EVlLYN STRANGEMourning PhoebeTHIRTEEN 772 MUSIC

Mourning Phoebeis the debutrelease by thispowerful triocomprising Britishbrothers Phillip

(vocals//:>ass)and AI (drums/keyboards) Strange and Swedishguitarist Mikael johannesson. Theyhave been around since 1996 and ithas taken quite a while for thisrelease but they can be justifiablyproud of it as it is an enterprisingrock album taking US melodicelements and combining them withthe earthier British metal andadding a little Scandinavian flair.Thevocals are strong, insistent andexpressive and they know how towrite catchy and hook laden rockwith Johannesson providing themagical spark that brings it all tolife.This is a promising and strongdebut that ticks all the right boxesand is well worth checking out.

The CD is available fromwww.evilystrange.co.uk. let's justhope that the follow up doesn't takeas long to release as MourningPboebe has. Te

ANTOINE FAFARDOccultus 1tamitisUNICORN DIGITAL

This is the secondsolo release bycomposer and bassplayer AntoineFafard, andfeatures a vertiable

who's who ofjazz-rock icons. There,- are eleven tracks here, and all are his

own compositions bar the finaltrack, which is his take on JohannSebastian Bach's Prelude No 2 in CMinor - very effectivelyarranged forbass guitar! Each piece wasapparently composed with specificplayers in mind - the author thenhoping to persuade each of these tocontribute! He's actually done anexcellent job: for example, the waythat saxophonist jean-Pierre Zanellalets loose on 'Good Reasons'illustrates just how suitable thatparticular piece's environment is forhim -you can almost hear himrevelling in it - and Simon PhiUipsresponds accordingly with equalzest! Indeed, all the guests areallowed to flourish on theirrespective pieces; and percussion isby no means the least-featuredmedium here, as the likes of Phillips,Terry Bozzio and Magella Cormier

positively sparkle (you can almostfeel their enjoyment), while themelodic skills of violinist jerryGoodman are evident on a gooddeal of the album, in among thecontributions of the rest of thestellar cast. Odd time signaturesand imaginative modulations popup throughout, and each piece hasits own atmosphere, and functionsin its own right, as opposed tomerely serving as a showpiece for theguests. Jazz-rock fans will simply lapthis up! OS

FAIRWARNINGSundancerSTEAMHAMMER RECORDS

Remember the80's when German

• artists such asTheScorpions,Michael Schenker,Accept, Doro etc

were at the forefront of HeavyMetal/Rock? Well, Fair Warningare a German band very much in thesamevem ..

This seventh album in a 20 yearcareer has a big sound, heavy onboth oomph and melody and is veryreminiscent of the aforementionednames and, although the big hairand spandex is long gone, theoverall sound evokes memories of80's metal. All this adds up to asolid if unspectacular album but it'sall been done before. sw

FASTTRAIN UNIONFast Train Union IIFASTTRAINUNION.COM

Fast Train Unionare another hardrock band to havesprung out ofCanada, whichappears to be a

thriving breeding ground for thistype of band right now, withMonster Truck having recently comeout with their splendid latestoffering.

Slightly less heavy than the Truck,FastTrain Union specialise in amelodic strain of hard rock, butwithout the smooth AOR sheen thatdescription sometimes conjures up.Kiss are an obvious touchstone, asSean Potvin's vocals are quitereminiscent of Paul Stanley at times,but the comparison is to the betterand more inventive Kiss output,with certainly none of the cliche-ridden output from the CrazyNights era in evidence. There is alsoa significant amount of twin-guitar

LE] Stalwarts of the•••. / progressive metal

~ scene, FatesWarning have

~.I~~.w..~_"7~N:.;' peen around sincethe early Eighties

and have been as vital to the genre'sdevelopment as the likes ofQueensryche and Dream Theaterbut have never scaled the heightsthat those bands reached. They havehad numerous personnel changesbut the quality of the music andguitarist Jim Matheos has alwaysremained constant. The currentversion of Fates Warning seesMatheos being joined by vocalistRayAlder, Joey Vera on bass, Bobbyjarzornbek on drums and fellowguitarist Frank Aresti so there is still

FATESWARNINGDarkness In A Different LightINSIDE OUT MUSIC

work (clearly all double-tracked,since John Wetheritt is the soleguitarist), which brings to mindechoes ofThin Lizzy,Wishbone Ashand judas Priest at various points. Itwill be interesting how this comesacross live, with only the singleguitar in the sonic palette.

Overall this is an excellent listen.It's hard enough for the metal-beadsto get into, while it also possessesthe melodic savvywhich will keepthe attention of those who like agood tune filling their riff sandwich.As the title suggests, this istheband's second effort, following theself-titled debut (remember the dayswhen it was quite the done thing forbands to come out with albumssuffixed 3, 4 etc?), and by allaccounts that first record is more ofthe same fare. A good, solid, 'classicrock' album - and after all, isn't thatwhat we're here for? SP