01	Winter Mountain						06:55
	02	This Great Blue Pearl						05:41
	03	Pieces of Love						04:15
	04	Please						06:10
	05	Evergreen						08:00
	06	Styhead Tam						03:32
	07	Shindig						03:07
	08	Blakey Ridge/When Waters Meet						02:12
	09	Underneath the Ice						03:49
	10	Through the Window						04:41
	11	The Spirit of Autumn Past (part I)						02:43
	12	The Spirit of Autumn Past (part II)						06:30
	13	The Gap Is Too Wide						11:37

Bryan Josh - vocals, lead guitars, six & 12 string acoustics, E-bow
Heather Findlay - vocals, six & 12 string acoustics, bodhran, tambourine
Iain Jennings - vocals, keyboards, hammond
Bob Faulds - violins, 5 string Zeta violin
Liam Davidson - vocals, six & 12 string acoustics, electric & slide guitar
Stuart Carver - bass guitar
Angela Goldthorpe - flute & whistles
Rob McNeil - drums

Guest musicians:
Troy Donockley - uilleann pipes (The Gap Is Too Wide)
The Christchurch Singers including the family and close friends of Susan Jennings (The Gap Is Too Wide)
Marissa Claughn - cello (The Gap Is Too Wide & Through The Window)

Produced by Spence/Josh/Jennings/Findlay
Cover design by Chris Sands


The ProgFarm2000 festival gave me one big surprise: a british band called MOSTLY AUTUMN. MOSTLY AUTUMN play rock-focussed progressive rock with folk-rock influences. The powerful opener Winter mountain shows the heavy side of this band , the second track This great blue pearl shows the other side ... soft, calm and beautiful rock. One of the key components of MOSTLY AUTUMN is the combination of male and female vocals and the music which comes straight from the heart (especially seeing them live). Songs like the great Evergreen, the tremendously growing Please, the ambient Styhead Tarn or the joyful folkrocker Shindig sound like PORCUPINE TREE having exchanged their alternative components by folk rock components and having lost a bit of their speed. Unfortunately the last songs of the album are not that convincing anymore as there are no peaks to be found but luckily the last track The gap is too wide gives you an 5 minute epic instrumental progrock-folkrock part and so everything is o.k. again. Nethertheless a good and very interesting album due to the mix of rock, prog and celtic folk. 6 points

Mostly Autumn - The Spirit Of Autumn Past

Summary
The second album of this band following quickly in the Cyclops catalogue. Some small changes in line-up, but nothing very important. The album does feature Troy Donockley of Iona on The Gap Is Too Wide.

The music
The second album continues where the first left off, with the guitar solo of The Night Sky. After a small while however we get into Winter Mountain. The song definitely sounds folky, but now with more rocky vocals of Findlay and Josh. A good amalgam of rock and folk. Then we move into an acoustic part, that builds up a kind of expectation and we get back to the upbeat first part of the track with heavy rhythm guitars and some nice highpitched soloing on the keyboards. A heavy organic piece, with a tremendous concluding part. This Great Blue Pearl is a nostalgic sounding piece with a strong organ presence. For some reason I'm reminded of Genesis here, probably because of the atmosphere. A varied track, but rather straightforward. Some striking vocal melodies here. I am not sure about all these double male/female vocals, I think the music would come out better when a more varied, alternating aprroach would be taken. The "2000 years and many..." bridge is very good though. A good guitar solo rounds it all off. Pieces Of Love is an acoustic piece, a good idea after two of these loud tracks. This piece is sung by Findlay and a good track it is. Somewhat in the style of All About Eve (but what isn't if it is in this style?). The melancholy intermezzo is for the violin. After a rather quiet vocal intro, Please picks up a bit of pace. Josh sings this by himself and his voice isn't great. However, I don't mind that at all. This track is of the very catchy, emotional type. Evergreen is a long flowing piece, melancholic and well sung by Findlay. The song closes with a furious guitarsolo. Styhead Tarn is an "instrumental", a bit of a percussive, laid back one with a single repeated line of text. Shindig is the folky influence coming in in a track written by Faulds. Lots of violin, but also quite a lot of flute and percussion and guitar coming in towards the end. After the short part acoustic part melodically violinic Blakey Ridge/When Waters Meet we move into Underneath The Ice. After three instrumentals, this is the first vocal track. Somewhat celtic melodically, this is a bit of a willowy track with acoustics and synths in the background. A bit repetitive. Through The Window is a melodic singersongwriter track. A bit mellow maybe and rather straightforward, but After a clear, introspective part 1 of the titletrack we come to the vocal second part. Again a very memorable chorus in this one and some terrific violin and at the end a great fade out with piano, mesmerizing guitar and driving drums. The closer is a track by Jennings and it is also the longest track by far. The Gap Is Too Wide opens in a melancholy fashion with violin and flute. The song takes some time getting underway, being built up very slowly, until as a river unto a lake we come to the choral part. Goosebumps here. The song ends with the Uilleann pipes of Troy Donockley.

