
ARTIST: World Trade
ALBUM: World Trade
LABEL: Polydor
SERIAL: 839 626-2
YEAR: 1989
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

LINEUP: Billy Sherwood - vocals, bass * Bruce Gowdy - guitars * Guy Allison - keyboards * Mark T Williams - drums
TRACK LISTING: 01 The Painted Corner * 02 The Moment Is Here * 03 Can't Let You Go * 04 Lifetime * 05 Fight To Win * 06 Sense Of Freedom * 07 The Revolution Song * 08 One Last Chance * 09 Wasting Time * 10 Emotional Wasteland * 11 Open The Door
Background
Here's a band lineup to dribble over. Formed from the ashes of the mid eighties prog band Lodgic, and added to it was ex Stone Fury guitar slinger Bruce Gowdy. I'm sure someone has told Billy Sherwood many times before that the world does not need another Chris Squire clone, no matter how much you admire the man. So, there we have it, World Trade, combining elements of their heroes Yes, plus snippets of Saga and Dream Theater, and yes the song structures are complex and in some parts overly drawn out just like the aforementioned bands. They are caught between being a progressive band and a commerical melodic rock band, and I think they miss the mark on both counts. Producer Keith Olsen probably wasn't sure which direction to take with this band, and I think ultimately it shows. In all honsty though, it's a pretty good album, with some definite talent onboard, with drummer Mark T Williams (Lionels Dad), brother of Joseph (Toto), and son of Film Score Composer John.
The Songs
The album intro 'The Painted Corner' is a dark thematic piece, before we venture into 'The Moment Is Here', a superb slower piece which would not be out of place on Yes' 'Big Generator' album. 'Can't Let You Go' is punctuated with some progressive elements while 'Lifetime' is the most commercial and melodic rock oriented, with some rather fluid bass lines by Sherwood. 'Fight To Win' again reflects kindly on the Yes influence, and the next one 'Sense Of Freedom' is a hodge podge arrangement with samples, voiceovers, and keyboards from left and right field from Allison. I quite liked 'The Revolution Song' a darker styled piece of music with a subtle change-up chorus and a ripper of a guitar solo from Gowdy. 'Emotional Wasteland' is another to capture the aural attention, thugh 'Open The Door' and 'One Last Chance' do tend to drift somewhat.
In Summary
The band hung in there long enough to release a second album on the Magna Carta label called 'Euphoria' which was more of the same, though perhaps construed to be more progressive, since they signed with a label better known for it's progressive leanings.
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