THE WAKE

Yes, Peter Nicholls is not the most technically gifted singer. Yes, the album reeks of its time with dated keyboards and reverb drenched drums. But at the end of the day I listen to this album again and again. This album length rumination on death, in Nicholl's densest but best poetry, is brought to the next level with a band that soars when it needs to and rocks when it doesn't. "Outer Limits" begins with a simple bass figure that explodes into a band going full tilt. Many theatrical performances wear on me after repeated listens, but the sheer desperation in the vocals never gets old on this barnstormer. On the title track Mike Holmes conjures up the sound of a zipper in his guitar as the band pounds along. The guitar solo is an echoed and double tracked wonder that matches Hackett for emotion and melody. "Widow's Peak" is a tale of sex and ghosts and the living dead (I think) with a melody cinematic in scope and a chilling vocal performance. When Nicholls gasps for breath after shouting "diamond hard/heart of stone" at the top of his register its difficult not to be moved. I probably sound like a raving fan, but the point I'm trying to make is this is a fine album that you can make a real emotional connection to. No hiding behind parables and gnomes here. This is an album that stares loss in the face.