Feel Free

… and the results are interesting and surprisingly successful.From the first note you know this isn't going to be just another Alarm album. Opening with a twangy guitar you could be mistaken for thinking that Mike Peters has gone country but with the next track, a rock meets rap remake of Grandmaster Flash's classic "The Message" [was this the greatest rap song of all time?], the feel has shifted from Nashville to New York.The title track, "Feel Free" is strong and comes with shades of Tom Petty in the phrasing, after which comes "All Is Forgiven" with its dreamy '60s psychedelia style backing before "My Calling" takes us headlong into Oasis-lite/Lennon-heavy territory with its nasally vocals, singalong chorus, simple yet forceful guitar riff and psychedelic lyrics , a sound that Peters would use extensively with his next album, Rise."Regeneration" opens with a brooding menace before going full-on indie and name-checking Oasis, but with its numerous changes it lacks a real sense of direction and is probably weakest song on the album. "Rip" is another Brit-pop style song before the clock is wound back twenty years for the punky "What Is It For?", propelled by a Ramones beat; if you want to pogo then this is the one for you."Psychological Combat Zone" with its acoustic guitar, Hammond organ, harmonica and Subterranean Homesick Blues beat could have come straight from the Dylan song book and is great for it, however "The Love We Made" is bland Brit-pop and is the other contender for weakest song on the album.But the best has been saved for last: penultimate track "Breathe" is simply beautiful, a classic Alarm song (that meets Bruce Springsteen - try listening to the opening harmonica and first verse without hearing the Boss) and my [current] favourite, if you wanted a new Alarm album then this is the track for you; before closing with the acoustic "Broken Silence", a real stunner in the Alarm folk-rock mould that leaved you wanting more (other versions of the album included a hidden extra track that may have filled the gap, unfortunately mine doesn't).So mixing-it up with country-rock, folk-rock, punk-rock, indie-rock, rock-rock, and rap-rock; Brit-pop and Americana; electric, semi-electric and acoustic, shouldn't work, but it does, and while at times perhaps feeling a little derivative and will have you playing the where-have-I-heard-this-before game this is a simply brilliant collection of songs that work together end-to-end. It may not be the Alarm, but it's a winner.

Great item very happy with the service and with the service

As always, another brilliant album from Mike Peters!

Be aware that this CD is in German and I don't speak German it wasn't a gresat choice! So unless you speak German I would not advise you to buy this CD.