HOUSES OF THE HOLY

With Houses Of The Holy Led Zeppelin all but left behind the Blues-Rock style that had dominated their first three albums. On tracks like the energetic, multi-layered Psych-Rock of The Song Remains The Same, the Funk driven groove of The Crunge or D'yer Mak'er's Doo-Wop/Reggae fusion Led Zeppelin are barely recognisable. This new Zep should be welcomed with open arms, every song is a different trip, a refreshing change from the sometimes predictable Blues noodlings of You Shook Me and I Can't Quit You Baby. John Paul Jones' Mellotronic orchestra and some beautifully elaborate acoustic guitar make The Rain Song a particularly stand-up piece along with the thick, intensely poignant No Quarter, one of Led Zeppelin's most overt ventures into Prog-Rock. Fundamentally there are few mistakes made here, Houses Of The Holy is an album at least on par with the brilliant Led Zeppelin IV.