Conclusion
Comapred to the previous album, this seems a more balanced and integrated album (especially inthe division between folk en prog). All the songs are at least okay, most of those are good and some melodies and passages are really terrific. After the instrumentals in the middle, the album has some trouble getting underway again. At their best in the loud organic parts, this is a very satisfying album with quite a few highpoints.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Mostly Autumn / Karnataka at HLC - 12/5/01


A warm CRS audience welcomed Karnataka and Mostly Autumn for their double headline gig at HLC Rotherham on 12 May 2001. The acclaimed bands received Best New Band and their singers Best Female Vocalist awards in 2000 and 1999 respectively, likely contributing to the overwhelming response with advance ticket sales exceeding 200 and the show selling out by all CRS measures.

Three hours of live music was extremely well received as both bands drew thunderous applause from the audience following each of their songs and at the conclusions of their sets. A powerful sound system faithfully reproduced every note and four brilliant lighting rigs added significantly to the electric mood of the evening.

Karnataka last played at the HLC in July 2000 and they were first up at this performance. Over the last year they have played extensively around the UK, were featured on Radio 2 by Bob Harris and they completed a European tour earlier this year supporting Porcupine Tree. The band have developed significantly, becoming more cohesive on stage, confident in the quality of their music and innovative in their newest material.

Paul Davies' has clearly found his own sound, expanding his signature rapidfire electric guitar solos with original melodies and rhythm parts. Jonathon Edwards' keyboard passages and symphonic arrangements are clearly featured, enhanced with the recent addition of a Korg Trinity. Acoustic guitar passages performed by Ian Jones are more pronounced while his Yes-style bass playing and Gavin Griffith's drumming are extremely tight. Steve Simmons returned with impressive sax arrangements on two of the band's numbers.

Karnataka's thirteen track set opened with "Where The Story Ends," an all-new progressive track that balances Rachel Jones' stunning vocals with highly accomplished keyboard- and guitar-based lead instrumentals. An excellent concert in the run up to several major London gigs and their new album, the new ballad-come-rockers "Strange Behaviour" and "The Right Time" and an epic progressive track "7/8"-the working title commemorating its time signature-were also featured. Karnataka classics were tightly performed with Rachel's soaring vocals and dynamic stage act underpinned by often reworked instrumental arrangements with solos clearly showing the range and extent of the individual band members' musical virtuosity.

Rachel was joined on stage by Heather Findlay for "Heaven Can Wait." Heather picked bits from several of the recording's original harmony lines and created her own backing vocal arrangement. Rehearsed only once during the soundcheck, the two vocalists blended extremely well on stage, obviously enjoying their first live performance together. Other standouts were "Dreamer," "Writing On The Wall" and the closing number "Tell Me Why." After a long round of applause the band returned to play a renewed arrangement of "Shine" as their encore.

