CYCLONE

The first TD album to feature extensive use of vocals, this album has its supporters and detractors. The band had abandoned an all-synth approach for a more organic but fairly simplistic symphonic rock sound. Obviously, Floydian comparisons would be fairly apt (Wish You Were Here) as well as with German symph contemporaries like Eloy and Novalis. The compositions are pretty drony but do feature some good melodies from a wide ranging palate of synth sounds, as well as some decent electric guitar playing. The best of the three tracks is "Bent Cold Sidewalk", which has very nice, dramatic verse sections that remind me a bit of BJH's "For No One" and contain the best vocals on the record.

I don't have a problem with TD + vocals, but unfortunately Steve Jolliffe, while sounding quite tuneful at times, also seems to have fancied himself a super-expressive singer of the Pete Hammill type, which I'm afraid he was not. His attempts at portentous, grunty vocals are a bit hilarious and nearly ruin some of the pieces. Perhaps TD themselves were not so enamoured of this development either, as they parted company after this release.

A nice try, but I have to subtract a star because of some of the overwrought vocals.