AVALON

Whenever I am horrified at the ghettoization of taste that has occurred in the music world, I turn on some Roxy Music. Adored by Proggers and Punks alike, the glam rock survivors released this their final album in 1982. They seem to be following the cue of their rival and contemporary Bowie in the search of a cold blooded soul sound. The sound it stripped down to its essence, mostly synthesizers and assorted keyboards backing Manzanera's calm and collected guitar, a radio friendly and spacious sound that has dated much better than most contemporary productions. Bryan Ferry once again stars as the robotic casanova who was sent from another planet to impregnate the entire female populace of Britain. Or so it seems in songs like "To Turn You On" and "Take a Chance On Me." The Dance influence is not as pronounced as had been since their reformation, this album prefers to weightlessly hover around. On the album's best tracks, this style gives the songs an airy brilliance that has rarely been captured since. Unfortunately, on lesser tracks the effect eerily approaches muzak. The highlight, "More Than This" captures the empty feeling of yearning, and is one of the band's finest singles. The album winds down with "India," a rain soaked instrumental, a moody and fitting coda to this influential band's career.