After a short interval, the seven from Mostly Autumn came to the stage. Like Karnataka before them, they drew material from their entire repertoire in this run up to another live performance 30 June at The Mean Fiddler which will be filmed for production of a future DVD. The dramatic stage performance and robust instrumental and vocal arrangements are stronger and more elaborate than their recordings.

Mostly Autumn is fronted by multi-instrumentalist, lead vocalist Heather Findlay and singer, lead guitar player Bryan Josh. Heather's live performance was both visually and acoustically more significant; the audience warmly appreciated her dynamic stage act, where in addition to singing she played high and low whistle, bodrhan, acoustic guitar and tambourine during the set. Mostly Autumn's sound is further personified by Angela Goldthorpe's wonderful flute and recorder parts and backing vocals, Iain Jennings' symphonic keyboards and backing vocals, Liam Davison's rhythm guitar passages, Jonathon Blackmore's crisply-played drum parts and Andy Smith's dramatic bass stage performance. The band were certainly in fine form playing their unique progressive Celtic blend of tracks spanning their three albums.

Many of Mostly Autumn's songs begin with contemporary treatments of Celtic material but develop into full progressive rock splendour with vast instrumental arrangements as they come to a climax. Standouts were "Evergreen," "Dark Before the Dawn"-with Angela's resounding flute and Heather's dynamic whistle parts-from their latest album, and the epic "Sprit of Autumn Past." Uniquely Mostly Autumn progressive arrangements of Celtic jig-like instrumentals, also with wonderful flute and whistle parts, included "Shenanigans" and "Shindig" which was blended with a second reel added as a bonus. The band's unique blend of guitar and keyboard arrangements add tremendous texture to the tracks.

The electric atmosphere of the evening led Mostly Autumn to play one of their favourite Pink Floyd tunes, "Comfortably Numb." Heather's superb performance of the lead vocal part was certainly well received by all. Rachel Jones was invited to the stage to accompany Heather on "Shrinking Violet," an emotive ballad from the band's latest album. Rachel's powerful backing vocal arrangement added a lovely texture to the tune. With wide smiles and looking frequently into each others' eyes, the two vocalists had a great time and worked extremely well together on stage, especially in the vocalise during the song's final passage. After another round of thunderous applause, Mostly Autumn returned to the stage to play a wonderful live rendition of their classic "Heros Never Die."

Both bands returned, filling the stage for a final bow and photos together as the applause concluded. Fans that remained after the performance enjoyed opportunities to meet the artists, purchase their CDs and have them autographed. As one of most successful CRS gigs to date, this was extremely memorable evening for Karnataka, Mostly Autumn and the audience alike! -- Russ Elliot

===============

Mostly Autumn - The Spirit of Autumn Past
Format: CD
Record Label: Cyclops
Catalogue #: CYCL082
Year of Release: 1999

After being stunned by their first album, see above, I was eager to hear their second one. And the little criticism I had with the first (e.g. Heather Findlay not singing enough) was resolved on this one. After the first one, this one is really familiar since the whole construction of the album (where are the uptempo tracks, where are the slow ones, where Celtic, where Floydian) is almost identical.

In the wind that opens the CD, the guitar solo of the last song of the previous album can be heard, indicating that they just continue where they have left on the previous album.Winter Mountain is an uptempo cross between Floyd, recent Marillion and Celtic Rock. This Great Blue Pearl has a " modern Floyd" feel to it, with Jennings playing a cool Hammond. A nice track that ends with one of those by now familiar Gilmour guitar pieces. Findlay does lead vocals on the calm early Genesis-like piece Pieces of Love (think of the quiet Lamb tracks). Then the album goes a bit deeper with the stunning, crying, Please. Intense, with a melancholic powerful chorus not often heard, this song is one of the highlights of the album. Evergreen is a semi-acoustic piece, with Findlay showing the beauty of her voice. In a song of this lenght, compositional quality comes to light. The leaflet of Cyclops gave me a clue: this song reminds a bit of Stairway to Heaven. Indeed, in structure and melancholy it does.

