RING OF ROSES

I still like their final record "Mad As A Hatter" the best. Mostly because Karl Groom is all over it with some incredible guitar work. This one is better than the second one "Through The Looking Glass" though. I smiled sadly when I saw the picture in the liner notes of a concert advertisment that said JADIS / SHADOWLAND + Special Guest Geoff Mann at the Marquee Club, London. Geoff was such a talent. There are other signs and photos that are invaluable for fans of the band. They thank Fudge Smith, Peter Gee,Tracy Hitchings, Dave Wagstaffe, Mick Pointer and others in the liner notes.

"The Whistleblower" opens with these spoken words "I'm blowing the whistle on people I trusted before. I'm blowing the whistle 'cos they can't be trusted anymore..." A fantastic melody follows on this, one of the better tracks. Clive is in fine form vocally. Some scorching guitar early and a synth solo 3 minutes in. A calm follows that lasts a minute before it kicks back in. "Jigsaw" is a song about a person trying to figure out what life is about. Reserved vocals and piano to open. A full sound 3 minutes in with passionate vocals. A meaningful song with some great soaring guitar 6 minutes in. It ends as it began. "Scared Of The Dark" opens with percussion and a thunderstorm. This is a fairly intense and dark song about someone who is very paranoid.

"Paint By Numbers" is a pleasant yet restrained track. It's again about someone trying to find the answers to life. Some nice guitar throughout this one. "Hall Of Mirrors" opens with a reserved 2 minute intro that gives way to an uptempo melody. Mood and tempo change throughout. Some acoustic guitar 9 minutes in. "The Kruhulick Syndrome" is a cool instrumental of classical piano. Some soaring guitar 4 minutes in. "Ring Of Roses" opens with the sound of children playing as spoken vocals come in that turn into singing. Drums and a melody before 2 minutes. A fairly light soundscape follows. The guitar after 4 minutes isn't light though. Haha. It is tastefully played though to the end of the song. The vocals are great on this one.

This band has never hit the spot for me, but I do enjoy their melodic and tasteful music.