FACING THE SUNSET

The debut CD Touchwood by the Dutch symphonic rock formation Mangrove was a nice effort but in general the opnion was that their live sound was way more powerful and captivating. Listening to their new album entitled Facing The Sunset it's obvious that Mangrove has worked to improve their compositions and studio sound. I also could witness this while listening to them as support-act for USA sensation Echolyn.

The new album contains four compositions (between 10 and 21 minutes) evoking the good old days from mid-Genesis, early Hackett solo and early IQ. Especially the wonderful Mellotron samples (produced by a special sophisticated computer programm) and the beautiful, very sensitive electric guitar work are strong points in Mangrove their pleasant symphonic rock sound. I notice that Mangrove has put many fine musical ideas into their songs like a great build-up with huge tension between electric guitar and fiery eruptions in the titletrack, a compelling violin-Mellotron solo with acoustic rhythm-guitar in I Fear The Day, a tight beat with biting electric guitar and a bombastic grand finale in There Must Be Another Way and howling guitar runs with choir-Mellotron in the long final song Hidden Dreams. At some moments the music sounds a bit fragmentic and the musicians are obviously no virtuosi. Nonethless, Mangrove has done a good job on Facing The Sunset, I am sure this CD will please fans of 24-carat symphonic rock!