Reviewed by Paul Keeble

This band from Poland have a sizeable following in their homeland and this excellent set could bring in new fans for their modern rock sound. It starts well with a few quiet synth chords then breaks into a barrrumph of bass, drum fill and guitar. It gets better and faster with "Twister Of Life" and then after "BC" (Be Careful), "Louder Than Words" pulls things back. This is a rather good power ballad encouraging us to "Hold fast to what is good/Love as brothers should" with lyrics lifted from Paul's exhortations in Romans 12 to bless and not to curse, repay no one with evil for evil, live at peace with all. Subversive stuff then and now and great to hear it in a song (go and read it). The title cut is an atmospheric song going from, er, quiet to loud with lyrics about waiting and hoping: "Oh my God it's real/Yet the wait is long in the night." And so on through the album - strong songs, great playing with lead vocalist Martijn Krale's superbly expressive voice sounding a bit like Bono, especially on "BC", "Angel" and "Follow" (though this may have something to do with the refrain "I will follow"), tight production, enough variation to keep it interesting (including a quirky ending to "Song Of Deliverance" in Dutch) and a classy package. Considering English is presumably not Frühstuck's first language, there are no awkward moments or tortured Eurovision-ish phrases that I can hear, just occasionally a loose word/music fit - as on "BC". Good job chaps, and better lyrical depth and imagery than most UK and USA albums I have reviewed. Example: "Two little coins can shame the upper class/A few small fish can surely feed the mass/Faith dressed up in doubt, a seed so small/Move away mountains, clouds and fears and all" - "Nothing Is Impossible". A surprise near the end is a cover of Led Zeppelin's "That's The Way". That this is perhaps the weakest song on the album only shows how strong Frühstuck's own writing is. Closer "Hope" is also not quite up to the high standard set earlier. Maybe seeing these two as "bonus tracks", with the album proper finishing with "All We Need", would be a better way to view this otherwise excellent and uplifting opus.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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