THE TEA PARTY: The Ocean At The End (PROGRESSIVE ROCK,Hard Rock): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

First studio album since the band re-formed in 2011, "The ocean at the end" has the merit to start with a strong track with a pronounced Zeppelinian accent (think about "The song remains the same"). After all, what could be more normal from a band that had managed to deliver in 1995 the wonderful "The edges of twilight" furtively reanimating the ghost of the legendary quartet Page/Plant/Bonham/Paul Jones. It's also true that since then, the Canadian trio hadn't been able to find this magic formula composed of heavy rock riffs and oriental influences, all magnified by Jeff Martin's deep voice (somewhere between Jim Morrison and Ian Astbury).

If the spectre of Led Zeppelin is here once again and Jeff Martin's voice still in place, we have to wait for the introduction of 'Cypher' to find the oriental touch that made the success of "the edges of twilight". Anyway, even the cover of a Daniel Lanois track ('The maker') only slightly reduces the tension, before 'Black roses' reanimates Led Zep III with its acoustic guitars and its memorable chorus. The rest of the album continues to deliver a powerful and racy rock before entering the final phase with the title track that will delight, from the top of its 8 minutes, progressive rock fans dreaming of a cross between Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, 'Into the unknown' being the ambient extension of this finale.

With this new album, The Tea Party seems to return to its fundamentals, even if we can regret the lack of oriental music which was an important part of the band's identity in its best achievements. A beautiful rock album to be placed next to "Splendor Solis" and "The edges of twilight". - Official website

THE TEA PARTY

THE OCEAN AT THE END

INSIDEOUT MUSIC

PROGRESSIVE ROCK