ELOY

The innatural falsetto of an unrecognisable Bornemann who sings over music which seems to be arranged by Trevor Rabin just after Big Generator, the use of electronic drums and what sounds like a fairlight on the title track....I have to say that this electro-pop songis really not bad. It reminds me to something else already heard, a mixture of YES and Peter Gabriel of the 80s which could have been good if released before the prog rebirth of the 90s. In 1992 it's already dated.

Eloy have always been a bit derivative, since the Uriah Heep influence of the first two albums, to the Floydian period of the mid 70s with a hint of Jethro Tull, and Alan Parsons Project, but this is too much. And too pop.

The only track which doesn't sound like YES, Prisoner In Mind, sounds like Wishbone Ash...

Just one highlight: "Jeanne D'Arc" is a good track and sounds less derivative than the rest of the album. Bornemann, whose strong German accent seems to have been mitigated during the years sings on his normal pitch. The song has something of West Coast even with the operatic choir, but is in line with the "good old things". It's a song that could have apeared on one of the eraly albums, and considering the lack of originality of the rest of the album it might have been composed years before.

Don't get me wrong, this album is not so bad. You can put it into your car and listen to it while driving. Of course, if you don't pay attention you can think to be listening to something from the Rabin period.

Not a disturbing album, but there better things to buy, around.

I had been considering buying an Eloy album for several months without having any idea of the band's history. After discovering an Eloy appreciation forum here on PA and learning more about them (I was surprised that they were from the 70's), I carefully checked out what I could on Amazon of their catalogue and after much deliberation, I chose to order "Floating". It was to my relief after reading some of the reviews that this album was often recommended as a good starting point to get into the band. Many thanks to the reviewers who affirmed my belief in this album.

The album has been played in my car and in my ear buds and I enjoy most of it. The hard rock element is still there which makes it an easy album for me to enjoy. Three of the five songs are over seven minutes long and "The Light from Deep Darkness" runs 14:40. There is room for experimentation and experiment they do, though nothing too unorthodox crops up here. This is a space rock album with extended instrumental sections that show little technical pizzazz and lends itself more to a variety of simple rock themes played on organ, guitar, and bass and innovatively stitched together to create longer songs. "Castles in the Air" also features a drum solo that sounds pretty cool but is not likely to blow anyone out of the water.

A word about the vocals: Frank Bornemann is a very standard rock singer with a German accent, most obvious when he sings "word" (sounds like "verd"). He sometimes makes his voice rough for effect and other times sings more softly. He is a competent vocalist, though no Robert Plant or Jon Anderson.

This being Eloy's third album, the rough edges are forgivable. I think they were on the right track. I have ordered "Dawn" and "Silent Cries and Mighty Echoes" and I will be looking into their 70's catalogue more later on. "Ocean" is said to be the must-have album but Amazon's song samples run only about 20-30 seconds and so it is difficult to gauge the 14-minute songs from such short sample times.

For anyone not yet into the band, I agree with many others that "Floating" is a fair starting point. I love the cover art and the music is quite good, though we are not talking about any Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, or Uriah Heep here. The closest band they remind me of is Golden Earring but with more determination to compose complex extended songs and some strong organ playing. A very solid 3 stars from me since 3.5 isn't possible. I look forward to hearing my upcoming purchases of "Dawn" and "Silent Cries"

The albums opens with 'Escape to the Heights' and is one of the best songs on the album. A simple guitar melody intro and swirling synths are soon joined by a metronomic bass and drums. The song is driven along by the bass and I particularly enjoy the guitar/synth passages. I would suggest playing this song LOUD for maximum effect. Klaus Peter Matziol is the current bassist and has been with Eloy since 1976. He is not a flashy player but his contribution on this album is very influential. 'Seeds of Creation' features all the same elements that identify Eloy - swirling synth chords, strong bass and that familiar Bornemann vocal-sound. If you like his voice on this then you will like it on ALL of the Eloy albums. I like the germanic twang to his voice and I have often wondered if he ever wanted to sing these songs in his native language. I like his voice either way and would also add that the album features what I assume to be a vocoder, for the 'robotic' vocal passages found especially in the song 'All Life is One'. The longest track on the album is 'Follow the Light' which comes in at just short of ten minutes. It opens with twinkling synths and guitar chords accompanied with THAT bass - it starts to drive along two minutes in and features a female choir accompaniment throughout, including one Sabine Matziol, who I assume to be the bassist's wife. The closing track is 'Metromania' which has a Tangerine Dream-sounding synth opening. It soon goes into toe-tapping Eloy-mode. It is a strong track to close with and is probably my second favourite on the album. I am a big Eloy fan and this album does not disappoint.

'Mirador' is a forgettable keyboard driven instrumental that is 3:44 too long in length. There are pink Floyd riff offs such as the driving rhythm guitar and synth of 'Heartbeat'. The intro is sparkling keys that are too bright to remain interesting after a few listens, and the melody is fairly ho hum. 'Fools' is a rock song that the band loved to do live, and it just rocked along, but you won't find any prog here. For that matter it is difficult to find any prog at all on the entire album.

