You would think an album from "LC" would follow in the traditions of studiomate Ken Tamplin. It does. But where Lanny takes his album one step further is towards more instrumental rock than Tamplin did on An Axe to Grind. Every track on the CD points to the incredible talent Lanny has to turn the instrument into the vehicle to take you from rockin' with the top down while cruisin,' then the next track to a high mountain in Tibet listening to various sounds you didn't think could be included on a compilation such as this. Maybe this is Lanny trying new directions, trying different sounds, but many of the tracks have never been included. The shortness of selections such as "Ish Kabibill", "Birenbau", "Zulu Jam", "Neesh Taps", "Django", "Sadako", "Fripp", etc. makes the listener wonder where the rest of the song went to. Just when you start to enjoy the selections, they fade off, or end without an ending. Some of the selections sound like they are from old Twilight Zone soundtracks, not the type of thing you would expect from a Christian rock album. This type of musical interruption makes the album lack consistency and direction. It's a mix of rock, classical, Spanish, folk, and it's not the type of thing you can casually listen to. Every track changes form, you never know what to expect. The high points are "Angry Candy", "Marriage of Figaro" (which should have been called "Rock Me Amadeus," but I think that title was taken already), "Shadows Over My Heart", and "All the Things You Are" (sounds like another Tamplin track, doesn't it?) Any low points are the tracks that are less than two minutes long, of which there are 14. For you radio dudes, "Shadow Over My Heart" is the obvious choice, since it's the only vocal cut on the CD. But don't stop there, check out "Angry Candy", "Plymouth Rock", "Jabberwocky", and "Echo Boy". They are all Lanny at his best. Electric Warrior, Acoustic Saint is the perfect title for the album. Perhaps it should have been a two-CD set, One--all electric, Two--all acoustic. This would have given him enough studio time to develop some of those musical interludes that fade off before they have a chance to start. Overall, the CD is an interesting 72-minute excursion, and Cordola fans won't be let down. It's a taste of the best, which is yet to come.
Similar sounding releases
2003Charlie ReadRead Between the Lines
1999Dave BeegleClear The Tracks
2001Mark ProtusThe Future That Used To Be
1996Phil Keaggy220
2004Glass HarpStark Raving Jams
2002Fourth EstateDustbuster Demos
