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After
hearing Bob Catley's 'When Empires Burn' and being greatly impressed
with the high quality of the song writing by Paul Hodson, I was eagerly
awaiting the release of this album and I wasn’t disappointed.
This has got to go down as one of the best debut albums of the year for
me. I was so totally blown away by the quality of the musicianship
throughout the whole of this album. To hear Paul's vocals for the first
time was just phenomenal. For such a small stature he produces a
voice of mammoth proportions. The guitar work of Vince O'Regan is also
some of the best I have ever heard him play on any album he has been a
part of. Where (and why!) have these two guys been hiding it all
these years?
The opening track 'This Foolish World' sets the standard for the rest of
the album and it’s the first time you get to hear the powerful vocals
of the mighty Paul Hodson unleashed. The high quality of Vince's
blistering guitar work and the intricate keyboards of Paul make this an
excellent opener.
The second track ‘Jelunda’ has an intro full of Eastern promise and
leads the way for one of my favourite tracks on the album, ‘The
Calling’. Mr. O’Regan has well and truly stamped his mark both
on this song and throughout the whole of the album with his superb
guitar playing.
I don’t often say this but there really isn’t a bad track on this
album. A compliment that usually goes out to a bands third or
fourth album not their debut. This just goes to show that if you
have the right people behind you then anything’s possible.
The inclusion of Rainbows song 'Light in the Black' shows the confidence
Paul has to cover such a classic and it’s a stonking version. If
you went to see Rainbow with Graham Bonnet on vocals then this is the
version you would have heard. The resemblance between Paul vocals
and Mr. Bonnets is uncanny except Paul’s seem to have a little more
oomph.
The final track 'The Swan' has definite Magnum undertones and one
wonders whether this was actually written for Bob Catley originally.
However, it is still a wonderful track and brings you down after the
fast pace of the 'Light in the Black'.
To end on a bit of a downer, why oh why did it take so long for Paul
Hodson to realize he had the talent to release an album of this high
quality? I can’t wait for the follow up album.
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