First Take - Archie Shepp & Siegfried Kessler

Advantages: Music to my ears
Disadvantages: Novocaine for my backside

...in an almost unbearably moving Wotan in Walkure, and Birgit Nilsson's fearless - and almost peerless - Brunnhilde tears through the heavy orchestration tirelessly (she was missing her cats terribly during recording, and Solti kindly borrowed a kitten to cheer her up). There is a real all-star cast throughout the tetralogy, with stars-to-come like Brigitte Fassbaender and Dame Joan Sutherland taking small roles. To give a sense of the historic relevance of this recording, both of these artists have also now retired. However, the supreme performance is from the sadly missed Sir Georg Solti, whose breathtaking mastery and skill at pacing a phrase will never be matched by anyone else. His tireless energy and enthusiasm led to this project being undertaken in the first place, and it is somehow fitting that this now 40-year old set is his monument... Read review

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Advantages: Great album from start to finish - Expectations were greatly meeted
Disadvantages: The next wait until the 3rd album

...presence without picking up a single instrument. To be honest, when i heard Bright Lights i thought that Interpol would struggle to follow something so amazing, but they proved me wrong. Antics ticked every box for me. You can't beat the first album but Antics can be a very close contender. The opening track Next Exit is a great intro to the album. It is quite slow and you may take a few listens to like it but it is a great way to prepare you for the rest of the album. Evil is pure genius. The bass and drum line are consistent throughout the song and make the song utterley perfect. Combined with Paul's voice and unusual lyrics, it makes a great choice for a single. NARC is another slower track but i find this track really haunting and the lyrics are beautiful- totally stunning Take You On A Cruise has a great guitar intro. Interpol to a T... Read review

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Advantages: It's better than Down To Earth
Disadvantages: but neither is it really good

...'s time to admit it. I was going to write this review and absolutely take this record to pieces, dissecting each track and saying how awful it was compared to their mid 1970's heyday. However being English and believing in fair play and a sporting chance, I gave it another listen and have to admit it wasn't anywhere near as bad as it sounded the last time I heard it (which was about 1987 in all honesty). Mind you the first track is "I Surrender", aaaahhhhh it's that bloody let's-get-in-an-outside-writer-in-to-get-us-a-top-40-hit malaise that so many early 1980's rock groups had. In this case it is written by Russ Ballard and god do I hate it with its singalong chorus, single note piano line and rhyming surrender with tender...aaaaaggghhhh get it out of my sight now. The next two tracks are much better. Spotlight Kid is one... Read review

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