Styhead Tarn is more experimental, with a firm beat and spooky sound effects. The album now enters the Celtic Rock part with violin and flute in Shindig and Blackey Ridge/When the Waters Meet. Underneath the Ice is difficult to put in a corner: a bit hippy-like maybe. Through the Window is again a Celtic/ Rory Gallagher track.

Then things turn to magic: The Spirit of Autumn Past opens with a Wright-like piano track, but intensly quiet and of great beauty. An electric guitar sets in, and a song that is typical of the starts of the last two Floyd albums arises. This flows into part two, that grows into a Dire Straits type of track with a powerful chorus. The last track, an epic called The Gap Is Too Wide is a sad song, in memory of Susan Jennings. A beautiful melody softly takes the listener into another world. Then a choir including friends and family of Susan set in, sending shivers down my spine. The guitar sings its song of sorrow and longing and on top of all Troy Donockley of Iona gives a superb Uilleann pipe solo. Wow.

Intense, almost 70 minutes of beautiful compositions and great musicianship. Mostly Autumn combine Floyd with Celtic music in a natural, non-forced way. Great vocals, guitar and keyboards, need I say more? Go get this album, and the previous one while you're at it! These people can, no should, become big.

Conclusion: 9 out of 10.

Remco Schoenmakers

==================

Mostly Autumn - For All We Shared... & The Spirit Of Autumn Past

Released: 1999
Label: Cyclops
Cat. No.:
Total Time:


Review courtesy John "Bo Bo" Bollenberg
It often rains in England. In fact it rains an awful lot in England! Even in summer you should always have your umbrella with you, as if it's kind of autumn all year round. So Mostly Autumn is a well-chosen name for a collective from the Hull region. By adding violin, bodhran, flute and djembe the band succeeds in adding a lot of folk elements to their original music so that we should be able to speak of the "symphonic Levellers" here. On For All We Shared: we get aquainted to their craftsmanship. Listen to the sublime "The Last Climb" with the strong Pink Floyd guitar solo from Bryan Josh and you can have the rest of the songs giftwrapped as a bonus. What power, what a bunch of fantastic songs and above all what a well oiled band! "Heroes Never Die" sits a bit in between the "old" Marillion and Barclay James Harvest, yet with a bit more zest. The ever-present Celtic influences are extra underlined in the uptempo, playful, instrumental "Folklore." Interestingly, with Mostly Autumn, the vocal parts are nicely interspersed with fresh sounding instrumental songs giving the end product an extra dimension. Throughout the music you'll also hear a big adoration for the music of Pink Floyd, especially the Floyd from the Wish You Were Here and Animals period, which you can clearly hear during "The Night Sky" (just listen to that wonderful guitar!).

Next to this debut, a new album has already been released. The Spirit Of Autumn Past contains the same ingredients and is therefore a logical follow-up to their debut, yet this time around even more time and effort has gone into the arrangements and the total group's sound. They have used singer Heather Findlay's vocal skills even more whilst the compositions are more compact and better thought about. That's why a song like "Please" sounds like a cross between Prefab Sprout and Simple Minds. Extra Celtic atmosphere thanks to the guest appearance of Troy Donockley from Iona fame on Uilleann pipes.

A first class band like Mostly Autumn certainly deserves a first class sleeve to go with their product and not the kind of hastily put together design which is wrapped around their first two albums. Fans of Levellers, Clannad, Iona, Runrig and the likes do know what to order these coming weeks and certainly note the name MOSTLY AUTUMN in thick black marker on every piece of paper they come across!

