rockavlon
20-03-2004, 17:42
SKYCLAD – “A semblance of normality”
(Demolition Records)
Running Time : 47’14.
Coming out on :24:05:04
http://www.skycladforum.de/SkycladASON.jpg
Well here it is the long awaited SKYCLAD album! After a quite long time the lads and lass from merry old England, release one of their more ambitious records up to date.
Without their ex singer Martin Walkyier, who had quite a fame as a man who could write a good pun, and to create quite inspired lyrics, the band decided to soldier on, slightly change the outlook and style, without really changing that much, but rather evolving, becoming more contemporary. Also a new lad occupies the drum stool, Aaron Walton, and he does a pretty good job, and they have even enlisted the help of various other guests on percussion and organ as well as a few players from the London Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Also this time it’s not the artwork of Duncan Storr, that graces their cover, but a painting of a plane view of an old Anglo Saxon site, upon some jeans by a certain Marie Wright. Right, it didn’t exactly amaze me, but it’s not bad either. So on with the music my friends…
One thing that has to be pointed, is that even with all these changes, the band has kept a sense of identity. They are recognizable. But a lot of surprises await you. It’s as the band puts it, the same, but different.
This record is predominantly heavy, there are even some songs without ms Biddle on the fiddle, but on the other hand there are real string sections on others. There’s a lot of groove, a lot of mood as well. There’s a piper, you got D-tuned guitars, tapping, some shredding solos, a mid section that sounds like a Greek folk dance, in “Anotherdrinkingsong”. The guys must have had one too many beers. They have mixed, what I though impossible to mix in a potent spirited brew.
A lot of songs as mentioned before are in D minor, so the material is moody, kinda sad, but also quite strong and I would not say exactly angry, but surely charged and stompy. The orchestra is used in 5 songs, adding more depth, but again, the use of the orchestra is not quite straightforward, they have used it as a background, to get a fuller and warmer sound. In no way does it overshadow the band. If you expected something in he vein of THERION, you won’t find it here. Steve Ramsey’s guitar playing is really cool and although his playing is different than usual, he occasionally shines through, with some blistering solos. The lyrics are intelligent as ever, and sharp. They elaborate on political situations, and the hardness of life, not only in the uk, but around the globe too. Kevin does a really great job adapting different styles.
He’s obviously a much better singer than Martin will ever be and to be honest, he dispelled the ghost of the old chap, right from the first song. Martin who ? Occasionally he reminds me of his FORGODSAKE days, when he sings faster and more aggressively. But overall his melodic lines are as good as in every previous ‘CLAD release. The album overall is a grower. First time around I liked it, thought it was simply ok, but after a few more spins, I got more chills. Now I love the entire album. Evolution Calling !!! It’s far better than “Folkemon”, no doubt. I cannot but wonder bout what they will come up with next.
But hey why don’t we check out the songs themselves.
The album begins with “Intro” (pipe solo) : a nice piece of Celtic music. Andy May playing Northumbrian pipes. Nice! Before you know it “Do they mean us?” kicks in, and it kicks your ass. A very powerful, D tuned, song with odd time changes and the orchestra grooving it up. It has a funny jiggy rhythm, and its quite fluid. Almost proggy, in places. A nice track to begin with. “A good day to bury bad news” follows suit. Ahem, a quite controversial, song about the way that 09/11 acts were presented by the media. Heavy, bluesy, dramatic, with a nice break in the middle. Very nice. “Another drinking song” which comes up next is what it says, a drinking song, with sing-along verses, Some weird arrangements (greek sirtaki middle dance part) and out of nowhere Steve comes up with a tapping solo, that sounds like something from the thunder cats and power rangers. Ha ha, totally unexpected and awesome. “A survival campaign” is a song that sounds like NEW MODEL ARMY a bit.
