release date: Sep. 20, 1985
format: vinyl (207 214) / digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,32]
producer: Wally Brill
label: Virgin Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "Hollow Horse" - 2. "Perambulator" - 3. "Seven Horses" - 5. "Windfall" (live) - 6. "Assumed Sundown" - 10. "Conscience of Kings"
2nd studio album by The Icicle Works, originally released on Beggars Banquet, introduces a broader and more mainstream sound. The band is still the same trio who founded the band. The album is actually not that far from the style of the debut, but somehow it failed. I think, it was all about sound and style. With this the band placed itself among more traditional artists, and what brought them fame in the first place was being part of the new exiting "what's-going-to-be-of-music-after-punk-scene." And here they kind of say: "we don't want part of that. We're playing pop / rock". Now, it still contains some nice tunes, especially the first two and track 5, but without the jangle pop element and with nice hymn-like ballads like "Rapids" (#4) and lesser songs, I soon lost interest.
Considering the time when everything was moving in all sorts of directions: jangle pop, gothic rock, noise rock and the new synthpop scene with post-punk dissolving into art pop and alt. rock there was little room left for more classic compositions like this. It's just too nicely sounding, altogether; and after this I just didn't pay attention to the music of The Icicle Work, which is kind of hard and sad 'cause Ian McNabb and Co. did know how to make music, and this still proves that, although, it's far from a favourite.
[ 👍allmusic.com 3 / 5 stars ]
