Jim Kirkwood The Gates of Horn and Ivory Play: Lo-Fi   Mid-Fi   Hi-Fi   Download: Lo-Fi   Mid-Fi   Hi-Fi (Excerpt from track 'Tangerine Dreams')

Thanks for Trevor Newman for clarifying that this CD comprises of tracks from the cassettes 'Castles Of Sand', 'Through A Dark Glass' and 'Lord Of The Dreaming'. Stylistically if you like 'Tower of Darkness' you will like this.

'The Heruplex' appears out of swirling sounds and effects bringing up visions of strange deserted alien landscapes (or Sheffield Wednesday's terraces on a Saturday afternoon). A tinkling sequence comes in and the atmospherics fade away. String sounds swell and the occasional drum flourish can be heard in the background. Another deeper sequence comes in and very slowly the track begins to develop as more and more layers are added. Just before the half way mark we get a typical "call to arms" type lead line. The percussion comes crashing in and the excitement builds. More drums are added and we hurtle forwards. The mood changes with five minutes to go as we get an uneasy break in the mayhem though the pace soon quickens again giving us an exciting finish. Deep demonic voices introduce us to 'Annulet', the ground starts to boil.

A ping pong type sequence bounces over the top and a shuffling rhythm made me think of some weird creature in a Sci Fi film. Brass sounding leads are now added giving the piece a triumphal air. More sequences are thrown in and a new searing melody blasts from the speakers. Its all rather intense stuff but if you are a Kirkwood fan you will be used to his way OTT style. Jim can be subtle when he wants to but that isn't a quality particularly displayed here. A chaos of sounds rises up and all is submerged beneath in a sea of dark multi layered pads with faint rumbles underneath. The track ends in bright optimistic mode, the sequences are more playful and the melodic pads have an angelic quality to them.

'Lord of the Dreaming' begins with the sound of large doors slamming in the depths of hell then all of a sudden another charging over the hills sequence and drum combination erupts into life. The leads are either delicate or laser sharp but of whatever variety they are always highly effective carrying you along with them. Pictures of quirky awkward aliens again come to mind for the second half of the track. This is the most unique section of the album and highly effective it is too.

A deep melodic motif and crashing drums add a more ominous edge. 'The Challenge' begins with the sound of the wind and a horn being blown from the top of some barren hill. Either we hear an echo or the call is answered from far away. We then get a delicate lead line and a melodic sequence. As we have come to expect by now the pace then quickens and we return to 'battle' mode. Axes at dawn, that sort of thing. We finish with the very originally titled 'Tangerine Dreams' (!) We get another fast tempo optimistic number ending the album on a high.