More about For All We Shared & The Spirit Of Autumn Past:

Track Listing: For All We Shared: Nowhere To Hide (Close My Eyes) / Porcupine Rain / The Last Climb / Heroes Never Die / Folklore / Boundless Ocean / Shenanigans / Steal Away / Out Of The Inn / The Night Sky

The Spirit Of Autumn Past: Winter Mountain / This Great Blue Pearl / Pieces Of Love / Please / Evergreen / Styhead Tarn / Shindig / Blakey Ridge-When Waters Meet / Underneath The Ice / Through The Window / The Spirit Of Autumn Past (Part One ) / The Spirit Of Autumn Past (Part Two ) / The Gap Is Too Wide

Musicians:
Bryan Josh - electric guitar, vocals, e-bow, 6-string and
12-string acoustic guitar
Heather Findlay - vocals, 6-string acoustic guitar, tambourine
Iain Jennings - keyboards, vocals
Liam Davison - electric guitar, vocals, 6-string and
12-string acoustic guitar
Bob Faulds - violins
Stuart Carver - bass
Kev Gibbons - Low whistle, high whistle
Allan Scott - drums (on For All We Shared :)
Rob McNeil - drums (on The Spirit Of Autumn Past)
Angela Goldthorpe - flute
Che - djembe

Contact:


Website: www.mostlyautumn.com
Note: will open new browser window

Email: jean@mostly-autumn.demon.co.uk

Discography

For All We Shared... (199?)
The Spirit Of Autumn Past (1999)
The Last Bright Light (2001)




Mostly Autumn

Reviewed by Ian Oakley

The Spirit of Autumn Past


Track Listing:
1. Winter Mountain
2. This Great Blue Pearl
3. Pieces Of Love
4. Please
5. Evergreen
6. Styhead Tarn
7. Shindig
8. Blakey Ridge / When The Waters Meet
9. Underneath The Ice
10. Through The Windows
11. The Spirit Of Autumn Past (part 1)
12. The Spirit Of Autumn Past (part 2)
13. The Gap Is Too Wide

Bryan Josh - Electric Guitar, Vocals, 6 string + 12 string acoustic,e-bow
Heather Findlay - Vocals, 12 string acoustic, bodhran, tamborine
Iain Jennings - Keyboards, Vocals, Hammond
Liam Davison - Electric and Slide Guitar, Vocals, 6 string + 12 string
acoustic
Bob Faulds - Violins
Stuart Carver - Bass Guitar
Angela Goldthorpe - Flutes and Whistles
Rob McNeil - Drums

At last after months of searching an interesting new UK band!!
John Silverwood of The Flower Kings and Spocks Beard fanzines put me onto this band - So a big thanks to him!

The Spirit of Autumn Past is the second release from Mostly Autumn who hail from Yorkshire, England. As you can see from the above instrumentation line up their music is a very eclectic mix.
I have read elsewhere that this band is simply described as a Celtic Pink Floyd however that is a weak very simple analysis. Bryan Josh does play in a Gilmour type way: soaring Strat straight from the heart and there is large use of Celtic instruments but this band is so much more:.
With a sample and echo from the last track The Night Sky from their debut album, the album opens with the rocker Winter Mountain - At this point add The Levellers to your influence mix. . This Great Blue Pearl introduces a AOR feel to the mix strumming guitars, organ backing and duel lead vocals from Bryan Josh and Heather Findlay.
Pieces Of Love, plucked acoustic guitar, ambient keyboards and violins back Heather's mournful vocal line.
Please continuing with the tinkling ambient keyboard background Bryan's lead vocals that, on this track have that certain Gabriel feel about them. The drums enter about a third in to the number to give it a lift, maybe a bit unnecessary especially as the un-inventive rhythm section does seem to be the weakest point of this band. Anyway, another couple of influences for the mix Gabriel and, with the percussion, very early Marillion. My wife Julie commented that these opening tracks were almost like a "heavy Clannad". So another one for your influence mix.

