Music reviews. CD reviews. Critically hip!

I came to this album with a certain amount of trepedation.  The artist has been among my favorites for more than twenty-five years, but the last decade has been unkind to the man's voice -- so much so that I was actually more than a bit surprised when first heard that Fish (former frontman for Brit-prog band, Marillion) had a new disc heading to market.  I mean, I watch YouTube... I've seen some of the clips that have found their way up onto the site in the last couple years.  The guy can still pull together a band and pull off the whole cult of personality thing on stage, but let's be honest... his live voice is shot.  And that's sad; Fish has an amazing talent for turning a phrase and, like his voice or not, he was once able to really belt out a tune.  But this isn't a review of what he did before, it's all about what he's doing now... and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. 13th Star was actually released in limited edition form back in September of last year.  For fans who caught one of the first 10,000 copies, there was a companion DVD with some extra swag on board, including a making-of video featuring a chronological look at the creativity process that went into making the album.  For the rest of us, 13th Star was released in February of this year on Chocolate Frog Records.  The cover and sleeve artwork is wonderful, compliments of Mark Wilkinson whose work Fish and Marillion fans alike should be well familiar with as he has been associated with the man and the band since the beginning in the early 1980's.

The mood throughout 13th Star is mostly dark and reflective of the tumult Fish has had to navigate through in the recent past.  Navigating through stormy weather -- relationships, business dealings, career ups and downs -- he has had a lot to cope with and, with personal crisis being the seed for great lyrics, this album will not disappoint in that regard.

What I like about 13th Star is that Fish has managed to keep things within the vocal range he has today, rather than what he had twenty or even ten years ago.  There aren't any attempts to take him out of his comfort zone and, while his comfort zone may be narrower than it was before, he can still carry a tune, bringing his intense and often brooding (on this album
anyway) lyrics to life.  I have to admit I'm not all that crazy about some of the arrangements herein, but what I don't like about them (they're often heavier and more electronica-ized than I would prefer), is probably what will make this album stand out in positive terms to the lion's share of new Fish fans and maybe even the older fans alike. 

Musically, there's enough of the old spark -- and plenty of the lyrical spark -- to make this a worth-while album for Fish fans and also to make this an album that new listeners can grab onto as well.  I've read several reviews of the disc and many of the critics are hailing this as his best work in years.  Regretfully, I can't say I'm on board with heaping that kind of praise on 13th Star.  Sunsets on Empire is, to my ear, the litmus test of Fish's solo career, both musically and lyrically.  That album was pure brilliance from one end to the other.  13th Star has moments of great shine, don't get me wrong, but taken as a whole piece of music there is just no way I can stamp this one with a perfect ten.

The first two tracks, Circle Line and Square Go are examples of the sound I mentioned above -- it's not a bad thing, not outside what might be considered to be the "Fish sound," just not my favorite.  Miles De Besos (Thousands of Kisses) throws a more classic Fish vibe, with the emotional play in the lyrics among his darkest: "Did you think that it meant nothing to me, that when you disappeared I could walk away?  Did you know that you broke my heart and left a scar that never fades away."

Zoe 25 has classic written all over it.  A Cinema Show (Genesis, 1972) for the 21st Century, this song is hands-down the best on 13th Star, and arguably one of the best compositions of his solo career.  Worth the price of admission on its own, I have a new favorite Fish song in Zoe 25!

Open Water features a spoken-word intro and a ballsy melody that reminds me of any of a number of songs from the awesome Sunsets on Empire.  I like the straight-ahead rock-n-roll feel here.  Radio friendly, if there's a single in the ten tracks herein, Open Water might be a good one.  I'd also give a critical nod to Arc of the Curve and Where in the World, both solid songs and indicative of the quality fans expect from Fish.  I was also really impressed with the odd synth and rhythmic program opening of Manchmal, though the rest of the song loses me, as does most if not all of Dark Star which, even with the lyrics on the liner notes open in front of me, seems to go nowhere.

While I can't bring myself to call this Fish's best work, I can't stress enough that this album was a pleasant surprise - it is very good! 13th Star is a solid album -- well produced and peformed and proof that while the years have not been kind to the Scaled One's voice, he can still impress!