Customer Reviews

Reality Check

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a strong effort by the californian aliens of fusion. It is one the best records of the 90's. The compositions are sophisticated but the solos are still soulful and bluesy (especially those by Scott Henderson). I'm myself a bass player for about 12 years and I think Gary Willis is one the most interesting modern bass players. His solos are very impressive. The man has so many good ideas and his groove is great. The track "Nite Club" (written by Gary Willis) alone make this album a must buy. "Foreign Affairs" (written by Scott Kinsey, a wonderful keyboard player) is also a great fusion tune even if it's very Weather Reportish (but how to avoid this influence ?) .

This album is one of their best!
I have been a fan since 1991 and will always be. Their talent and creativity is at the top! Few people can grasp their writings and style, that's sad because it satisfies the soul.

Incredible songwriting and musicianship by the best of the best. You can listen a few times just to the guitar, then focus on the bass, drums, keys... Every time you listen you will hear something for the first time. The album has some parts which seem to make it lose momentum here and there, thus not quite 5 stars. Get it.

This band is stellar period. This album is stellar period. There's an amazing fusion tune "Foreign affairs" that alone is worth the price. The fantastic musicianship of this combo is quite easy to understand from the exact beginning. The short Stella by starlight rendition is behind words, the harmonization conventional but courageous, consistent but free, and moreover short. In a couple of minutes there is a true story, it's complete. It's a jewel. You don't have to blow a hundred choruses to explain a tune, to say the thing the tune wants you to say. Bird was the epitome of this approach. A short solo, but beyond words, technical challenging, lyrical unreachable and complete in itself. A couple of choruses maximum, and if you are a master player that's it. I don't like the Coltrane approach to endless improvisation. It's really boring in my opinion !!! Talkin' about this album the rest of the music is heavy fusion played at incredible level. I love the songs, I love the album, I love a lot of solos from all the guys. I don't like Scott Henderson's solo work when he tries to play too bluesy on difficult chord changes. I am a Jazz guitarist myself; I would prefer a more tonal approach, less pentatonic and guitaristic and more musical, more oriented to chord meanings. But that's oly my taste of course. He is an amazing player obviously, a scientist, he could do whatever he wants, it is simply his choice to play like that, and there's nothing wrong with it. I prefer more straight ahead solos... that's all. In the end this is a great album, probably their best. A great band. In my opinion best band name for a modern futuristic band, strongly rooted in blues, jazz, fusion tradition but with a musical guru approach. Fantastic. Fusion super heroes !!!!

The Best its the First one, but in this one they take again the same FORCE and SHINE than the FACELIFT