The architects of the great, no classic, Crown Of Thorns self-titled masterpiece are back together again to create the next chapter in their partnership.
Multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter Jean Beauvoir teams with guitarist/songwriter Micki Free to record this album as a duo, with the mission of picking up where the million dollar (literally) CoT debut left off.
After living with this for a while, I say the guys have an album split down the middle between hitting their target with a bullseye, and missing the mark.
Where it works is where the material best resembles the expected Crown Of Thorns sound. The voice of Beauvoir, the fine melodies and groove laden guitar work from Free are a true joy to hear in such well-produced songs such as the opening crunch of Angels Cry; the rolling melodic rock of Shotgun To The Heart (this could have been straight off the debut); the semi-acoustic Never Give Up and the glorious AOR anthem that is It’s Never Too Late. If only every track was as wonderful as this one. The closing There’s No Starting Over is also terrific old-school melodic rock.
The guys deliver a knockout ballad too, well worthy of the Crown Of Thorns name, Just Breathe is the big sentimental, harmony filled power ballad.
Where the guys miss the target for me is when they go off course to explore some bluesier, heavier sounds. Morning After didn’t grab me at all to start, but is saved by the melodic chorus; the garage rock of American Trash is something that doesn’t suit the album and I’m not too hot on Whiplash either, which is more AC/DC than CoT.
Add in a couple of ok tracks and the album seems split between classic and tracks dependent upon a listener’s mood.
In the end it’s great to hear these guys together again and this is going to make a lot of Crown Of Thorns fans happy. There’s a little of the debut here, some Lost Cathedral (their second best opus) and a little of the experimentation that slipped into latter day CoT albums.
All in all – a solid album, but not the classic I was anticipating.
