SINISTER STREET

Dutch Neo-Prog band from early 80's.They recorded the demo ''Prologue'' in 1989 and the same year they supported Fish on his tour.As a sextet with Olaf Blaauw on lead vocals, Erik van der Vlis and Peter van Leerdam on keyboards, Rob Kwakkelstein on bass, Peter Hoos on guitars and Marco Lodders on drums they released their debut ''The Eve of Innocence'' in 1992 on Progressive International.

Sinister Street played a safe and secure Neo Progresive Rock with limited complex themes and a tendency towards catchy, melodic tunes.And as with most of these cases, the band must produce some highly memorable material to be appreciated.This team from The Netherlands did it quite well, having a sensitive vocalist and a tight sound all the way, reminiscent of bands like second era PALLAS or JADIS.The guitars of Peter Hoos seem to lead the way, mainly electric with some acoustic flourishes here and there, and he does a good job, providing both energy and melody, helped by Blaauw's perfectly suited voice.However anyone expecting some massive keyboard pyrotechnics by the two keyboardists will be rather dissapointed.The keyboard work remains very careful all the way with some very decent organ waves and synthesizer solos but without any tendency towards an excessive use.The compositions follow a rather typical song-format with only a few instrumental surprises and the album relies heavily on the passionate and dynamic approach of Sinister Street.

Easy-going, melodic and powerful Progressive Rock, where emotion and atmosphere come first over any kind of adventurous execution.For fans of melodic Prog, Neo Progressive Rock, AOR/Prog and anyone ready to face his first prog experience.

SINISTER STREET are from The Netherlands and this was the last album they recorded back in 2002. For me they sounded a lot like EVERON just not as heavy or as good. The lyrics and vocals did bring that German band to mind on several occassions. I was surprised to find out that there are two keyboardists on this album as the keys didn't dominate the sound very often.

"Song For A Day" has a good heavy intro that changes when the vocals arrive. It picks back up as the tempo continues to change. I like the atmosphere before 7 minutes to the end. "Thin Ice" is heavy with synths. Vocals join in. Guitar after a minute and a fuller sound. Contrasts continue. "Lost For Words" opens with atmosphere as vocals join in followed by drums and guitar. The tempo continues to shift. I'm thinking EVERON here. "Trust" is an instrumental that opens heavily with some nice bass. The guitar starts to solo after 2 minutes. Great sound 4 1/2 minutes in.

"Two In One" opens with fragile vocals and organ. The tempo picks up with strummed guitar, bass and vocals standing out. "Midas Touch" has a nice full sound to it then it kicks in quickly with vocals. It settles back some then gets fuller again. "Go The Distance" is uptempo to start as passionate vocals join in. Guitar before 3 minutes, organ too. "Turning Tide" opens with gentle guitar as reserved vocals join in. Drums follow as it picks up. It's heavier 2 minutes in. The tempo keeps shifting. Nice guitar later. "Through The Looking Glass" is heavy with organ and vocals. Again it settles as contrasts continue.

A good album and nothing more. 3 stars.

I may agree with other comments :good musicians,good vocals,good music,good arengements but.. it seems their talents are not completely incorporated in their art.

It seems this band with all their qualities can do a much better work in the art rock.

There is some originality here ..(in the end of most of the songs there is a variation to an atmospheric prog) maybe songs don,t show much inffluence of other neo prog bands...etc..

But this album for me was not very enjoyable.

I found most of the songs in a pop neo prog line.

In every song I was dissapointed waiting for a special development ,a surprising music...but unfortunately not.

I hope in next works the will develop songs of more length and creation.

3 stars.

