SNOWY WHITE & THE WHITE FLAMES: Restless 2002 Hypertension

Once again I admit that this isn't really progressive rock, although one might easily label Snowy White's music as progressive blues rock, progressive in the sense that it uses structures and arrangements, as well as a sometimes almost psychedelic free-formedness, that are uncommon to regular blues. On top of that Snowy is a figure of major interest to those people following Pink Floyd and Roger Waters. Not only did Snowy act as additional guitarist during Pink Floyd's 77 tour and several concerts for The Wall, he also appeared with Roger Waters at the Wall show in Berlin (being one of the people that saved the show from becoming a complete has-beens horror) and Waters' In the Flesh live tours during the last 3 years.
Many people who have seen Roger Waters live recently have complained about the guitarists not being able to compete with David Gilmour. Well, that might be true but I for one can assure you that imitating Gilmour would be the last thing that Snowy would want to do. If you hire Mr. White you'll get Mr. White and not some surrogate Gilmour. That might be to the dislike of many people, but for me the sound of Snowy's solos sounded very nice and familiar. When playing this new album to one of the other DPRP team members, he said ´This is pretty good, why didn't he play like this at the Waters' show ?'. Well, he did, but you were hoping for a Gilmour sound.
More than ever, the style of Snowy's playing reminds me of Mark Knopfler and the Dire Straits. Another good reference would be Andy Latimer's play on Rajaz (the track); if you like that guitar solo you definitely have to check out some of Snowy's work. As with his previous 4 studio albums, Snowy is once again joined by Dutch rhythm section Juan van Emmerloot (drums) and Walter Latupeirissa (both also play in a band called King Popta). Both gents have already proven their high musical qualities on those albums and their spectacular live gigs (besides being very likeable chaps).
Another good thing about the album is the return of John 'Rabbit' Bundrick on Hammond (and Grand Piano) on most. Rabbit has previously added some great organ sounds on Snowy's albums Highway to the Sun (94) and No Faith Required (96) but had unfortunately been absent from the line-up on Little Wing (98) and Keep Out We Are Toxic (99). Although Snowy, Walter and Juan have proven to be able to rock out with the three of them (ask anybody who ever went to see them live), Rabbit's organs add that necessary extra bit of atmosphere.
Another great addition to the overall sound of the album are Jody Linscott and Thomas White on various percussion instruments. Let's have a look at the individual tracks. Blues is the Road is a nice groovy toe-tapper in true Snowy style not unlike some of the songs on Highway to the Sun. The Time Has Come is a remake of a song from the Highway to the Sun album. The main difference is the percussion, making this an even more laid-back ballad than the original. Still, it sort of escapes me why this remake was necessary.
The track order for track 3 and 4 is incorrect. The song that is referred to as Restless is actually the short Restless Too (and the other way around). Restless Too sounds like a spontaneous studio jam and therefore reminds me of Snowy's free-formed live performances. It ends with one of the sharpest guitar solos on the album and some great percussion. Restless, written by Snowy and Juan, is one of the best tracks on the album. It's got it all: groovy bass-line by Juan, great percussion, fine tension-building, lots of weird breaks and of course great guitar work. This is one of the tracks that reminds me most of the No Faith Required period. Rightfully the title track of the album. You Can´t Break My Heart is another bluesy ballad. Nice but nothing special and being this close to The Time Has Come makes it sound a bit overdone. Fortunately the next track offers a chance to rock out; It´s Your Life is a more powerful up-tempo track with a great guitar riff.
On to the next track, Softly, or as a matter of fact, let's just skip that one since it's an enormously boring slow instrumental with Knopfler-style playing (as in some of his movie scores). Definitely the least interesting song on the album (unless you like Earl Klugh).
Soldier of Fortune starts as a ballad but soon moves into a long spooky experimental section, featuring both electric and Spanish guitars. Again, this reminds me of the free-formed live renditions of some of the No Faith Required material. In the last part of the song we return to the initial ballad melody. The only complaint I have about this song is the feeling of anti-climax you're left with when the song ends. As many of the classic long songs by Snowy it seems to work towards a roaring climax, which never really happens.
The second instrumental of the album, New Day ... Maybe, is much better than Softly. More groovy bass, fine African percussion, washes of synths and an overall very mysterious mood. Jungle expedition music ! Not unlike Slave Labour on No Faith Required.
The closing track Too Far Away is another long one. It's one of those songs where the lyrics are more spoken than sung. The atmospheric first half does not feature any drums, but lots of percussion. Drums kick in gently half-way through the song and in the end we do get a fine climatic guitar solo. Fine track ! Snowy´s previous album Keep Out We Are Toxic, though enjoyable, never reached the same level as Highway to the Sun, Little Wing and the brilliant No Faith Required (his best album so far, as far as I'm concerned). Restless is not on par with these classics either, but compares to Keep Out ... it is a step back in the right direction. Still, overall the album sounds a bit too tame and the moments where the band really rocks out are too sparse. Best tracks: Blues is the Road, Restless, Too Far Away. There are two versions of this CD, the one by Hypertension I reviewed and another version by some Portuguese label featuring an enhanced section with a video presentation and different pictures in the package.

Tracks:
1. Blues Is the Road
2. Time Has Come
3. Restless
4. Restless Too
5. You Can't Break My Heart
6. It's Your Life
7. Softly
8. Soldier of Fortune
9. New Day...Maybe
10. Too Far Away

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