GREY EYE GLANCES

I don't think that this is REALY prog, but... anyway we don't REALY choose the things we like.

"A little voodoo" is Grey Eye Glances latest studio release at time of writing. I am not familiar with their back catalogue, but I have to assume it has far more in the way of prog influences than this. The band may feature a couple of members of ECHOLYN in their line up, but this is pop rock pure and simple.

Singer Jennifer Noble has a fine if undistinguished voice which is by far the most dominant factor in all the tracks here. The music is that of FLEETWOOD MAC ("Rumours" era), HEART, SHANIA TWAIN, NATALIE IMBRUGLIA etc. We have strong melodies, upbeat rhythms and prosaic lyrics about love and relationships. "If I was" for example is one of many tracks which could readily be lifted as a single, and would sound great on melodic rock radio. Occasionally, we have a burst of lead guitar from Brett Kull, but such breaks are kept ruthlessly short.

When Noble's vocals are multi-tracked on songs such as "The one", the Heart similarities become even stronger. Elsewhere, the sound is that of the myriad of crossover country/pop artists such as the aforementioned SHANIA TWAIN, LEANN RIMES, LEE ANN WOMACK, MARTINA MCBRIDE etc.

For obvious reasons, this review tends to focus on the simplicity of the contents of this album. Had it been written for another site, perhaps one not dedicated to a specialist genre, the slant would undoubtedly have been more positive. This is well performed female vocal pop, but it is far from original and lacking in any real identity.

This is music for couples, played loudly winding down the coastal highways. It's hard for me to choose one tune as THE standout track. It flows along seemlessly, which is hard to believe since three different producers pieced this together; Jerry Marotta, T-Bone Wolk and Brett Kull.

Kulls guitar gets its moments to shine but he plays within the context of the tune. Ramsey's drum work is solid with the less then stressful stuff he played with Echolyn. Dwayne Keith's keyboard work is more ambient and fills the backgrounds nicely. Eric O'Dell lays down some nice bass work that enhances the tunes and keeps them moving.

Obviously GEG is looking for the limelight, and why shouldn't they? Is writing smart thoughtful tunes, even in a pop setting, wrong? Not at all. Buy it, even if it's not prog. Your wife or girlfriend will like you better for it.