SMILING AT GRIEF

The music ranges from flat neo-prog stuff ("East Of Eden") to new wave sounds ("The Honeymoon is Over") and finally good neo songs like the excellent "Creepshow" even if the latter borrows quite substantially to "Genesis" (the "Watcher" riff at times). But this is the essence of the genre, so?

One thing to add though: while listening to "Creepshow" (already available on "Fact and Fiction"), you should not look any further to find out where Steve Rothery found his inspiration for his transitional guitar lines with the early "Marillion". Here it is.

Some of the songs seem to be unfinished ("Puppets") and sounds very row and unproduced. But of course when you look at the genesis of this album, it is almost normal. Still, for the fan, the marketing technique is borderline IMO. The electro-pop sound so typical of the eighties appears during "Three Dancers": if you're in for "Human League" that's alright!

The long and repetitive "Für Helene Part 2 "is quite indigestible and "Painting By Numbers" sounds like a PIL track (yes, "Public Image Limited"). Almost ten minutes of this treat is quite an experience!

This album is for die-hard fans only: demos, poor production. Two stars.