It is with the next track Evergreen that, to me, the album and Mostly Autumn start to get interesting.
Heather Findlay's very Julianne Regan vocals come to the fore (OK add All about Eve to the mix). A 'Martha's Harbour' opening a riffy 'In The Meadow' like closing (did I also detect Black Sabbaths 'Dirty Women' in there?).
Styhead Tarn follows and for us old UK proggers at this point add Solstice to the mix. Chanting built up over a layer of percussion and textural keyboard climaxing in an acoustic Violin, flute and bodhran reel - Wonderful.
Shindig carrying on in the same Celtic acoustic vain. Blakey Ridge / When The Waters Meet the Floyd influences are very noticeable, here in a 'Grantchester Meadows' way

Through The Windows onwards is to me where we find the real Mostly Autumn sound. To mournful violin and acoustic backing Brian sings about his late Father and his thoughts that he's still around maybe just out of reach So near and so far- just moving on. A heartfelt statement that I didn't realise had affected me until later on::

The next track The Spirit Of Autumn Past Pt1 must be considered as a lament for the loss. Moving, haunting guitar, grand piano and synth strings bliss out. The Spirit Of Autumn Past (part 2) an almost upbeat track I think based on a feeling that although we and time must move on the memories will always remain "Will echo through the hallways and the walls you leave behind".
With gentle acoustic guitar then violin followed by flute the main theme to The Gap Is Too Wide is introduced.
Taken up by Heather Findlay this beautifully written and arranged track, composed by keyboardist Iain Jennings, immediately began to effect me.
I commute to London on the train each day so use the commuting time to listen to review CD's. The theme builds and builds until it reaches a point where it is taken up by a full choir that bursts through the mix - It was at this point that in a packed commuter train the tears started to run down my face.
I lost my Father, Chris, almost 30 years ago when I was 10. The lyrics of the previous songs had made me think about him and the emotion of this glorious piece of music just made me let something go.
After the choir entry the instrumental theme builds to the euphoric climax with Bryan's lead guitar that in turn is taken up on Uilleann Pipes play by Ionas Troy Donockley.


Mostly Autumn are a young new band and it must be expected that their first audio outings will be very influenced by what as past before, but there is something very powerful happening here and with the last few tracks of this album we have been introduced to something very very special.

Christopher John Oakley - I dedicate this moment to you......

To accompany this review John Silverwood has given us special permission to post his interview with Bryan Josh undertaken earlier this year for 'World Of Adventures' Flower Kings fanzine. Please see interview section.

Buy from Cyclops direct : http://www.gft-cyclops.co.uk/
Also available the debut album:-For All We Shared



Ian Oakley 1999







Mostly Autumn - The Last Bright Light Country of Origin: UK
Format: CD
Record Label: Cyclops
Catalogue #: CYCL100
Year of Release: 2001
Time: 71:27
Info: Homepage
Samples: WAVs

Tracklist: ... Just Moving On (1:30), We Come And We Go (4:36), Half The Mountain (5:22), Eyes Of The Forest (4:22), The Dark Before The Dawn (5:10), Hollow (6:08), Prints In The Stone (3:27), The Last Bright Light (8:14), Never The Rainbow (3:48), Shrinking Violet (8:34), Helms Deep (6:45), Which Wood (2:45), Mother Nature (12:09)
With the fading notes of The Gap Is Too Wide of their previous album The Spirit Of Autumn Past the (relatively) new album of Mostly Autumn opens, to enter into a staggeringly sensitive cross over between Floyd and Camel (Ice) in Just Moving On. My prediction in the reviews of their previous albums that this band should become big has so far turned out to be true, as they are constantly growing in popularity, and there are nowadays only few symphonic rock lovers who have not heard their name. This was obvious from the amount of requests we received to review this album (p.s. before giving such requests, please read the FAQ) and finally, at the end of the year, we are able to do so. Their fan base will only grow with this new album, even though I personally find it a touch less emotionally moving and a bit more "calculated" than the previous albums.

