COVERED MIRROR VOL. 1 - SMOOTH AS SILK

When any band that I enjoy declares that they are going to release a covers album, my heart generally sinks. I didn't have great expectations of this covers album by Unitopia after absolutely loving 'The Garden' and 'Artificial'. However, there are some really fantastic covers here. Prelude and Calling Occupants give the album a great start. I had heard both the Klaatu and Carpenters version of this song before and this version meanders between the two of them with some really nice orchestration and some beautiful vocal work from the marvellous Mark Trueack.

'Easter', I believe is better than the original version and 'Man of Colors' is a nice track that I had never heard before. I am a massive fan of Genesis and was worried that Unitopia would really mess the medley up, but the arrangement is actually really good and works much better than I had imagined.

Truth be told, the whole album flows nicely. It's the first covers album I have ever listened to that doesn't sound like a covers album. Unitopia made all the songs their own and it is an album that I continue to listen to regularly. It has also got me excited for the reworked version of the band's first album 'More than a Dream' which is due for re-release in 2013 as well as more new material due in 2014. The future is looking bright for Unitopia. They are a group whose material I buy without question and without hesitation. As far as covers albums go, this is the only one I would recommend purchasing. It really is rather good!