Reviewed by James Emmerson

Question: What have the stylishly crafted songs of Gerry Rafferty. the beguiling melodies of Durutti Column and the sheer class of the late, great jazzmeister Bill Evans got in common? Answer: They are currently occupying four of the five slots in my multidisc CD player. So. what to place in the vacant fifth? The above album got the nod. because it needed reviewing, and to be honest it didn't help that I'd been listening to some of my current favourite stuff, because at first I was distinctly unimpressed with 'Electric Fairyland". Several playings later it still hasn't grown on me either. But -I do understand that there are people out there who have sweated blood, and probably spent money they haven't got, to gel this CD produced. So, my thoughts: sounds like a first CD (the band were previously called Shelter and featured way back in CR2I). obviously low budget and with no obvious (or even oblique) Christian message in the lyrics. The musicianship varies in quality and it doesn't help that the first track "Jezebel My Dear" has some decidedly dodgy chord/vocal combinations early on. Generally, the overall sound is a bit washed out, better than 'good demo' standard but needing the clout of either a solid second guitar or a strong bass presence, to give the simplistic chord structures a bit more body. Nice to hear a variety of instruments taking the lead melodies though and the lyrics have obviously had considerable thought put into them. It's always a good achievement to get your first CD out. but there's a fair few rehearsals ahead if the Honey Thieves want to shift serious numbers of future albums.

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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