Detailed Reviews [Aaron English - 2007 - "The Marriage of the Sun & the Moon"]

Prolusion. "The Marriage of The Sun & the Moon" is the sophomore release from US based artist Aaron ENGLISH, following almost 5 years after his debut CD, "All The Waters of This World".

Analysis. The music on offer this time around, really isn't progressive rock as such. Most songs on this release fit well into an adult contemporary category, quite a few of the tunes sounding like they were written more or less as singer / songwriter tunes on guitar or piano, then fleshed out with other instruments as the song developed. The acoustic guitar and the piano seems to share duties when it comes to outlining the main melody of the songs; with electric guitar licks and synth being given space to do the same on a couple of tracks. Most songs are then flavoured with influences from jazz, folk or world music. The basic songs here kinda remind me a bit of Tom Petty, with some flavouring from world music or folk added. As for the individual songs here, there's variety more in quality than in style. Quite a few tracks sound like fillers for me, 6 of the 12 songs here being nice but average from my point of view. The first tune on the album that makes an impression is Like Smoke, with cool rhythms, eastern influences and a hypnotic chorus really standing out after two more mediocre tracks. Weeping Wind creates a strong mood of darkness and autumn, Me & My Rainshadow is a fragile tune where the mood of loneliness is really given a strong outing, while the ending track Moon Murmurs is something else entirely, transporting you to another place in time and space. However the best tracks on this release are Crossing the Desert Crossing the Sea, as well as an extremely well done cover version of the old Police hit Message In a Bottle.

Conclusion. Both the best tracks are moments of pure brilliance, and in themselves make this release worth buying.

OMB: December 4, 2007