Reviewed by Dave Caughey

This is the first volume of Bloodgood's two part live extravaganza which features the band rocking through material from all four of their studio albums, with the added help of actors and dancers. (The latter don't really come off on album!) I must admit to being quite impressed with the sound quality and production although the mix on some songs is a little imbalanced. Last year's 'Out Of The Darkness' was a great disappointment to me personally, lacking the creative input of the band's former guitarist David Zaffiro, however live the newer material sounds a lot better. Unfortunately the band's new guitarist Paul Jackson has a bit of difficulty recreating the Zaffiro guitar solos of the earlier Bloodgood material and overall lacks the touch of the Alaskan maestro. Still, there's plenty here that works. Highlights on this set - the splendid "Alone In Suicide", a somewhat rushed but nonetheless beautiful version of "She's Gone" and the prophetic "Shakin' It". At last a decent live album. I think I'll hop out and get the videos now.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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