It has Hammond on it too. Weird riffs, some bluesy tones, another tapping solo and the orchestra give it quite a vibe. Its all right. Next up is “The song of no-involvement” Suitably sarcastic, this track is quite reminiscent of THIN LIZZY, complete with dual guitar melodic parts that are complimented by the violin. D Tuned, and a very sing-along chorus too. “The parliament of fools”. You got to have quite some nerve to start a song with “A capella” singing. SKYCLAD have proven hat they have it, with songs like “Inequality street”. They do it once again here, to great effect. It’s very SKYCLAD. You ‘ll dig it. “Ten little kingdoms” Oh boy! This one is MEGA WEIRD. You don’t stand a chance to make out the lyrics, without the booklet. Kevin sings the line as if somebody is chasing him. A punchy punk riff. It’s fun, after you get around to it. And after the blitz that “Ten little kingdoms”, is we’ve got “Like … a ballad for the disenchanted”, it reminded me a lot of the “Thread of evermore” from “The answer machine?”. Heavily Oriental vibes on this one. Heavy – weird orchestration, odd rhythms, And a wah wah solo ?! WTF ?! It’s a good one however.
”Lightening the load” begins gently, almost as a ballad, and builds up to something fast and quite big. Mandolins, acoustic guitars, you name it, it’s there. Nice lyrics, pretty good. “Not the roman wall blues” or NTRWB for short: No orchestra or fiddle on this one. Heavy, D Tuned, a blasting riff, that would not be out of place in ENTOMBED, and Hammond ?(!!??!) and yes it is good too. “Hybrid Blues” is almost a ballad, save for the last part, where it gets more energetic, quite a nice song, really. Kevin, shows an amazing emotional side, nice arrangements and it leads us to the “Outro” - the dissolution of parliament, a very beautiful track with Arron handling bodhran, and the band back into a Celtic acoustic fest. Bodhran, nylon string guitar and fiddle. That’s it. Works great. End of CD, end of story.
It’s the same but different! Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed, it’s like beer, your favorite brand might have just run out, but there might be one that tastes just as good. This one does. In fact it’s better. So I raise my cup to the mad Geordies, and their amazing new album. All hail the new CLAD! Yiamas !!!
5/6
Dimitrios “Rockavlon” Fatouros
(Demolition Records)
Running Time : 47’14.
Coming out on :24:05:04
http://www.skycladforum.de/SkycladASON.jpg
Well here it is the long awaited SKYCLAD album! After a quite long time the lads and lass from merry old England, release one of their more ambitious records up to date.
Without their ex singer Martin Walkyier, who had quite a fame as a man who could write a good pun, and to create quite inspired lyrics, the band decided to soldier on, slightly change the outlook and style, without really changing that much, but rather evolving, becoming more contemporary. Also a new lad occupies the drum stool, Aaron Walton, and he does a pretty good job, and they have even enlisted the help of various other guests on percussion and organ as well as a few players from the London Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Also this time it’s not the artwork of Duncan Storr, that graces their cover, but a painting of a plane view of an old Anglo Saxon site, upon some jeans by a certain Marie Wright. Right, it didn’t exactly amaze me, but it’s not bad either. So on with the music my friends…
One thing that has to be pointed, is that even with all these changes, the band has kept a sense of identity. They are recognizable. But a lot of surprises await you. It’s as the band puts it, the same, but different.
This record is predominantly heavy, there are even some songs without ms Biddle on the fiddle, but on the other hand there are real string sections on others. There’s a lot of groove, a lot of mood as well. There’s a piper, you got D-tuned guitars, tapping, some shredding solos, a mid section that sounds like a Greek folk dance, in “Anotherdrinkingsong”. The guys must have had one too many beers. They have mixed, what I though impossible to mix in a potent spirited brew.
A lot of songs as mentioned before are in D minor, so the material is moody, kinda sad, but also quite strong and I would not say exactly angry, but surely charged and stompy. The orchestra is used in 5 songs, adding more depth, but again, the use of the orchestra is not quite straightforward, they have used it as a background, to get a fuller and warmer sound. In no way does it overshadow the band. If you expected something in he vein of THERION, you won’t find it here. Steve Ramsey’s guitar playing is really cool and although his playing is different than usual, he occasionally shines through, with some blistering solos. The lyrics are intelligent as ever, and sharp. They elaborate on political situations, and the hardness of life, not only in the uk, but around the globe too. Kevin does a really great job adapting different styles.
