CATCH THE SPIRIT - THE COMPLETE ANTHOLOGY

With five albums recorded over a period of six years behind them, Mostly Autumn decided to revisit what they considered to be their strongest material. The first CD contains almost exactly the same songs as their previous collection "Heroes never die", which was deleted upon the release of this album.

They re-recorded this double CD of tracks in order to, as they themselves put it, improve upon the original recordings. Since I am unfamiliar with their back catalogue, I cannot comment on whether they achieved this goal. What I can say though is, it is difficult to see how the original recordings could be any better than these. This album is a collection of absolutely essential music, it is quite stunning from start to finish.

Mostly Autumn switch between male and female lead vocals, with the tracks often alternating between them. The contrast makes the album constantly interesting. Heather Findlay has an exquisite voice, at times not unlike Sandy Denny's, while Bryan Josh has a more orthodox rock one.

Mostly Autumn make melodic prog similar at times to, but much more rock orientated than, Renaissance. The lead guitar work is excellent. On "We come and go", there are echoes of Ritchie Blackmore in his Rainbow days. On many other tracks, there is a marked comparison with Dave Gilmour ("Evergreen" and the magnificent "The night sky" to name but two). The band's marketing has offered them as "The new Pink Floyd". While I can see where this lofty claim comes from, it is inaccurate, and perhaps even misguided.

The sound is full of rich textures, layered on a foundation of organ and synthesiser. It switches from sensitive acoustics to full force feedback lead guitar solos with startling efficiency. The band are not afraid to suddenly rock out when the mood takes them, the aforementioned "Evergreen" being a stunning example of not just "Autumn", but all four seasons in one track.

Apart from the undoubted musicianship of the band members, the other stunning talent they have is in the song writing. While Josh features heavily in this department, the other band members participate on about half the tracks. The music they create is so amazingly melodic and original, it must be the case that even if they did not record themselves, they would find immense success is creating music for other artists.

I could wax lyrical on and on about this double album. Suffice to say, if you enjoy the type of music described, discover this collection and you will be an immediate convert to this fine band. The only tragedy is that a band of this quality do not in this day and age, get the recognition they deserve outwith enlightened places such as this.

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