MEDICINE MAN - A DARK AND DANGEROUS RHYTHM - 1997

The musical project that was eventually to emerge as Medicine Man was begun by drummer John Bowman back in 1994. So far, the band have released two CD's, this being the second, and a third, provisionally entitled 'Light My Darkness', is in the pipeline. From the beginning Medicine Man have had an interesting and somewhat turbulent history, with many line up changes along the way. In addition to John Bowman, the lineup for this CD also features Nick Martin on guitars, Paul Brown (also of Janison Edge) on bass, Wayne Curcher on keyboards and Paul Wilson on vocals. Produced and engineered at Thin Ice Studios, the album also contains some additional keyboard work from Arena and Pendragon's very own Clive Nolan.

The album in broad terms fits into the progressive category, but the influences seem to be much wider ranging than the traditional prog standards. There are nine tracks in all on this CD and the emphasis concentrates far more on well rounded songs rather than works of epic proportions. The band as a whole take credit for the music while the lyrics are provided by John Bowman, with the exception of 'Look Around' which was written by Paul Brown.

The opening track, 'The Vision' starts with drifting atmospheric sounds which are quickly joined by sweeping keyboards and heavy drum patterns. As soon as Paul Wilson's vocals cut in I was struck by how like his brother Damian he sounds. The vocal sections are well paced and interspersed with slower instrumental passages, while the guitar and keyboard parts are suitably restrained. The style of the song, in parts, is very similar to the sound that Pallas later developed on their "Beat the Drum" album.

'Sell Me the Dream' follows next with its quiet keyboard/bass intro, building slowly as the guitar joins in and then the overall pace picks up further as the percussion starts. The vocal melody is excellent and is supported by some nice keyboard runs. The chorus is quite catchy and enhanced by the use of backing vocals included.

'Frozen Heart' is another great song with a light airy feel to it, making good use of jangly guitar sounds and a forceful rhythm section. 'Take Me Home' is beautifully presented and opens with a quiet piano part augmented by string sounds and sounds of waves breaking. There is also strong use of acoustic guitar to support the vocal melody, which is further emphasised in parts by the backing vocals mirroring the main vocal line. The song builds gently as it progresses and the guitar break towards the final section is really masterfully played.

'Fatal Cure' is very upbeat and has quite a punchy sound to it. For me the backing vocals, singing the song title as a refrain, gives the song a sound that is vaguely reminiscent of Duran Duran's "Wild Boy's". The style of this song is quite different to most of the content on the CD, but the song is a very strong one and it fits in well.

'Morning Runs Quickly' is without a doubt my favourite track. The intro is very mellow sounding and it may sound an odd comparison but it put me in mind of some of Ah-Ha's material. Vocals are superb throughout and define the melody which really holds the attention. The bass line is also very strong and gives the song a real sense of direction while the keyboards, for the most part, are used to create a full background for the track. The chorus is also very catchy and gives the song a real stomp-along feel. After the final repetition of the chorus there is a short, but brilliantly executed, backing vocal section featuring Kelly Hudson and Gill Peachment - great stuff!

In complete contrast 'New Rules' comes over as a fairly straightforward rock song with a much harder edge to it. The song uses some heavier sounding guitar riffs again with a driving bass line and the keyboards again more in evidence.

'Look Around' is a slower paced number with good lyrical content. The instrumental work is excellent and backing vocals are used to good effect in the chorus. Although this is a very good track I am not sure that Paul's voice is best suited for this type of material

The final track on the CD, 'Your News Today', seems to deal with the media presentation of wars. For the most part I did not find this a particularly inspiring piece, especially when compared with some of the other songs on the album, as it seems a little on the plodding side. However, the closing instrumental section is very well put together and quite uplifting which goes some way to make amends.

All in all, I have been very impressed by this album and I have given it a lot of playing time with no signs of tiring of it yet. The songs are all well written and well presented and the sound is both mature and clean. This CD is well worth the investment and, on the strength of it, I am already looking forward to hearing the new album when it arrives.
http://www.elrose.co.uk