SALEM HILL

Salem Hill would go on to make some fine albums in the symphonic/neo prog vein, the highpoint being Not Everybody's Gold released in 2000. This, their eponymous debut and follow up Different World's however owed more to American AOR than prog. Nevertheless it's a promising start with the emphasis on melodic hooks rather than lengthy complex prog excursions.

Fans of the likes of Boston and Styx should enjoy some of the melodic rock on offer, none better than album opener Golden Crosses which does venture into neo prog territory and features some powerful guitar work and a catchy hook. The music generally alternates between more powerful rock moments such as The Dilemma, There Must Be More Than This and Never Alone and ballads like Aceldama and Hand And Feet. Things can get a bit syrupy at times, Hand and Feet and Between The Two being prime examples. Occasionally they get a bit more inventive and glimmers of prog shine through like on Evil One though these moments are few and far between.

Not a great album by any means but the band play well enough and with the easily accessible melodic hooks it's difficult to be too disparaging. As might be expected this is not the best cd to start discovering Salem Hill, a far better place being Not Everybody's Gold or Robbery Of Murder which show what the band are really capable of. 2 ½ stars.