Saga
Steel Umbrellas

With the energetic and incredibly dynamic pomp rock of the 1993 album "The Security of Illusion" still ringing in my ears—reflecting the renewed synergy between the core of Saga, represented by singer Michael Sadler and the Chricton brothers, Ian and Jim, respectively guitarist and bassist, along with the returning duo of Jim Gilmour (keyboards) and Steve Negus (drums)—it's quite a disappointment to discover how much less "Steel Umbrellas," released rather unexpectedly just a year later, has to offer.

However, this needs context: both the reduced consistency of this music and the chronological closeness to its predecessor are justified by the fact that this work collects themes meant to serve as the soundtrack for a TV series entitled "Cobra," yet another police saga filled with action, violence, and glossy elegance that managed to run for twenty-two episodes in the winter of 1993/94 before being shelved in favor of other dramas.

In short, the group is hired with a hefty paycheck to comment on scenes and situations of fiction, setting and enhancing them without, of course, being able/required to draw too much attention. The task is carried out very willingly and more than adequately by the five, inevitably smoothing out many note cascades, the pyrotechnic tricks among the musicians, and so forth in favor of clever, albeit banal, songs laced with electronics and melody.

Everyone works with the handbrake on: Gilmour doesn't even occasionally show off his proverbial agility, merely laying down synthetic, atmospheric soundscapes everywhere. Negus keeps time anonymously, without any flair. Ian Chricton's guitar allows itself some flourishes here and there, set in the background by filamentous reverberations and decidedly diminished in its proverbial punch. When it does go into a solo, it quickly exits, within eight or at most sixteen bars. Even singer Michael Sadler plays it safe, relying more on mystery than on grit, often expressing himself in falsetto.

The album is very pleasant, with a Nordic and icy something that is also perfectly suitable for the intended series, whose main character comes from... Alaska. These are commissioned songs, with their inevitable limitations: more work than heart. Naturally, the group has all the class, professionalism, seriousness, and technical preparation well above the norm to get by with full marks, but Saga can be/do so much more! Thus, the album is one of the nadirs of their career, one could say their "Obscured by Clouds" to find a popular Pink Floyd analogy.

No memorable songs; the best are "Why Not?" as the opener, the alluring ballad "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," the closing "Feed the Fire," but above all, without a doubt, the infectious "Shake that Tree," complete with female backing vocals in the chorus, a pop half-gem worthy of mention. Bassist Jim Chricton produces for the first time, still helped by the rest of the group on this occasion: it's a novelty, but it will become the norm from this work onwards.