UFO

Covenant

Bonus Disc's live tracks steal the show

Review Score:

(8/10)
This isn't UFO's "finest hour" as one reviewer put it. And it's not a "masterpiece." Nor is it "excellent." This is mediocre music from a band capable of reaching the highest highs possible.

If you want to hear UFO at their best, try Walk on Water, the previous CD that featured the classic UFO line-up of Andy Parker, Michael Schenker, Phil Mogg, Pete Way and Paul Raymond. THAT was a masterpiece.

If you can't find Walk on Water, reach further back into their catalog and buy Phenomenon, Force It, No Heavy Petting, Lights Out, Obsession or Strangers in the Night.

Walk on Water featured some of the most brilliant songwriting I've heard in a long, long time. And the recording was pristine in its sonic quality. What a gem of an album! I would have paid $15 for "Venus," alone. I love that song that much!

Covenenant, on the other hand, sounds muddy and unfocused. Plus, gone are Andy Parker and Paul Raymond. In the drum stool this time is Aynsley Dunbar, a very good drummer formerly with just about every band you can think of. Yet, he's not Andy Parker.

Most of Disc One, all the latest original studio recordings, is unremarkable. The guitars aren't as biting and clear as they were on Walk on Water. And the vocals aren't as Mogg-like. In short, I found myself getting bored with Disc One.

The Bonus Disc, on the other hand, is a lot of fun. And it's primarily for the Bonus Disc that I gave this album four stars.

The Bonus Disc contains seven tracks recently recorded live (listed horribly out of sequence on the back of the CD; listed correctly here): "Mother Mary," "This Kids," "Let it Roll," "Out In the Street," "Venus," "Pushed to the Limit" and "Love to Love."

Even though there are occasional sound drop-offs, mix squeals and uneven mixes, the Bonus Disc has energy and passion. It's very cool to hear classic songs from UFO played live. Even when the whole band isn't there (meaning no Andy Parker and Paul Raymond), they're still head and shoulders above most other bands these days. These songs are magic.

If you're new to UFO, don't start with Covenant. If you're a die-hard fan, as I am, Covenant deserves a place in your collection. But only after you've spent some serious bucks getting everything else they have to offer first.

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