'A Broken Frame' ends things on a better note with atmospheric spacey keys and cool Blade Runnner drone. Bornemann's vocals are gentle and well executed at first. It is a lengthy song with many things going on. It locks into a steady rhythm with some effective keyboard motifs, but it never gets out of that rhythm for variation's sake. The lead guitar break is dynamic and one of the best on the album so all is not lost.

Overall this is an album with about 3 tracks that are worth savouring, the rest is a bit of a hodge podge of dated 80s synth mush, only a tad under par from the disappointing "Metromania". It is what it is and of course Eloy went onto better albums. They survived amidst the turmoil of the 80s along with Rush and Yes, who also felt the pressures, though remained enthusiastic under critical fire, and their sound suffered as badly as Eloy. 2 stars awarded for the odd good track, but this is bottom of the barrel as far as Eloy are concerned.

'Silent Revolution' has a nice drone giving it a dark edge, and the keyboards are haunting, sounding like pan pipes; 'Picnic at Hangnig Rock' springs to mind. Then it blazes along with fiery guitar riffs, a heavier sound from Bornemann. His vocals are terrific on such songs where he powers out the vocals with passion. This is definitely one of their heavier songs, and produced when metal was hyper popular. The lead break is incredible followed by chimming keys; a towering performance. Then it ends with a children's choir "we are the future race"; such an epic structure on this song based on saving the planet and shaming humankind for destroying the world with pollution and steel structures.

Other songs include the sparkling guitars on 'Fire And Ice', with a grand melody and musicianship, 'Eclipse Of Mankind', that features a steady pace, metal drum style and endearing vocals, and finally operatic bombastic music on 'Jeanne d'Arc'. It is an enjoyable album and worthwhile, though not purely progressive, during this transformation period of the band.

It has a great driving rhythm on 'Voyager of the Future' and a nice proggy intro with birds whistling, dialogue about a new chapter of mankind's history, and angelic vocals.The synth sequencer screams the 80s but it is a cool vibe, and the guitars are layered with twang, but the drums are mixed by an 80s engineer of course, never a good thing. The melody on the opening track is certainly an Eloy signature, it is the music that has changed over the years.

The songs are overall forgettable but while it is playing the album has a pleasant vibe, everything is crystalline production and upbeat musical atmospherics such as spacey keys on 'Sensations', the fretless bass of 'Dreams' and the reverberating electro drums and snyth lines of 'Hero', along with its extended lead guitar break. Bornemann is still with the band and lends his unique vocals to the sound. Michael Gerlach is still here on keys, but the rest are guest musicians and singers, so it was not really a band in their prime; but they survived!

There are no bad songs really but nothing jumps out and bites this reviewer as being anything more than a good song with some interesting musical structures. I guess the first track is the stand out along with 'Invasion of a Megaforce' with its Yes like vocals and style. I like the lead guitar work on the album by Bornemann especially on 'Hero', and the lovely vocals of Annette Strangenberg on 3 songs. This is an atmospheric album, by no means their worst, and as such is worth a listen for all Eloy fans.

I mean, what could you actually expect from any album released in 1988 by a band active since the early 70s? I've heard and read all the possible bad about it, but I have to say that I like it. Eloy is a band that even with a distinctive sound, thanks also to the voice and the strong German accent of Frank Bornemann is always been a bit derivative. Since the first albums, influenced by the Uriah Heep, passing through their Floydian period (their best IMO), now are somewhere between Genesis and Yes. Unfortunately the Genesis of Abacab and the Yes of Big Generator, but the result is really not bad.

"Voyager Of The Future Race", despite the very 80s sound and an initial remind to Mike Oldfield is a typical Eloy song. A real drum kit instead of the electronics would have made it suitable for a seventy's release.

"Sensations", in the heavy electronic drums has a bit of Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer, but the chorus is closer to the Yes. There's also another thing that I can't identify, a sequence of notes which sounds familiar and points me to the late Genesis. Well, it's surely not a masterpiece but it's a nice song.

What about "Dream"? Another influencer of this album, at least in the sounds used is Alan Parson's Project. Listen to believe. Add female vocalists as in Waters' Radio Kaos and high pitched choirs. They are not Anderson and Squire, however the link with YES will become clearer in the following song. This song could stay on a Parson's album even maintaining some characteristics which clearly identify it as an Eloy song. Especially the guitars.

"Invasion Of A Megaforce" is my favorite track here. The one closer to the YES also in the choirs. Of course I mean the Yes of Trevor Rabin, so whoever dislikes 90125 to ABWH can probably skip this track.

"Rainbow" is the melodic moment of the album and another very nice song. Probably in this case having Bornemann singing quite overriddenby the choir and the back vocalists is an improvement. Very 80s but nice. As I have written since the beginning, there are no masterpieces, but there are goos dongs. Unfrotunately this one ends fading off. Something that I hate.

"Hero" is a decent closer. The mood is Floydian but the backing guitar and the keyboard sounds seem coming from Genesis. A nice song also this, apart of the chorus that doesn't appear very much inspired.

I think there is still enough of the classic Eloy in this album to make it enjoyable. Probably it should have been a moment of transition. The bad thing in the 80s was that apparently who wanted to sell albums had to adapt the sound to the mode of the times: electronic drums, fairlights and so on. The decade of the "look" pretended to impose its fashion to the music, too.

Filter out those bad feelings and you'llhave a decent three stars album.