TRYING TO KISS THE SUN

The fact that this band originally did PINK FLOYD covers is obvious from the opening notes. Yet, "Trying to Kiss the Sun" is highly enjoyable - fluffy, but thoroughly enjoyable. All tracks have a bluesy floydian feel to them and feature some solid rock riffs à la David Gilmour; moreover, both the production and the musicianship are impeccable. Among the more likeable tracks are "Waiting for a Smile", a slow piece reminiscent of "Hey You" but played in a major key. "Sugar for the Ape" reminds me of the Beatles' rougher material on "Let It Be". And "Sunday Morning", which is almost a clone of the FLOYD's "Us and Them", is quite cool. The one that really got my attention, however, is "Tell Me Why". It is as simple a pop tune as you'll ever hear and yet, it gets into an absolutely infectious groove that's enough to drive you nuts (in the most positive sense!). The album ends with a terrific track, "Home Again", a slow builder with a gut-wrenching bluesy guitar solo.

In a way, I find "Trying to Kiss the Sun" much more uplifting than any PINK FLOYD album, no doubt because it is totally devoid of Roger Waters' fatalistic pessimism. It's fun music, but can barely called prog; as a result, the CD has a rather short shelf life. But hey: no one ever said you can't have cotton candy for dinner once in a while. Nice fluff, really!