The second track We Come And We Go is a good example of this. Very Floydian in nature, but still distinctly different, it is more polished and thought through than the more heart-felt tracks on the previous two albums. But this not true for all tracks, not at all. The next track, Half The Mountain, is already a more melodic oriented track. The strength of the band obviously lies in the fact that it is big, and each individual member is an absolute master at his or her instrument, not (only) in the technical, but especially in the ability to give an emotion to the notes that are played.

The moods on this album are again quite divers, from the up-tempo in for instance We Come And We Go or Never The Rainbow (which has a fantastic drive to it, with a wonderful power-melody) to the more Pastorale in Eyes Of The Forest or Prints In The Stone (which apparently has appeared as a single, and due to the flutes and Celtic sound has a bit of a Titanic Soundtrack feel, but that may be just my corrupted mind). They even experiment with a cross over between more electronic music and their normal brand: Celtic sympho on The Dark Before The Dawn.
The beautiful vocals of Heather Findlay are heard for first time in Hollow, which sounds a bit like a cross between the style of their previous albums and the '80s pop star Black on his Wonderful Life album (not the single!) for those of you who can remember that one. One of the highlights of the album is the title track. Sensitive yet with a bite, a complex composition where Floydian parts are interleaved with a low male choir (not quite Gregorian, but close). The guitar, as always with Mostly Autumn, gives a blistering solo at the end of the track. This ending is the first part on the album where the folk influences are really apparent.

Unlike the previous two albums, there are no truly traditional tracks on the album. Helms Deep is more close to a "traditional track", with its merry melody, toying flutes and joyful playing, but it has a darker undertone as well, as if something bad is about to happen. Nice track! The track Which Wood? with acoustic guitar, flute and drum is the perfect upbeat to the masterpiece of the album, the 12 minute track Mother Nature. The male and female vocals that revolve around each other is a beautiful calm start of the track, before entering a more pompous part, not unlike many Pendragon tracks (including the oeoeoeo-aaaaaa background vocals). The last 6 minutes are one big symphonic orgy: slowly a pounding melody and cracks of thunder lead us to a climax, with a main role for the organs and guitars, a true heir to Gilmour's trown. Yeah, they know how to end an album! (And I want to bet I know how the next album will start!).

Again, I cannot think of any valid criticism on this record, except my personal opinion that Heather did not sing enough and some of the tracks are a bit over-composed, but apart from that: one of the highlights of 2001, for sure.

Conclusion: 8.5 out of 10.

Remco Schoenmakers



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mostly Autumn - The Story So Far Country of Origin: UK
Format: CD
Record Label: Classic Rock Legends
Catalogue #: CRL0833
Year of Release: 2001
Time: 73:57
Info: Homepage
Samples: Listen Here

Tracklist: Porcupine Rain, Nowhere To Hide, The Spirit of Autumn Past, Heroes Never Die, The Night Sky, Dark Before The Dawn, Shrinking Violet, Never The Rainbow, Mother Nature
Mostly Autumn have 3 studio albums under their belts on the Cyclops label: For All We Shared, The Spirit of Autumn Past and the most recent, The Last Bright Light (reviewed above), which was released in the spring of 2001. Since then, they have switched labels to Classic Rock Legends and in June recorded a concert at London's Mean Fiddler for a DVD release. This live CD is a companion to that DVD and features just 10 of the 15 tracks found on the DVD, omitting the purely instrumental and largely Celtic-influenced numbers such as Shindig and Which Wood which are an integral part of their live shows. Nevertheless, even without these numbers, the CD still clocks in at almost 74 minutes long.

The band's current line-up consists of Bryan Josh on lead electric and acoustic guitars, Heather Findlay on vocals and bodhran, Iain Jennings on keyboards, Liam Davison on various guitars, Andy Smith on bass, Jonathan Blackmore on drums and Angela Goldthorpe on flute, whistles and recorders. The lead vocals are handled either by Bryan or by Heather and though most of the band members contribute backing vocals, they were assisted on the occasion of this recording by Rachel Jones of Karnataka as well as Mark Atkinson and Gina Dootson of Gabriel who bring a little extra to tunes like Shrinking Violet.

