THE RAINMAKER

The Rainmaker featured a new approach by The Flower Kings, so I think this album calls fourth an interesting opportunity to review. The album features many different compositional techniques not showcased on previous albums. The atmosphere is so different from any other Flower Kings release, so it holds an important place in the bands discography from a purely musical standpoint.

As I mentioned earlier, the atmosphere is quite different from previous releases. This is where most of my praise for this album originates. When I listen to this album, I feel The Flower Kings have made songs with truly abstract concepts open to the interpretation of any listener. My personal connection beings with the intro track, Last Minute On Earth. From here forward I could relate to the intellectual struggles of right and wrong occuring within the soul. I found this album to one of the most intimate and touching Flower Kings releases.

Roine Stolt is fantastic. He advances from the bluesy overtones of previous albums like Flower Power to a more mature, emotional, and intimate style of playing. Stolt's melodic guitar playing on this album is second to none. In particular a small section of Sword of God really made an impact on me as a listener. Stolt's playing throughout this album is entirely linked to the other members of the band for building chords and atmospheres. Something Flower Kings fans have seen little of on previous albums where Stolt favors showcasing his own bluesy solo skills. This album is a milestone of composing for Stolt.

Hasse Froberg's vocal abilites really bring this album from being an epic piece of composing, to an emotional art of music. Froberg expands the drama unlike any in his field. He has a perfect voice for contrasting that of Roine Stolt.

Tomas Bodin stuck to much darker keyboard tones on this album. Bodin who has the best consistency of playing epic melodies in this band takes more of an atmospheric and blend role. Bodin makes an excellent contribution to the chordal balance of this album. So much of this wonderful atmosphere is dependant on Tomas Bodin.

Jonas Reingold is extraordinary. His fusion style is perfect for this band. He really brings an entirely different approach from previous bassist Michael Stolt, and that is made clear on this album. Reingold is a virtuoso, the precision he executes his wild runs is incredible.

Jaime Salazaar takes a much different approach to drumming this time. The usually rock solid Salazaar ditches most of his precise style in favor of a looser, busier style. Salazaar's fills on this album are fantastic. Never before on any TFK albums have I been more impressed with the drumming. His cymbal use is quite jazzy again. The way this man works a ride cymbal is something special.

Hasse Brunisson does less yelling than usual. The whistles are still unforgettable and catchy. In fact, some people will even recognize which song they are listening to because of them.

Excellent effort, and quite possibly my favorite Flower King's single disc album. The production is perfect. It's a rarity that the tones in my head match exactly with the tones on this album, so I'll say no more.