ASHES ARE BURNING

Ashes are Burning is the fourth album from Renaissance and the second with the new lineup. In my ears this is a massive improvement over the somewhat mediocre Prologue. Annie Haslam really blossoms on Ashes are Burning and it´s clear to me now why people hold her in such high regard. Her performance on Prologue were one of the positive things on that album, but this time she´s outdone herself. The music is also much better composed and played than on Prologue and on top of that the production is excellent.

The music is very melodic and symphonic, it´s not very complex but intricate enough to be progressive rock. My favorites are the two long songs Can you Understand and Ashes are Burning which are both great examples of Renaissance when they are best. The instrumental interplay is very present on these songs, and I especially like the brilliant keyboards from John Tout. The man is a melodic genious. On Ashes are Burning there is even a guitar solo which there are not many of in Renaissance music. I can see that the guitar in that song is played by an Andy Powell. Is this the Andy Powell from Wishbone Ash ? On the Frontier, Carpet of the Sun and the folky At the Harbour are also excellent songs with Annie Haslams voice in the center. Let it Grow is a bit too poppy for me, but again the song is saved from total failure by Annie Haslam´s beautiful voice.

The sound quality is as mentioned above really brilliant. Especially the way Annie Haslam´s vocals are produced amazes me every time. It´s so clear that it can splinter glass. But all the instruments are also clearly heard in the soundscape.

This is a very special album and it get 4 big stars from me. It´s masterpiece quality but it gets too nice and poppy at times for my taste and therefore only 4 stars. It´s highly recommendable though.