Christina – “Broken Lives & Bleeding Hearts” (2010)
Label : Tigermoth Records
Review by Tony Cannella
Christina Booth is the lead singer for the UK prog rock outfit Magenta. On her new solo album “Broken Lives & Bleeding Hearts”, Christina’s Magenta band mate Rob Reed co-wrote, produced, mixed, engineered and also plays piano, bass, keyboards and guitars. So with Rob Reed’s large input, you would think that Christina’s solo album would sound like Magenta. While there are some bits and pieces that may remind fans of Magenta, there is also enough to differentiate the two. “Broken Lives…” features a more organic sound than Magenta and eschews the progressive direction of that band, for the most part. Instead, you will hear influences that range from pop, rock to jazz. Despite all of the fine guests who appear on this album, it is also unmistakably Christina’s album. Christina Booth has got an excellent and expressive voice – that goes without saying, and on “Broken Lives…” she gets to show off a different side to her musically. “Free” is the first indication that this is something a little bit different than her current band. This is a strong almost jazz-y opener with a Gospel choir near the end of the song. “Way Back to My Heart” has a smooth vibe to it. The production provided by Rob Reed is crystal clear with extra emphasis being placed on the vocals of course. Songs like “Deep Oceans”, the acoustically driven, up-tempo “Hanging by a Thread” (an excellent song and my favorite – great lyrics, too!) and the bass heavy “Down to the River” are all special songs and highlights. Fans of Magenta may love this album, then again they may not. Sure, “Broken Lives & Bleeding Hearts” is different from Magenta, but what would be the point of doing a solo album if it sounds like her current band?
Rating – 75/100
Tracklist
- Free
- Way Back to My Heart
- Deep Oceans
- Hanging by a Thread
- Tales of Broken Hearts
- Helen’s Song
- Down to the River
- Do or Die
- Reel Life
- Immorality
- Deep Ocean (Jem Godfrey re-mix)
Line Up
- Christina Booth – Vocals
- Steve Bi samo – Lead Vocals on “Immortality” & Backing Vocals
- Fran Brimble – Backing Vocals
- Chris Fry – Classical & Acoustic Guitars
- John Mitchell – Guitar
- Troy Donockley – Uillean Pipes
- Rob Reed – Keyboards, Bass, Acoustic & Electric Guitars
- Andy Couglan – Fretless Bass
- Ryan Aston – Drums
- Kieran Bailey – Drums
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The Reasoning – “Adverse Chamber” (2010)
Label : Comet Music
Review by Luisa Mercier
“Adverse Camber” is the third release of the British band The Reasoning. It is quite short, about 40 minutes of music, and it is released in a context, the UK prog scene which is quite fertile. The members of The Reasoning have been or still are part of other prog bands: bass guitar player Matthew Cohen for example, was part of Magenta before he formed The Reasoning in 2005. Lead vocalist Rachel Jones married with Matthew and therefore is currently known as Rachel Cohen. The overall sound is heavier than in their previous releases; in the opener “Diamond and Leather” you can hear that the guitars are quite aggressive, the same in “The Nobody Effect” and “14″ the last song, although they never step out of the rock territories. The quality of the record is very high, it is not a revolutionary album which will change forever the prog rock scene, but it is enjoyable and catchy enough to stay in your favorite music player for a while. Let us say that is a good compromise between prog madness and catchyness; all graced by the skilled vocals of Rachel.
Rating – 70/100
Tracklist
- Diamonds and Leather
- The Nobody Effect
- The Thirteenth Hour
- Through the Now
- Script-Switch Trigger
- 14
Line Up
- Rachel Cohen – Vocals & percussion
- Dylan Thompson – Vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar & mandolin
- Matthew Cohen – Bass guitar, backing vocals, mandolin & percussion
- Maria Owen – Vocals
- Tony Turrel – Keyboards & backing vocals
- Owain Roberts – Electric guitar
- Jake Bradford-Sharp – Drums & percussion
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