Styx
Edge Of The Century

THE REVIEW

Released in 1990, this "End of the Century" is the eleventh album by the Illinois quintet, initially dedicated to AOR with strong progressive hues, with a penchant for musicals and concept albums mid-career, and then ultimately settling into an elegant AOR, occasionally remarkable but generally far from essential. This might even be their best work career-wise. No, I'm exaggerating... but it definitely is from a sound perspective: it sounds amazing!

There is a new face in the lineup: one of the founding fathers, guitarist, singer, and composer Tommy Shaw, has packed his bags, and in his place, a much more energetic and straightforward musician, less cloying and predictable, named Glenn Burtnik was recruited. It’s he who wakes the group up, quite dazed after the absurd theatrical tour and the quarrels following the previous work "Kilroy Was Here," a very difficult plasticy mass to swallow. Glen plays and sings directly, without the slightest affectation or rhetoric, with a sharp and very un-Styx-like voice, and his contributions to the album are crucial in bringing fresh air and healthy dryness to the music. Of the four pieces he composed and sang, the initial "Love Is The Ritual," a syncopated hard rock with sung-out choruses, stands out, followed by the hypnotic disco rock song that titles the album, and the acoustic and intimate "All In A Day's Work."

Less effective, however, is the final contribution "World Tonite." The keyboardist and singer Dennis De Young, invigorated by the new competition, goes the extra mile in "Show Me The Way" to be the patriotic and God-fearing American, to the point where the song ends up being the soundtrack to a Gulf War propaganda short film. Great stuff, but still... in the United States, it's very famous, pompous, and obtuse as it is. Once past this hurdle, the rest of Dennis's romantic contributions range from the excellent ballad "Love At First Sight," a peak of the album and among the best in the AOR genre, sung superbly, to the honest other ballad "Carrie Ann," to the counterproductive final homage to his own city "Back To Chicago," a Queen-like mess where emphasis dominates and there’s no stinting on brass sections. There is also the third composer and lead guitarist in action, the almost albino blonde James Young, who puts his two cents on a cover "Not Dead Yet" and then writes along with De Young and performs the rocking "Homewrecker." In the rhythm section, the Panozzo twins evolve once more together for the last time, shortly thereafter both facing major health issues.

The album, as mentioned before, benefits from a powerful and sonorous production, kudos to Dennis De Young and the sound engineer who assisted him. Not everything shines, in fact, a couple of episodes are almost annoying, but the best work by Burtnik and De Young is worth getting to know.