Artist: Phenomena
Label: Escape Music
Release: 2006
Rating: 3/5
The news has been making the rounds for a long time. Almost too long. Well, 14 years after the release of “III. – Inner Vision” (1992), we’ve finally got the fourth chapter of Tom Galley’s fantasy project about the eternal phenomenon of good and evil coexisting and their fatal attraction to each other. This bunch of musicians can’t boast a lineup like the “all-star” crew from the perfect debut “I – Phenomena” (1985), which true connoisseurs still count as one of the classics of melodic hard rock. But hey, times are just different for rock these days. Still, the album that came out is once again more than worthy of its name. It was written two years ago in this form, but the recording dragged on the way these things do.
The first shock is the production, right off the bat. It’s much more raw and alive, and guitar riffs absolutely take priority over every other instrument, as the opening Sunrise (not an Uriah Heep cover!) announces straight away. “IV. – Psycho Fantasy” is therefore the heaviest Phenomena album so far, yet one of its core directives is to keep the strictly melodic dimension that marks all of its predecessors too. Across all the songs we can once again revel in the splendor of the singers’ dizzying vocal acrobatics! Naturally, Glenn Hughes (ex-Black Sabbath, ex-Trapeze, ex-Deep Purple, HTP) stands out here, once again ruling the roost among the vocalists on “Psychofantasy”. Touch My Life and Higher are a pair of excellent “hard rocking killers” with a beefed-up “main riff power drive”, and Hughes’ vocals lift both tracks to that ultimate level in the search for the perfect combination within this genre, where you just say at the very first “beat”: “That’s it!”
The songs that tie in most beautifully with the Phenomena doctrine are perhaps Chemical High, sung by Tony Martin (ex – Black Sabbath), and 60 Seconds, where Tom Galley manages to conjure up the familiar Phenomena magic in a romantic, classicist style. The vocal lines, the excellent backing vocals and the atmosphere lead straight into the world of Phenomena. 60 Seconds stands out for its exceptional orchestral string arrangements, which, alongside the “riffing”, create a big sound with a magically grandiose vibe. The album loses a bit of consistency with the unimpressive, repetitive chorus of Crazy Grooves and the forced vocal barking in the pre-chorus of Killing For The Thrill. Otherwise it’s adorned throughout with a striking helping of big vocals, excellent, polished guitar “riffs”, a rock-solid rhythm section, juicy soloing and, as already mentioned, lovely orchestrations and tasteful “synthesizer” lines that give Phenomena the wings and the magical atmosphere it needs. The tracks also bring nice mood shifts, motif variations and, in places, even a touch of unpredictability. A case in point is How Do You Feel (vocals by Glenn Hughes), which impresses in particular: it opens up steely as hell, then the atmosphere flips completely upside down in the chorus, softened and flooded by multi-harmonies of vocals, with Hughes’ unique soul feel shining in the lead role. The album closes with the short and punchy God Forgives, whose chorus carries a few more “darker” (obscure) lines, and the presence of Tony’s unique vocals only deepens that gloomy “feel”! The song is tailor-made for Tony Martin!
With “Psycho Fantasy”, Tom Galley has managed to stay true to Phenomena, though you can tell the songs on the record went through a long road of transformation and evolution, because for all their polish they also have a good measure of colorful freshness. The album is an excellent new saga of flirtation between the rational and the irrational, which was always Galley’s challenge in shaping the Phenomena concept. After all, Phenomena is really a phenomenon of these two worlds. The moods are romantically dreamy in places, and in others nicely grounded with eruptive, classic “hard rock” guitar work. Let’s just hope we won’t have to wait another 14 years for part five!
Lineup
Glenn Hughes – vocals
Tony Martin – vocals
Keith Murrell – vocals
Lee Small – vocals
Matt Morton – vocals
Joy Strachan – vocals
Pete Howerth – backing vocals
Keith Murrell – backing vocals
Mel Galley – guitar
Andy Shortland – guitar
J.J. Marsh – guitar
Ian Rowlands – keyboards
Tom Brown – keyboards
Rumen Boyadgiev – string arrangements
Richard Lymn – bass guitar
Orlin Radinsky – drums
Production
Tom Galley
Track list
1. Sunrise
2. Touch My Life
3. Killing For The Thrill
4. So Near So Far
5. Chemical High
6. Higher
7. 60 Seconds
8. Crazy Grooves
9. How Do You Feel
10. All That I Need
11. God Forgives
Album length: 47:06