Besides the UK, the USA, Italy and Germany, you can always count on a few other countries to keep the glorious progressive torch burning in relative media silence (which oddly sort of guarantees its purity from commercial corruption): France, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Hungary, Poland and the Netherlands today still regularly churn out some great progressive albums. No use comparing the recent stuff to the old glories, these are different times, different world. Sinister Street is another new interesting Dutch band, very much in the Triangle, Knight Area, Nice Beaver, Plackband and Flamborough Head school of allegedly "Neo" prog . While not yet in the masterpiece category, Trust is a worthy addition to any collection, with riveting artwork, ultra modern (aka hard to decipher) graphics, excellent musicianship (standard unit with a unique two keyboard set up) and quite original vocals, courtesy of lead singer Olaf Blaauw. As often the case with most bands from Holland, the bass work is stellar, almost funky at times, the drums are superbly solid, the guitarist has a definite personal style that copies no one overtly (as displayed on the instrumental title cut) and the playing is certainly most spirited, with a crisp, clean production to boot. The dual keys give the proceedings a highly detailed sheen that pleases the ear and satisfies the mind. On the highlight 8 minute + track "Two In One", the bass and the lead synthesizer play in unison, navigating through the slightly Celtic tones, an acoustic guitar-led tune that showcases Olaf's obvious passion, with a magnificently gentle bridge, swirling into a bombastic lead guitar finale, evoking a plethora of heartfelt emotions. Excellent track. "Turning Tide" is another compelling track, a dream weaving musical journey that has both the chops and the message, drenched in a "sea" of melancholy. "Through the Looking Glass" is another extended 8 minute piece that judiciously establishes contrasts, stops and starts and fluctuating moods, with lots of mellotron backing in order to upgrade the tension and some fascinatingly heartfelt vocals once again. This is neither overtly complex nor poppily simplistic, just good prog played by musicians enjoying their craft and hence, deserving of all our praise. It's because of dedicated bands such as Sinister Street that we progfans have a die-hard scene we can be proud of. 4 windmills

The Eve of Innocence is not a perticularly remarkable album. Sinister Street hasn't emerged from the 80s blazing new trails with an immediatly effective and emotive style. To the contrary, they've basically stuck with the same sound that so many Neo Progressive bands have worn to death. For a relative reference, the musical style on The Eve of Innocence is quite similar to Pendragon's The Jewel and the lesser-known (and not entirely without reason) Solitary Witness by Landmarq.

My main gripe with this album--and I hope this doesn't turn into a tirade--is that the music is very pop-oriented and saturated with cheesy nuances. Chances are, if you are prejudiced against Neo-Prog, or simply don't like what you've heard from the genre, hearing an album like The Eve of Innocence might've been the reason why. It's really a shame too, because honestly, there is a lot more to Neo-Prog than a pop song with crisp, unnaturally uplifting keyboard work and overly dramatic yet somewhat childish singing. All of those characteristics, however, lie in The Eve of Innocence, in varying degrees.

I feel, though, that the biggest fault in The Eve of Innocence is not the chessiness nor the thoroughly uninteresting vocals, but more the complete lack of effective production. I feel that this album would be far better if the production packed a bigger punch. As it is now, the songs just pass on by like a parade. But if there were a sense of urgency that some of the songs seem to demand, then the music would be much more interesting. If Sinister Street decided to re-record The Eve of Innocence with today's modern technology, I'd be eager to hear it for sure.

There are some good moments on The Eve of Innocence, but no songs that I enjoy entirely. These moments usually occur when the band takes a break from the prog-pop format and go for a bit of diversity, such as the slide bass and grand piano introduction of "A Prayer for the Dying," or the atmospheric parts of "Summit." But overall, The Eve of Innocence doesn't bring anything new to the table at all, and it basically falls flat.

Beautifull music!!!!!!!!!!I give 4.5 star.I listen this album and i have great sensation of relax, not very fast just sample.Two keysboard work for a very melodic atmosphere.The vocal is nice,remaind me maybe Meat Loaf in is voice the felling is superb.The only reason a not give masterpiece for this album is, we find two ordinary song,but the rest is BRILLANT!!!!I hope for the next CD""