IMAGES AT TWILIGHT

Saga's 'Images at Twilight' doesn't achieve the same level of pomp and grandeur than its predecessor, thoguh it's actually still worth listening to and has some excellent moments in it. Going on with the comparisons, the sound production is more meticulous and the instrumental ensemble feels tighter and more compact. But due to the fact that the band recorded this album mostly as a quartet (Chadd didn't last too long in the band, not even during the recording process - so the credits are "generous" on this one), this led to a notorious diminishing of the colourful keyboard orchestration that played such a big role on the debut album. On the other hand, Ian Crichton's guitar riffs, harmonies and solos get the chance to shine more brightly and burst out onto the fore. Some of the highlights are 'You're Not Alone' (a classic in their live acts) and the electrifying closure 'Mouse in a Maze'. My personal fave is the splendid symphonic ballad 'Images' (one of their finest compositions ever); the beauty of this piece results from the succession of captivating melodic lines, cleverly arranged and performed with finesse. The remaining repertoire is attractive, but not particularly spectacular IMHO: mostly AOR (the real catchy 'It's Time', for example),and even some synth dirven new wave ('Slow Motion'), anticipatin what Rush would eventually do in their 82-84 recordings. Overall, this is a good album, but Saga would prove on their next three recordings that thay could do better.