RING OF CHANGES

Since one keyboard player was not sufficient to replace Woolly, we'll get two on this album (but as guest musicians). With this album, BJH will revive the tradition of playing with an orchestra. I have to say that I am quite suspicious before listening to this album, but at this time of their career, it was not possible to produce a worse album than their previous studio one : "Turn Of The Tide".

You can of course forget about prog music with "Ring Of Changes" but this is not new. What you'll get here is boring soft pop music. Insipid for most of it (the first two songs are truely difficult to bear). I cannot say that I am overwhelmed with joy when I listen to "Teenage Heart" : a dull acoustic song with some additional orchestrations that do not add anything necessary to this tune.

As usual, we'll get the attempt to a rocking number, but "High Wire" is the best (?) song so far. But the respite will be short : "Midnight Drug" is only interesting during the instrumental intro which sounds pretty much to "Manifesto" from Roxy. The hypnotic beat is not bad after all. Some spacey pop with "Waiting For The Right Time" will not convert me into a fan of this album, I'm afraid...

Do you want some folk and syrupous ballad ? You'll get it with "Just A Day Away". Really poor. As will be "Paraiso Dos Cavalos" and its useless orchestrations (but I do not like orchestrations, I admit).

This album is BJH at their lows (once again...). On par with with the previous one. And the title and closing track won't change anything to my opinion : dull all the way through. Their last decent album was "XII" and I wonder when will the next one see the light...

One star.