CIVILIAN

Well well well . as for the musical style of this album, this is like the "90125" (Yes) for Gentle Giant. Why? Almost all tracks in this album are straight forward rock music, unlike any previous albums of Gentle Giant. This is not truly prog album, I would say. However, I like this album very much because it rocks! Never mind this album is not prog at all!! I never imagined before that Gentle Giant would ever produce an album like this.

"Convenience (Clean And Easy)" opens the album with dynamic solo drumming at intro part followed by punchy keyboard style. There is a bit of prog component at the end of this track. This upbeat track indicates overall theme of this album as the music is typical with other tracks. "All Through The Night" is my favorite track. It has no such component of prog music at all. The music is straight forward rock, simple structure with great melody, some gutar riffs that are rarely used by the band. This is the kind of track you would like to elevate your emotion as the music is upbeat. This track flows seamlessly to the next track "Shadows on The Street" with a slow tempo. The transition to this track is done smoothly. This track has a unique voice of DEREK SHULMAN, typical to Gentle Giant.

"Underground" is another upbeat tempo track. The dazzling bass guitar and keyboard sound flows dynamically to accompany great voice of DEREK. The way keyboard is played reminds me to unique keyboard style of SAGA. It flows nicely to next track "I'm a Camera", another upbeat track in the vein of straight rock. It continues to a slower tempo track "Inside Out". Again, this is a wonderfully crafted track with excellent melody and vocals. I bet you would like it whether you like prog music or not. Even non rock lovers may enjoy this ambient track. Overall, this album is excellent. This is one of the best music that I keep playing it overtime. I'd rather listen to this album than any other hard rock album such as Deep Purple. GENTLE GIANT has a vocalist with a great voice that I really love. Highly recommended. An excellent addition to your collection. Gatot Widayanto, Indonesia.