He’s obviously a much better singer than Martin will ever be and to be honest, he dispelled the ghost of the old chap, right from the first song. Martin who ? Occasionally he reminds me of his FORGODSAKE days, when he sings faster and more aggressively. But overall his melodic lines are as good as in every previous ‘CLAD release. The album overall is a grower. First time around I liked it, thought it was simply ok, but after a few more spins, I got more chills. Now I love the entire album. Evolution Calling !!! It’s far better than “Folkemon”, no doubt. I cannot but wonder bout what they will come up with next.
But hey why don’t we check out the songs themselves.
The album begins with “Intro” (pipe solo) : a nice piece of Celtic music. Andy May playing Northumbrian pipes. Nice! Before you know it “Do they mean us?” kicks in, and it kicks your ass. A very powerful, D tuned, song with odd time changes and the orchestra grooving it up. It has a funny jiggy rhythm, and its quite fluid. Almost proggy, in places. A nice track to begin with. “A good day to bury bad news” follows suit. Ahem, a quite controversial, song about the way that 09/11 acts were presented by the media. Heavy, bluesy, dramatic, with a nice break in the middle. Very nice. “Another drinking song” which comes up next is what it says, a drinking song, with sing-along verses, Some weird arrangements (greek sirtaki middle dance part) and out of nowhere Steve comes up with a tapping solo, that sounds like something from the thunder cats and power rangers. Ha ha, totally unexpected and awesome. “A survival campaign” is a song that sounds like NEW MODEL ARMY a bit.
It has Hammond on it too. Weird riffs, some bluesy tones, another tapping solo and the orchestra give it quite a vibe. Its all right. Next up is “The song of no-involvement” Suitably sarcastic, this track is quite reminiscent of THIN LIZZY, complete with dual guitar melodic parts that are complimented by the violin. D Tuned, and a very sing-along chorus too. “The parliament of fools”. You got to have quite some nerve to start a song with “A capella” singing. SKYCLAD have proven hat they have it, with songs like “Inequality street”. They do it once again here, to great effect. It’s very SKYCLAD. You ‘ll dig it. “Ten little kingdoms” Oh boy! This one is MEGA WEIRD. You don’t stand a chance to make out the lyrics, without the booklet. Kevin sings the line as if somebody is chasing him. A punchy punk riff. It’s fun, after you get around to it. And after the blitz that “Ten little kingdoms”, is we’ve got “Like … a ballad for the disenchanted”, it reminded me a lot of the “Thread of evermore” from “The answer machine?”. Heavily Oriental vibes on this one. Heavy – weird orchestration, odd rhythms, And a wah wah solo ?! WTF ?! It’s a good one however.
”Lightening the load” begins gently, almost as a ballad, and builds up to something fast and quite big. Mandolins, acoustic guitars, you name it, it’s there. Nice lyrics, pretty good. “Not the roman wall blues” or NTRWB for short: No orchestra or fiddle on this one. Heavy, D Tuned, a blasting riff, that would not be out of place in ENTOMBED, and Hammond ?(!!??!) and yes it is good too. “Hybrid Blues” is almost a ballad, save for the last part, where it gets more energetic, quite a nice song, really. Kevin, shows an amazing emotional side, nice arrangements and it leads us to the “Outro” - the dissolution of parliament, a very beautiful track with Arron handling bodhran, and the band back into a Celtic acoustic fest. Bodhran, nylon string guitar and fiddle. That’s it. Works great. End of CD, end of story.
It’s the same but different! Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed, it’s like beer, your favorite brand might have just run out, but there might be one that tastes just as good. This one does. In fact it’s better. So I raise my cup to the mad Geordies, and their amazing new album. All hail the new CLAD! Yiamas !!!
5/6
Dimitrios “Rockavlon” Fatouros