Rock

The Flower Kings
Love
Inside Out 19802888642; LP: 19802891851

The Swedish neo-prog rockers’ 17th album sounds remarkably fresh. Comparisons with Yes are unavoidable, particularly as guitarist and vocalist Roine Stolt has recorded with Jon Anderson. But it’s more a case of a shared musical vocabulary, including a driving organ sound, flurries of synth and wisps of mellotron. They also share Yes’s penchant, in their early days, for extravagantly expanded pop songs. Hasse Fröberg’s lead vocals are warm and effusive and The Flower Kings are adventurous in crafting their compositions without losing sight of song structure, even in the 11-minute multi-part ‘The Elder’. Love was conceived as a positive response to these troubled times and that feeling comes across strongly. MB

Sound Quality: 90%

Robert Forster
Strawberries
Tapete TR584CD; LP: TR584LP

From his emergence in the ’80s with The Go-Betweens, Forster’s songwriting has been typically witty, erudite and observational, and his songs feel carefully pared down to their essence. But unusually, Strawberries was recorded quickly in Stockholm with local musicians. ‘Tell It Back To Me’ has a feel of mid-’60s electric Dylan and charts a doomed relationship, ‘Our difference we thought a joke, one that got funnier over time’, he sings ironically. ‘Breakfast On The Train’ is like Brief Encounter but with lots of sex; ‘Foolish I Know’ is a poignant tale of misguided love; and with its full throttle sax, the raw ‘Diamonds’ marks a new departure. MB

Sound Quality: 85%

Peter Murphy
Silver Shade
Metropolis MEP 13532; LP: METV 1353

As the lead singer of post-punk group Bauhaus, Murphy is affectionately and quite appropriately referred to as ‘The Godfather Of Goth’. He was also ubiquitous in the ’80s as the seated guy braving the sonic hurricane in the Maxell TV ads. He’s pursued different musical avenues in his solo career and here rekindles his working relationship with producer Youth, who sets up the drums and sequencers that underpin the guitars on ‘Hot Boy’. Murphy’s first album in a decade exudes confidence. On ‘Swoon’ he delivers a Bowie-esque power croon over strutting electronic funk, and on the expansive ballad ‘Sailmaker’s Charm’ he pulls off a majestic vocal performance. MB

Sound Quality: 85%

Tan Cologne
Unknown Beyond
Labrador LAB172

The American duo of Lauren Green and Marissa Macias are certainly enigmatic. Their song titles – ‘Infinity’, ‘Angels’, ‘Clouds Of Mirrors’ – suggest the ethereal and the intangible, but it’s difficult to get any closer to their meaning. The melodies are sweet but their vocals are so heavily reverb’d that the lyrics are unintelligible and emerge like a whisper through the hazy layers of spacey effected guitars. Unknown Beyond reminds one of Mazzy Star and Cocteau Twins, although sometimes it feels like it’s about to atomise and disappear completely. But the album is also beautiful and strangely compelling, drawing the listener in to create their own narrative. MB

Sound Quality: 80%