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AVIARY

Aviary

Crossover Prog


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Aviary Aviary album cover
3.34 | 34 ratings | 6 reviews | 9% 5 stars

Good, but non-essential

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Studio Album, released in 1979

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Soaring (5:50)
2. Anthem For The U.S.A. (5:09)
3. Puddles (3:01)
4. As Close As You Can Get (4:23)
5. Mystic Sharon (3:15)
6. Feel The Heart (Then You'll Be Mine Again) (4:39)
7. Average Boy (3:51)
8. I Will Hear (2:15)
9. Maple Hall (4:48)

Total Time: 37:11

Line-up / Musicians

- Brad Love / lead vocals, keyboards, synthesizers
- Toby Bowen / electric guitar
- Richard Bryans / drums, backing vocals
- Paul Madden / keyboards, synthesizers
- Ken Steinmonts / bass, backing vocals

Releases information

CD Release: Rewind (Sony) Catalogue #: 55015-2

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
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AVIARY Aviary ratings distribution


3.34
(34 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(9%)
9%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(39%)
39%
Good, but non-essential (36%)
36%
Collectors/fans only (12%)
12%
Poor. Only for completionists (3%)
3%

AVIARY Aviary reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by ClemofNazareth
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog Folk Researcher
2 stars Derivative is probably an overused term when discussing music, but in the case of Aviary it really seems to be appropriate. I have to admit to being one of the people who never heard of these guys back in the seventies when they were active. The songs on this debut release bring to mind so many other seventies AOR and prog-related bands I can’t believe there weren’t some liberties taken in putting these tracks together.

The opening “Soaring” for example could easily pass for ELO around the time they started replacing their string section with synthesizers, circa ‘Discovery’, although the tempo and keyboard passages sound like something Jeff Lynne would have put together around 1976 or so. “Anthem for the U.S.A” is even closer to a Lynne composition, and here the falsetto harmonizing male vocals are even more ELO- like. Lynne made a great next-generation Paul McCartney, and on this album Brad Love sounds like their younger second-cousin.

And the suspiciously familiar sounds don’t stop there. On “As Close as you can Get” Love manages a pretty decent Freddie Mercury imitation, but the musical accompaniment sounds more like the Buggles or maybe that “Turning Japanese” one-hit wonder the Vapors. And “Mystic Sharon” really seems like it should have belonged on the Don Was and Giorgio Moroder-produced “Electric Dreams” soundtrack alongside (once again) Jeff Lynne and Human League new-waver Philip Oakley. I loved that soundtrack by the way, but it didn’t exactly age well, and neither does this album.

“Feel the Heart” is one of those late-seventies tracks that starts to hint at the coming neo sound that became popular with bands like Saga and Asia – highly polished, heavily synthesized and just enough fluff to give the impression it’s more progressive than it really is. “Average Boy” is a pure new-wave number drenched with synthesizers and pompous, choppy fills and flourishes, plus a little more of that Lynne falsetto just for good measure.

The slow, introspective, flash-your-lighter-and-sway-with-the-music©® concert number comes with “I Will Hear”, and the band closes with another new-waver in “Maple Hall” that features affected vocals and a fairly danceable rhythm amid some pretty awkward and vapid vocals.

Sorry, but this isn’t a lost masterpiece or anything. It is kind of fun to listen to once or twice, mostly because it brings to mind an awful lot of music I grew up with that sounded a lot like this but was actually original and much better. The band would release a slightly more original and thus better album years later (after they broke up), but this one has all the makings of a marginal debut from a band that would have had more success trying to make a living as a touring cover band. For collectors only, although I’m not sure what type of collector would find this one appealing. Two stars.

peace

Review by ZowieZiggy
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars This US band is deeply rooted into some great bands of the seventies and plays a fresh and fun rock music.

Influences are plenty: guitar and vocals a la Queen for the opening track Soaring are such a pleasant way to start this album. Brad Love on the lead vocals has an excellent voice and performs in an outstanding way throughout this album. This song is excellent and is one of the highlight of this work.

If you are into an ELO ride, you can embark the Anthem For The USA while 10CC is just next door with Puddles. It holds the same craziness and clever arrangements (vocal + instrumental parts).

A combination of the both is noticeable during the enjoyable As Close As You Can Get. The melody is on the pop side but catchy and the vocals are again very well crafted. I am not saying that this is a great song, but it reminds me nicely two bands I have liked very much (and still do).

This album might sound outdated, but it should please anyone who is willing to refresh his memory and listen to unknown numbers which are truly attractive. Mystic Sharon is another jewel from this debut album.

One song is not on par: Feel The Heart which is AOR oriented, but overall this album holds more pleasant songs than average ones. If you like the bands that I have mentioned, you should have a good time while listening to this work. Add lots of synthesizers as well to get the whole picture.

A song as Average Boy is almost a mini-opera full of splendid vocals; it is really a performance but almost the whole album is of good value. It was a very good surprise when I listened to this album. Four stars.

Review by Marty McFly
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars That's not bad album. Strange thing is that I feel like listening pop music. After all these years when I was trying to avoid it, pop is striking back from rock point of view. And it's like "don't give in to the dark side of the rock Luke, fight with it.", well, at least little bit.

Music is pleasant, melodic. Contains nice guitar work. Yeah, especially guitar and vocal synchronization here is wonderful. So why I feel little bit ashamed when listening this ? Maybe that's not right. Just enjoying it would do better job. Anyway, rating will be between 3 and 4 stars, because this album deserves it.

Well, this problem with pop feeling is probably nonsense, in bio is said that they're pomp prog. As my brother said, music of Queen is melodic too. And after all, I'm the one who don't like death metal and distort guitar sounds, I should be glad for that. Maybe as this music is done is just another way how to approach prog music. Now I'm decided, four stars.

In fact, when listening some tracks, I have feelings as Freddie Mercury should sing in next moment.

EDIT: 3(-), sweeter than Moon Safari.

Latest members reviews

4 stars AVIARY "Same", certainly is an album capable to captivate a great segment of progressive rock fans. This effect is maybe due to the fact of although their music be very close to "pop" or even "glamour" rock in style of bands like 10CC, CITY BOY, STYX, QUEEN, they produce a high quality music ... (read more)

Report this review (#1545256) | Posted by maryes | Sunday, March 27, 2016 | Review Permanlink

3 stars This album here really is over the top, in the pop/pomp/prog categories and is quite mad really. There are several bands thrown into the mix here and as mentioned Queen sure take up a big portion of the mix.Equal pqrts to Queen is definately City Boy with their bombastic sound and harmony vocal ... (read more)

Report this review (#396367) | Posted by gr8dane | Monday, February 7, 2011 | Review Permanlink

5 stars Anyone NOT into pop/pomp/prog should go away and read something else..NOW !! As this a about as good as it gets, when talking about pomprock/popprog !! The name of this wonder is: AVIARY...an American outfit, with master of supreme song- writing and singer de luxe, at the wheel :Brad Love. When ... (read more)

Report this review (#18625) | Posted by Tonny Larz | Wednesday, May 12, 2004 | Review Permanlink

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