Comedy Of Errors - Disobey


COMEDY OF ERRORS
Disobey
(Own release COE001; distributed by ACH Media)

Comedy Of Errors is a band which was active in the late eigthies progressive rock scene. Founded in Glasgow the first incarnation released three democassettes, One Mini-Album and a CD in their five years excistence. The CD contained the demo 24 Hours and the Mini-Album and was released on the disputed Ugum label. After various line-up changes their progressive rock style changes to mainstream hardrock. In the early nineties it seems the band disappered from the stage, and only last year the first signs of a recarnation are mentioned with a possible release of Disobey,their first proper CD. During all those years keyboardplayer Jim Johnson kept writing music and finally found Joe Cairney (vocals) and Mark Spalding (bass, guitar), both members of the first line-up, available to record the album together. Besides them Bruce Levick plays the drums, and Hew Montgomery (Abel Ganz) plays bass on The Student Prince Part 1. Musically they extend the sound of the Mini-Album. Strong compositions with references to other eighties bands, but overall the unique sound of Comedy Of Errors. Although the start of Jekyll refers to IQ, the outtro of Carousel to Castanarc and parts of The Student Prince sounds like Pallas. You could say that the great vocals of Jim Cairney are a great part of that unique style, and the layered lines sound marvelous. The mideval minstrel sound returns in the marvelous instrumental Prelude, Riff And Fugue. But their magnum opus can be found in their four part song The Student Prince, a nearly 26 minutes long tour de force of progressive rock. It starts with the 26 year old Part 1, When Will I See You Again, which sounds more melodic and even better than the original. In this 26 minutes Comedy of Errors show their potention, which is clear, but could never be made by the first line-up. They nearly go over the top at the end of Part 1 with a guitar solo of Spalding, over layers of keyboards and the melodic bass lines of Montgomery. On the other hand they keep it small when Johnson opens Part 3, Foolcircle on piano and Cairney sings the first couplet. Also you see they like to joke with influences when they open part 4, Green Light Coda which starts with a piano melody, that sounds a lot like the theme of Hill Street Blues. The new start of Comedy Of Errors turns out to be excellent and they deliver a beautiful and constant album, which revives their eigthies sound, but sounds so 2011.

Tracks:

Disobey
Jekyll
Prelude, Riff And Fugue
Carousel
American Rodeo
Could Have Been Yesterday
Ailsa's Lullaby
Joke
the Student Prince
Part 1. When Will I see You Again?
Part 2. And So To Bed
Part 3. Foolcircle
Part 4. Green Light Coda

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