THE FIRST RUN

With a band name like that, the SAGA associations are pretty obvious. This Dutch band's debut album does not fail in that respect. Although not quite...... The other more obvious reference is MARILLION post Fish. Add PENDRAGON to the mix and you have MARATHON.

The music is pretty frisky with tonnes of good electric guitars and keyboards. The melodies is a mix of mid tempo pretty heavy stuff and some ballads. The opening track Beyond The Veil is pretty typical for this album. Unfortunate, this is also the best song of the album. A good song with some good guitars and keyboards. The male vocals is pretty decent. He also get a visit by a female vocalist on the track Voices and that to good effect. The sound is a bit dated, 15 years after the release of this album. It reminds me a lot about SAGA and RUSH on their '80s albums. Yes, this album is somewhere in this landscape. Elegant progressive rock with a bit dated sound. If all these bands are among your favourites, this may be the album and band for you. The First Run is a very decent debut album, but without the killer tracks. The material is a bit bland and the band does not take any risks. That is OK for a debut album. I may put in an order for their two other albums because this band seems to live in my kind of street.

3 stars from me.

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