The wonder one

Press, 25 November 1982, Page 18

The wonder one

ALASTAIR RIDDELL "Positive Action” (WEA Z 20027).

After more than three years since his last release, Alastair Riddell lays it on the line. The guitarist, who has a long New Zealand musical pedigree, demonstrates that although he has been quiet recently, he hasn’t changed with the times. The title “Positive Action” sums it up. He has acted positively in bringing out the album, but the question is does it work?

Certainly the songs are bright and the tunes catchy, and at each, play the album as a whole improves, but (and there’s always the but) the heavy reliance on the keyboards, particularly the synthesizer, in the end drags “Positive Action” down. Take “Let Her Know.” Side one, track two, a refreshing song with an upbeat rhythm. Trouble is that if

you stayed up one Sunday morning to watch 30 idiots kick a leather sphere around a Welsh paddock then you may have caught the nuance of this song. It sounds like something Al ‘Stewart has done. “Have a Heart,” the next track, has simple lyrics, with the startling lines, “You’re an . animal You should be caged at night.” But it does not come off either.

The opening track, “Do You Read : Me” is strong enough, and “Finest Dream” is one. of the better songs because it relies more heavily on guitar; However, overall “Positive Action” sounds dated. The nearest approximation would be that it is Numanesque. Although the synthesizer (plus programming) doesn’t dominate, they have enough influence to make the whole album sound processed,

rather than a creative event.

LANDSCAPE “Manhattan Boogie-Woogie" (RCA-Victor NPLI 8028). The new album by. Landscape perhaps give what Alastair Riddell was really trying to achieve. Relying on keyboards, this disco-funk album ties together some diverse sources of music for a reasonably successful conclusion.

Landscape perhaps are pioneers in this field. Led by local lad, Richard Burgess, this band have waited seven years, gradually moving from the jazz-rock field, to both commercial and critical acceptability for their computerised disco music. . “Einstein A Go-Go” was a hit - from the new style album, “From the Tea Rooms of Mars . .'.To the Hell-Holes of Uranus,” and the new album follows this trend up. In a let’s get

physics approach, the title “Manhattan Boogie-Woogie” is about Robert Oppenheimer, the American scientist who helped father the atom bomb. The title track is a successful funky, number, filled with quirky synth lines: It is on a par with the first single from the album, “It’s Not My Real Name.” Its not all disco-funky fever however. “When You Leave Your Lover” is more a ballad. The effect of “Manhattan Boogie-Woogie” is that its sound takes on the qualities of Spandau Ballet, and not surprising, the Tom Tom Club. .s- „ For those not interested in dancing the lyrics., contain' food for thought. It’s a matter of getting- past the jaunty rhythms. The title-track should go down a. treat with a video release, like “Einstein A Go-Go.”

music world

nevin topp