LED ZEPPELIN II

Led Zeppelin's second offering leans more towards hard-edged riff-rock than the first. The blues is still there though and it's better than ever. Plus, we see a [slight] improvement in Plant's songwriting skills, and playing from Page, Bonham and Jones that easily tops Led Zeppelin I.

About half the album is built around ballsy rock tunes which despite being simple and accessible, are often developed in a (dare I say) progressive-like way. For example, we have the famous "noisy" section in the middle of 'Whole Lotta Love', where orgasmic screams and overdriven sound effects demonstrate the wonders of stereo. Not to mention two free-time solos: an impressive guitar break on 'Heartbreaker', and a lengthy drum workout from Bonham on 'Moby Dick'. While these may seem a little patronising, because they are, there are warmer moments to look forward to. Jones really grooves on 'The Lemon Song' with his totally improvised bass lines, and offers his next installment of hammond organ pop with the pleasant 'Thank You'. 'Ramble On' is the sole acoustic track, which isn't acoustic for long. And 'What Is But What Should Never Be' is very cool, almost jazzy, with a quirky coda.

These songs aren't a radical change in direction, but display Led Zeppelin expanding their repetiore and fanbase effectively and delivering some cracking tunes. This is a good solid rock album with plenty of groove, minimal filler, and the occasional crazy moment to keep the listener interested. The 'Brown Bomber' most definately stands the test of time!