice in this world, Balance of Power will be back, and this time, maybe the world at large will sit up and take notice. Or fall down. Either would be good.

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Trollheart

No-one was particularly surprised when, after the Jam split, Paul Weller was the one who went on to hack out a solo career. What was surprising was the route he took. Having spent many years fighting the cause of mod and punk in that seminal band, his own solo work took on a much more commercial, relaxed and poppy direction, when he formed the Style Council. Gone was the Angry Young Man, and in his place a Relaxed, Contented Older (and much Richer) Man.

This, at any rate, is one of their big hits, one to get your feet moving (wish I had feet!), it's “Walls come tumbling down.”

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018