HAT AND FIELD

After a highly promising and impressive debut, Ain Soph seemed to me like one of the most promising Jazz-Rock bands from Japan in the early 80's. This second offering, however, goes in different directions than before.

While their debut album is a progressive jazz rollercoaster with plenty of technical and compositional competence, "Hat and Field" is calmer, easier to digest and warmer than it's predecessor. It still have the symphonic and canterbury-ish elements from their debut, only that this time they're presented more gently in the songs, and the compositions are far more relaxing and less demanding to listen to. The only problem with this is that the songs seems duller, less interesting and lacks the fire that the band provided for their debut this time. This makes the album a bit uneven, and even boring at times, but it's still enjoyable although not as remarkable as I wanted it to be. It tries hard, but doesn't quite make it, to say it with other words. The songs are melodic but not nearly as thrilling as they could be, but this still is a good album generally, and a good handful of the songs are actually quite good. The musicianship is very good and the production is clear and warm enough to provide all the music nicely througout and adds an extra plus to this (slightly disappointing) album.

This album is a good follow-up to their debut, although quite different. It's a good bet if you are interested in this band, or if you think their debut is a bit too much. If you like jazzy, melodic and solid prog then give this one a try. If you already are in love with their debut, you might get a bit disappointed (as I did) but it still deserves 3.5/5.