Toyah: Take The
Leap!**
Edsel/Demon, DIAB 8081 Myssstrey
solved as 1994 Japanese album gets UK
release
Toyah's
long-lost album is neither a Smile-style tale of
artistic exasparation (despite its slightly
schizophrenic new and old content) nor, sadly,
much of a mystery. All the same, fans will be
delighted it's finally seen the light of day.
Originally sold at shows on her 1993 tour as a
cassette-only album (simply called Leap!), a CD
version was released in Japan the following year,
but shelved in the UK in favour of Dreamchild's
ambient noodlings.
In
contrast, Take The Leap! is straight-ahead (and
at times borderline goth) rock, recorded in the
wake of a tour with youthful backing band, Friday
Forever. The mish-mash album features six
(predictably indie) new tunes and eight
reworkings of older material, including the
ubiquitous I Wanna Be Free and a woefully weak
It's A Mystery. If anything showcases the
super-tight backing outfit, it's Toyah herself,
whose often weedy vocals don't always fit the
music. Things work better on the ambient Requite
Me and Tears For Elie, two exceptional demos that
appear among this expanded reissue's four bonus
tracks. Steve Adams
Record
Collector
December 2007
Thanks to Zoe Clow
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