Reviewed by Tony Bartlett

This is the first solo release from Ian, who has released two previous recordings as part of the band The Visitors, the last of which 'Light And Shade' was released through the Abba fan club. The music is all instrumental and draws heavily on the Mike Oldfield tradition, the first side which is a long track inspired by the birth of lan's first child, invokes memories of Tubular Bells' and 'Hergest Ridge'. The recording is of good quality and shows a strong ability for crafting evocative melody; if there is a concern, it's that the material seems almost too much to be drawn on the style of others. Side two contains four tracks, the third of these "Jackson's Return" has Irish tones; track one "Slick City" sounds like 70s Tangerine Dream material. Considering the Abba connection, it's not surprising to find that one of the tracks "Flight Of Despair" has an Abba feel, drawing on parallels with Abba's track "Eagle". Of the £4.50 price, £2.00 is being donated to the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre For Children.

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