The facilities available at the Mean Fiddler are top-notch, so it is no surprise that the sound is excellent for a live release with all instruments and voices clearly discernable throughout. No doubt the production expertise of Pip Williams (Moody Blues, Status Quo) had its part to play too.

The first track on the disk, Porcupine Rain, opens, as so many of the tracks do, with some lovely guitar from Bryan before the full band kick in. Unfortunately Heather's voice is not as clear on this track as it is elsewhere but it is a small complaint. As the track ends, Iain Jennings' keys and the guitar form the break into Nowhere To Hide, a stomping number with vocals from Bryan and Heather together. By contrast Evergreen appears to be a quieter number, but that doesn't prevent it from being a live tour-de-force. It builds slowly from acoustic beginnings, as the band members gradually join in and climaxes with a stunning guitar solo from Bryan, but it is really Heather's plaintive vocals throughout which make this a truly memorable tune.


The Spirit of Autumn Past sees Bryan Josh handling the vocals once again. Once again building from a slow start, it features Angela Goldthorpe prominently on flute and some nice piano touches from Iain Jennings. Heroes Never Die, from their first album is dedicated, as always, by Bryan to his father, who passed away a few years ago. Some touching flute and acoustic guitar allied to some great harmonies between Bryan and Heather form the first part of the tune before the remainder of the band join in and the track increases in intensity. Once more Bryan contributes one of his trademark guitar solos to bring the tune to a close.

Continuing with the theme of nature, The Night Sky begins with tinkling keys over samples of wind. There are some nice harmonies between Bryan and Heather before Angela contributes some lovely haunting flute and Bryan some nice acoustic guitar. Then after the instrumental passage the Heather's voice returns, this time with a nice edge to it, before more flute and guitar bring the number to a storming close. The following number, Dark Before The Dawn continues to lift the pace. It is a jaunty number with an almost foot-stomping drum beat, a typically Celtic flute melody overlaid with great harmonies from the female singers and features yet another storming solo.

Staying with material from The Last Bright Light the band drop a couple of gears to play Shrinking Violet. Another of Heather's songs, it begins with her singing over acoustic guitar and woodwind, and builds in intensity as the old band members fill out the sound. The extra backing singers and Bryan's short solo give the tune a little lift too. This version provides ample proof as to why this has become one of the highpoints of the band's set.

Never The Rainbow shows that the band can rock when they want too. The number starts as it means to go on, with Heather again handling the lead vocals. Some great hammond organ too from Iain Jennings and yet another excellent guitar solo. Surprisingly, the final number Mother Nature appears to be much slower. The combination of keyboards and acoustic guitar seem very familiar and Genesis-like and when Bryan and Heather's vocals come in, one is half-expecting the voice of Peter Gabriel. As the tune continues the sound fills out and as the full band enter, it picks up pace and the final section, complete with samples of thunder crashes sees it turn into a real rocker.

The singing and playing is excellent throughout and the choice of material means that all 3 studio albums are equally well represented. Anyone who enjoys a Dave Gilmour guitar solo will find plenty to enjoy in Bryan Josh's playing though I also hear shades of Fleetwood Mac in some of the tunes. Heather Findlay's voice is a joy to hear, Iain Jennings keyboards are always superbly measured and the backing provided by Liam, Andy and Jonathon is not to be underestimated. Angela Goldthorpe's flute brings a nice Celtic touch to their music throughout the disk, but overall the Celtic elements of their music is played down on this disk, mainly through the absence of the pure instrumental numbers. Nevertheless this CD presents a great resume of the band's career so far and a fine testament to their abilities to reproduce their material on stage.

Conclusion: 8 out of 10.
Charlie Farrell