Flamborough Head - One For The Crow

Home Artist links Label link

Flamborough Head - One For The Crow

Artist:	Flamborough Head
Title:	One For The Crow
Label:	Cyclops CYCL 108
Length(s):	58 minutes
Year(s) of release:	2002
Month of review:	[09/2002]

Line up

Marcel Derix - bass
Koen Roozen - drums, percussion
Edo Spanninga - keyboards
Margriet Boomsma - vocals, flute, recorders
Eddie Mulder - guitars

Tracks

1)	One For The Crow	12.00
2)	Old Shoes	13.13 MP3 or RealAudio
3)	Separate	1.39
4)	Daydreams	6.18
5)	Nightlife	10.06
6)	Old Forest	2.45
7)	Limestone Rock	9.59
8)	New Shoes	2.14

Summary

With two new members, the lead vocalist and guitarists, the sound of Flamborough Head stood a good chance of changing, especially since the new guitarist Mulder also composes quite a bit.

The music

One For The Crow opens with a crow and then omenous keyboards. The sound on this song is quite flat, but maybe this is more in comparison with the metal album I just reviewed. Melodically this is really quite nice, melodious, but not too sweet. The vocal melodies are also on the sweet and melodic side, but the band easily stays on the right of side of triteness. The male backing vocals do not seem well in sync with the good female lead vocals; the latter are clear, not very Dutch sounding although she does seem to be more at home in the louder parts. In addition to a varied guitar sound, a bit bluesy in feel, Spanninga adds both organ and somewhat violin like synths to the sound. On a song like this, the band can even be compared to Lunar Chateau, albeit in more symphonic fashion. Halfway, we get a moody bassline and soft keyboards in the back. Time for a bit of quiet and sadness as well. Afterwards, the beat comes back in to the music with occasional piano tones, a brimming organ and both melodic and rhythmic guitar leads. Afterwards, the long instrumental middle part slowly build up in orchestral fashion until the vocal part returns. Seems to me both new members have something to offer for the band. One thing people might miss here is the emotion that vocalist Siebe Rein Schaaf puts into the songs. Boomsma is a much more careful singer.

Old Shoes has a slow start with fluting keyboards and a bit of mellotron as well, in the back the guitar also takes its time. A bit of an easy going feel pervades this track. There is quite a bit of Genesis in the piano, but the comparison stops at the vocal parts. This is a very tranquil part which reminded me of John Denver, hmm. Instrumentally, the band travels a rather safe road, reference being the, for Dutch bands, standard Genesis one (listen to percolating piano part). The guitar solo is a good one, in a very melodic bluesy style, while also the organ ought not to be forgotten. Abruptly we break into something more progressive. Here, the drums lack in freshness, all in all a bit too monotonous, where more could have been made of it. Plenty of melodic guitar and keyboards bits all intertwine in the middle instrumental section, being typical for symphonic rock. The vocal part is a bit too simple for my tastes, at least the larger part of it. We get a break into something else again as the recorder sets in (recorded rather nakedly), and the music gets a bit more drive, but not at once. A bit of folk and dance here, but with a sublty tense undercurrent.

Separate is a nice acoustic ditty on guitar, with some recorder as well. Daydreams is yet another instrumental, this time with synths added to the melodious flute and strumming acoustic guitar. A rather sad theme this. This is a typically lush instrumental in the style of Camel, more so when the guitar starts. The wind instruments add a bit of folk to the feel at times. Edo Spanninga then takes over with piano, some mellotron, revisiting the sad opening mood and something akin to the theme of the first track. Playfulness returns to the music with the recorder and the acoustic guitar. This does not really fit in well with the previous. Pace returns for a somewhat Flairck oriented passage with some Focus type guitar.

Nightlife is not one of the better tracks of the album. Whether it is the monotonous flat drumming, or the lack of appeal in the vocal melody, I do not really know. The song does contain a lot of lyrics and is very neo sounding. After the vocal part we get flute and piano quite abruptly and not really in a very meaningful way. The guitar lines remind me of Focus, slow, melodic, thoughtful even. Do I hear some cello here? The theme on flute is nice again.

Old Forest is an instrumental again, to form as a separating entity between the longer tracks. Classical guitar, recorder make for yet another melodic interlude. Notwithstanding, they are only the cement, not the brick of which an album is to be made.

Limestone Rock is the final song on the album. The opening synths are very IQish bringing back the sound of It All Stops Here, but without the drive. The guitar line first reminds me of King Crimson's Epitaph, but starts to diverge a bit later. A slow bluesy guitar evokes a Floydian feel, for quite a while in fact.

New Shoes is a reprise of Old Shoes, and includes a rather fast acoustic guitar tune as well, called Pure.

Conclusion

The third album of Flamborough Head is different, mainly because of the different vocals, and the inclusion of shorter cementing pieces. The music is still an accessible take on Genesis inspired symphonic rock, at times a bit too accessible. If the theme is not good, then the composition easily wear thin such as on Nightlife. Although the band does write some beautiful themes and some good vocal melodies, goes through the moves typical for a symphonic rock band, the music lacks a certain bite. It might be the vocalist who takes things lighter than her predecessor, it might be the rather laid back guitarist, or the rather flat sounding drums. Extended dynamics and not trying to be as careful as they are, taking more risks would certainly help here.