Lead vocalist and main songwriter, Billy Sherwood has been a fixture of the L.A. studio and recording scene since the mid-80's. Billy's talents range from producing a Grammy-nominated album for Paul Rodgers to being the current bass player of Yes, handpicked by Chris Squire to replace him before his untimely death. He also recently joined up with Asia as a replacement for John Wetton after his passing for their current US tour with Journey. Guy Allison (keyboards) and Bruce Gowdy (guitars) , a pair of musicians also known for being behind the awesome melodic rock band Unruly Child, and drummer Mark T. Williams (son of famed composer John Williams and brother of Toto singer Joseph) round out the line-up.
This is band that is going to generate a great deal of column inches just because of who is involved in the recording, but part of me does wonder how much press this would receive if it was by some unknowns. That the harmony vocals and musicianship are of the first order is never in doubt, but I was left feeling that this is far too one-dimensional for me. There is a feeling that there is something missing, almost as if the music has been performed with no passion or soul. Heavily influenced by ‘90125’-era Yes, sadly this isn’t in the same league. I am sure that there will be many out there who disagree with me, but this is too clever for its own good and while I can appreciate all the skills that went into it, there are many other albums I would much rather play.
