SECRET TREATIES

Blue Oyster Cult's third is a pleasant collection of songs that sits somewhere between classic rock with mild hard rock and progressive elements. It's all very pleasant, innocent and inoffensive but parts of it have aged badly. Other moments have remained fresh even a good 30 years after its release.

The opening track is a lovely groovy rock song with a catchy main riff and the kind of chorus you're humming along with before you're even through with your first listen. The guitar is very harmless, a bit like Ritchie Blackmore who forgot to put the distortion on. Subhuman is another mild melancholic rocker with nice melodies and some exciting riffery. Dominance and Submission has a bit more punch, it's a kind of mix of blues boogie and country. The entrancing middle section reminds me slightly of Hawkwind.

With ME 262 the album loses its tension, it's straightforward pop-rock that has aged badly to my 80's raised ears here. Cagey Cretins is better again. At their best moment this band has all the groove, melody and punch you want in a rock band. At the more psychedelic moments like around minute 2, early Hawkwind comes to mind again.

Harvester of Eyes is country rock and probably an adequate song if you're into that style, Flaming Telepaths is another one that makes me reach for the skip button. The best sits at the end. Astronomy is a great melancholic rock epic that should please most prog fans who are into 70's classic rock.

This is a more then average 70's rock album and probably BOC's best, but even within prog-related, it's just a pleasant, innocent and inoffensive 3 stars.