STRANGE TIMES

Strange Times came as a breath of fresh air for us old Moodies fans, but is curiously underrated by those who seem to want a repeat of the Moodies' classic seven albums. We had an 8-year wait after the Moodies' previous studio album - 1991's Keys Of The Kingdom, which was a bit of a hodgepodge. Strange Times is much better than Keys and the Moodies' later 80s output. It has a more guitar-oriented sound that reminds me a bit of the Children's Children and Question of Balance era. The sound of Strange Times is fresh, but also recalls some classic Moodies' work. And it's nice to hear some songs with social content, like "English Sunset", "Strange Times" and "Nothing Changes". Many of us were attracted to progressive rock in the late 60s and early 70s both for the adventurous music and for the progressive social commentary in the songs, which was informed by the student, peace and civil rights movements of the time. There are some nice ballads on Strange Times as well. My 17-year-old daughter's favourite tune is "The Swallow". I'd like to hear more of Ray Thomas. His one song-writing contribution, "My Little Lovely", is reminiscent of "Nice To Be Here" on the EGBDF album. But it's way too short - it could have had a nice flute interlude in it.