RETURNING JESUS

A very nice album from Mssrs. Steven Wilson and Tim Bowness that, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders above the Together We're Stranger (probably due to the rhythm contributions of drummer/percussionist, STEVE JANSEN). I love the stripped down to bare bones song compositions--they work so well with Bowness's plaintive, breathy vocals.

Album favorites: the BRIAN ENO "And Julie With..."-like "Returning Jesus" (5:20) (9/10) (Jansen's amazing Balinese gamelan percussives, the sparse keys and guitar soli); "Outside the Machine" (5:47) (9/10) (Jansen's brush work, Steven's sparse, RYUICHI SAKAMOTO-like piano work, Colin Edwin's fretless bass work); the 1980s PT-sounding "Lighthouse" (8:13) (8/10), and; the SIMPLE MINDS-like "Close Your Eyes" (8:26) (8/10). Nice effort at creating music over sparsity and spaciousness.

3.5 star album rated up for the awesome and rare contributions of Steve Jansen.