THE RAINMAKER

Interesting release by TFK. This was the follow up to the wonderful Space Revolver. The first few listens I thought this was a fantastic album...but then time went on...so I decided to revisit this album 7 years after first hearing it. Here is how this one stacks up:

The first song starts out with a bang with Last Minute on Earth. What a great opener, everything you look for in a Flower Kings track. Then comes World Without a Heart....OK, we know Roine Stolt likes to throw in some softer songs and he likes to take a lot of chances. And that is why a lot of listeners feel they include too much filler material on every album. I am fine with it, as long as these softer numbers do not become the majority. They have their time and place and World Without a Heart fits here because of what comes next. Road to Sanctuary is one of my favorite Flower Kings numbers ever. What a well constructed song! Tomas Bodin shines on this one with his blazing keys. Hasse Froberg also sounds magnificent (as he always does). The lefty singer/guitar player seems to be the unsung hero within the group. Stolt usually receives a lot of the credit, and rightly so, but Froberg is sometimes overshadowed. And I feel Jonas Reingold is one of the best bass players in prog today but his talents are not always displayed on every Flower Kings song.

OK, so the first 3 tracks are wonderful! Then.......what comes next seems to be nothing but a distant memory. The next 8 tracks seem to be forgettable, not on par with usual Flower Kings material. There are some more softer, filler instrumental numbers and a few normal songs. But nothing that I want to return to anytime soon. That is why when I think of this album, I think of the 2 great mini epics, Last Minute on Earth and Road to Sanctuary and that is pretty much it. Why listen to the rest of this album when they have so many better songs? I would rather listen to Stardust or Space Revolver instead. So the staying power has worn off after my first few listens over the years. In fact, I would rate this as the lowest Flower Kings output, even lower than Adam and Eve (it wasn't THAT bad). But since the 2 excellent songs are that good, the rating cannot be lower than 3 stars, but it cannot be any higher either. I think we have a true 3 star release on our hands, nothing more nothing less....may prog be with you....