VOICE IN THE LIGHT

An all-star cast here with D.C. Cooper (ROYAL HUNT) on vocals,Gary Wehrkamp (SHADOW GALLERY) lead guitar and keyboards, Nick D'Virgillo (SPOCK'S BEARD) drums and Kurt Barabas (UNDER THE SUN) on bass. By the way Kurt is my favourite musician of the lot and I still play that UNDER THE SUN studio album. I have a lot of issues with this particular album not the least of which is it's 79 minute length. I'm not a fan of concept albums like this and man it gets pretty sappy at times. With all the talent here they could have just made a straight-up Prog-Metal album with some dark atmospheric interludes. Okay that's just my particular taste in music that's all.

"Room 316" sounds great to start with the riffs then the guitar solo but it goes downhill when the vocals arrive. "Friend's Forever" is a complete turn off with the syrup flowing and the harmonies."Coming Of Age" opens with keyboards then here we go ! Much better when it kicks into gear but unfortunately it turns sappy with vocals 2 1/2 minutes in. "Incident At The Haldeman's Lake" opens with sampled words and some atmosphere. Reserved vocals before 2 1/2 minutes then it picks up a minute later but the tempo will continue to shift. Some nice bass before 6 1/2 minutes. "Reflections" opens with nature sounds and acoustic guitar as reserved vocals join in. A ballad.

"I Promise You" is another one that i'm not a fan of. Some female vocals help out on this one. "Consumation" is a good instrumental and one of the highlights of this album. "Truth And Tragedy" is where the guitar comes back to prominance but it takes a backseat to the vocals when they arrive. "Shattered Dreams" has this spacey atmosphere early then it kicks in with some good guitar. "Viper" is great with the fast paced tempo and mono-toned vocals. He then starts to sing as these contrasts continue. "Betrayed By Love" is spacey to start then drums,guitar and vocals take over. Some samples late. "Turning Point" is more like it. "Revelation" is the 13 minute closer. Some good contrasts between the heavier and more laid back sections.

A good album but there's no way this is 4 stars in my book.