I CAN SEE YOUR HOUSE FROM HERE

I am new at listening to Camel (thanks to this site I discovered them :-)) and this is my first review. I choose this album - part by chance - but mostly because the general criticism of the album overall strikes me, and I want to see for myself...

Song-by-song:

Wait (2+) Sounds a bit like pretty cheap Supertramp - sure it's good instrumental and some quite good pieces, but the song itself don't wake me up really - it's more like I WAIT for the next song to start...

Your Love is Stranger than Mine (2+) Sounds like a song from the 80:s - not very good, mostly uninteresting keyboard-patterns and a bit haunting and almost irritating singing voice. Not especially good.

Eye of the Storm (3+) Starts pretty nice - with a moody and cautios tune and some good playing on the drums. The song itself is the best so far - but lacks a bit in gripping me - anyway after a while. A descent song overall.

Who we Are (4+) A catchy beginning - and it strikes me the absent of a real guitarsound on the album this far. The songs are indeed very popish and mellow. And mostly instrumental. This song has some pretty good bass and a happy tune - but it don't tell me a shit in the first minutes. After that though, the singing begins and the song turns to be quite interesting and good with great keyboard-patterns and nice singing and a nice parts with great feeling. The albums best song so far.

Survival (3+) A nice feeling but too short.

Hymn ho Her (2+) Starts as it's linked with Survival with drums and some nice tunes but to popish for my taste. Good singing though.

Neon Magic (1+) Aoouch... a terrible song! Bad slobby singing and a boring guitar like in a poor pop-song. It does'nt help with the section-changes either.

Remote Romance (1+) Totally rubbish - even as a bad joke.

Ice (4+) A good beginning with some nice piano and some mellow but great solo guitar, at last... When the drums begins the song drops a bit for me. It's too slow, and don't have that magical feeling from the early recordings. But it must be said - really great guitar!